Clean Energy: A Rebuttal to a Critique

Murray Weidenbaum is a prominent figure in business and government. He served as Assistant Secretary of the Treasury from 1969 to 1971, and in 1981-82 as Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers. His research and teaching interests are government regulation of business, public finance, and economic policy. Weidenbaum is an honorary fellow of the Society of Technical Communication and a fellow of the National Association of Business Economics. His book, Small Wars, Big Defense, was selected by the Association of American Publishers as the outstanding economics book of 1992. His Bamboo Network was a finalist for global business book of the year in 1996. His book, One-Armed Economist: The Intersection of Business and Government was published in 2004. In 2008, The Competition of Ideas: The World of Washington Think Tanks, was published by Transaction Press.  He founded the Center for the Study of American Business at Washington University and directed the Center for many years. The center was renamed in his honor in 2001 to the Murray Weidenbaum Center on the Economy, Government, and Public Policy. Professor Weidenbaum teaches a popular course on business and government. 

The EU and the Energy from the Desert

Pascal Schaefer is a graduate student at the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya. His current research interests are decision-making and legislative responses to organ transplantation. He co-founded a renewable energy firm in the heart of Europe. At Washington University in St. Louis, Mr. Schaefer conducted research in the neuroscience and biophysics departments while earning his undergraduate degree. He has a genuine interest in game theoretical applications and strategic analysis.

Despite a clear roadmap and tremendous commitments to the build up of renewable infrastructure on shore 4 of the 5 largest economies of the EU-27 are currently negotiating an offshore solution in North Africa. While at first sight this initiative appears to go against the EU’s political interest a deeper analysis reveals the opposite is true. Three key rationales drive the poliheuristic decision-making process.

Things one sees from there one may not see from here – Take Two

Dr. Sened is a Professor of Political Science at Washington University in St. Louis, and former chair of the Political Science Department at Washington University. His main interests are comparative theory of institutions, game theory and mathematical modeling. Dr. Sened teaches Undergraduate and Graduate level courses in the Political Science Department.

In this second in a series of three posts, we review the vision of Dr. Rolf Wuestenhagen, the Good Energies Chair for Management of Renewable Energies at the Business School of The University of St. Gallen in Switzerland.  We apologize for posting this a little later than earlier expected/promised.  Besides being visionary and insightful, we highlight how different this approach and attitudes more generally towards clean energy in Europe compare to those we are more commonly exposed to here in the U.S. In the previous post we discussed the origin of these differences and the policy consequences they entail.  In this post we want to talk more of the essence of the argument and what it means.

Dvarim Sheroim Misham Lo Roim Mikan, aka - “Things we see from there one cannot see from here.”

Dr. Sened is a Professor of Political Science at Washington University in St. Louis, and former chair of the Political Science Department at Washington University. His main interests are comparative theory of institutions, game theory and mathematical modeling. Dr. Sened teaches Undergraduate and Graduate level courses in the Political Science Department.

In a series of three posts, starting with this one, we will explore, this week the very different approach and attitudes towards clean energy in Europe as compared to shoe we are more commonly exposed to here in the U.S.  Besides some observations regarding these difference we will also discuss the origin of these difference and the policy consequences they entail.

How Much Gas Does It Take To Fly You?

Max Wenneker is a miles, points, and travel blogger from Boston. As a recent graduate of Washington University in St. Louis, he currently works for a consumer finance firm in Washington D.C. and dreams one day of running an airline.

In this piece, Max Wenneker looks at both the environmental and economic cost of flying. Commercial airliners use massive amounts of fuel that is not only expensive, but also results in significant emissions of greenhouse gases, contributing measurable harm to the environment.  

More Good News - Legislation on Energy Efficiency

Alex Bluestone is a junior undergraduate studying political science and environmental policy at Washington University in St. Louis. Before attending Washington University, Alex was a student of public policy at the Maxwell School of Syracuse University, where he first became interested in environmental policy. Alex also has a diverse work background in addition to his academic foundation, which includes internships at the White House Council on Environmental Quality and, somewhat surprisingly, at the nation’s second largest coal company. In addition, Alex was a delegate to the 2012 UN Climate Change Conference in Doha, Qatar. 

Conservative Attacks on State Renewable Energy Policies

Amy Plovnick graduated from Washington University in St. Louis in 2012
with majors in Political Science and Environmental Studies. While at Wash
U, spurred by a concern about climate change, she became interested in
issues related to energy and environmental policy, and conducted her senior thesis in political science on the effect of state-level renewable energy policies on wind power development. Amy recently completed a 6-month fellowship at the Sierra Club, and now continues to work on energy policy at the Association for Demand Response and Smart Grid in Washington, D.C.

Over half of U.S. states have passed a Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS), which requires a state to get a certain percentage of its electricity from renewable sources by a given date. These policies have helped to spur the growth of renewable energy throughout the country. However, there have recently been several attempts by state legislatures to scale back or eliminate RPS policies. This post refutes several common criticisms of RPS policies, and looks at why state legislatures are attempting to eliminate what have been largely successful renewable energy policies.

Clean Energy and Politics

Dr. Sened is a Professor of Political Science at Washington University in St. Louis, and former chair of the Political Science Department at Washington University. His main interests are comparative theory of institutions, game theory and mathematical modeling. Dr. Sened teaches Undergraduate and Graduate level courses in the Political Science Department.

Diamond Green Diesel Refinery

Eric Nelson is the Chief Investment Strategist at ABE Capital Management.
Mr. Nelson has years of experience performing investment research for
several financial firms including Oppenheimer Capital and The MDE Group. He graduated with honors from Columbia Business School where he earned an MBA and was in the prestigious and highly-competitive Value Investing Program. Mr. Nelson is a graduate of Villanova University School of Law where he focused his studies on matters of international law and is a licensed attorney in the States of New York and New Jersey. At Washington University in St. Louis, Mr. Nelson conducted research on speculative financial markets and behavioral finance while earning a BSBA at the John M. Olin School of Business. He is intrigued by matters of international economic development and enjoys traveling in pursuit of this interest.  He lives in New Jersey with his wonderful wife and precious daughter.

ASEAN’s Role in Sustainable Energy for All

Melissa Low is an Energy Analyst for the Energy Studies Institute at the National University of Singapore, she joined the Energy Studies Institute in September 2010. Before joining ESI, Melissa was part of a 12-member youth delegation to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conference of Parties (COP) 15 talks in Copenhagen in December of 2009 and worked for local Not-for-Profit Organization ECO Singapore to raise awareness about climate change and environmental stewardship in Singapore. Outside of ESI, Melissa currently serves as Singapore Coordinator to a Not-for-Profit organization called Global Sunrise, working to bring renewable energy to communities and schools in Sierra Leone.

Melissa holds a B. Soc. Science (2^nd Upper Honors) in Geography and minor in Urban Studies from the National University of Singapore. She is currently pursuing an M.Sc. in Environmental Management with the School of Design and Environment at the National University of Singapore.

Clean Energy and Dirty Politics

Murray Weidenbaum is a prominent figure in business and government. He served as Assistant Secretary of the Treasury from 1969 to 1971, and in 1981-82 as Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers. His research and teaching interests are government regulation of business, public finance, and economic policy. Weidenbaum is an honorary fellow of the Society of Technical Communication and a fellow of the National Association of Business Economics. His book, Small Wars, Big Defense, was selected by the Association of American Publishers as the outstanding economics book of 1992. His Bamboo Network was a finalist for global business book of the year in 1996. His book, One-Armed Economist: The Intersection of Business and Government was published in 2004. In 2008, The Competition of Ideas: The World of Washington Think Tanks, was published by Transaction Press.  He founded the Center for the Study of American Business at Washington University and directed the Center for many years. The center was renamed in his honor in 2001 to the Murray Weidenbaum Center on the Economy, Government, and Public Policy. Professor Weidenbaum teaches a popular course on business and government. 

Storm Alert – We Are Getting Into Some Very Interesting Debate

Dr. Sened is a Professor of Political Science at Washington University in St. Louis, and former chair of the Political Science Department at Washington University. His main interests are comparative theory of institutions, game theory and mathematical modeling. Dr. Sened teaches Undergraduate and Graduate level courses in the Political Science Department.

This coming Monday we will post a post by Murray Weidnbaum.  Everyone who knows who Murray Weidenbaum is, knows his political background at the heart of the Republican consecutive conservative administration of the 1970s and 1980’s.  We believe that posting his post and then a follow up directly discussion his claims is going to be really beneficial for us all.  So brace yourself for some heated debate starting next week.

Environmental Policy Through Energy Policy: A Perspective on the Use of Smart Grids in the Amelioration of GHG Emissions

Alex Bluestone is a junior undergraduate studying political science and environmental policy at Washington University in St. Louis. Before attending Washington University, Alex was a student of public policy at the Maxwell School of Syracuse University, where he first became interested in environmental policy. Alex also has a diverse work background in addition to his academic foundation, which includes internships at the White House Council on Environmental Quality and, somewhat surprisingly, at the nation’s second largest coal company. In addition, Alex was a delegate to the 2012 UN Climate Change Conference in Doha, Qatar. 

Comprising nearly 40% of all C0₂ emissions in the United States, the energy sector should be the place to begin in the concerted effort to mitigate climate change and the health effects of GHG emissions. After analyzing several policies that could potentially ameliorate said social problems, one emerged as the obvious best: the implementation of a smart grid strategy. Essentially, a smart electric grid would reduce inefficiency, save money, put consumers more in control of their consumption practices, and would allow for best method of transition to renewable energy. This should be viewed as a critical investment to our nation’s strategy to become more sustainable.

 

Some Good News For a Change

Dr. Sened is a Professor of Political Science at Washington University in St. Louis, and former chair of the Political Science Department at Washington University. His main interests are comparative theory of institutions, game theory and mathematical modeling. Dr. Sened teaches Undergraduate and Graduate level courses in the Political Science Department.

We have some good news to report.  According to a recently released EPA report (p. 7): “CO2 emission rates have decreased by 10 percent and fuel economy values have increased by 11 percent from MY 2006-2011. Based on preliminary estimates, CO2 emission rates have decreased by 13 percent and fuel economy values have increased by 16 percent from MY 2007-2012.”  We think it is important to appreciate that environmental policy coupled with the right attitude of the private sector can make all of us better off and, as a by product, save the planet.  We believe that this is just one important example of a number of such policies that need to get more attention from all of us in this debate.

Uncertainty, Wind Power, and How the U.S. Fumbled Its Policymaking

Alex Christensen is a graduate of Washington University in St. Louis. There, he was an economics and political science student who developed a keen interest in renewable energy, macroeconomics, and the role of institutions in public policy.  He has written for Americans for Energy Leadership and Minnesota 2020. Since graduating, he has worked for a Fortune 50 company and as a public servant. This fall, he will be pursuing graduate studies in economics at London School of Economics. If you're ever looking for a bassist in your band, Alex is also the guy for you.

For much of 2012, the wind power industry was in 'hurry-up-and-wait" mode. There was tremendous uncertainty over the future of the Production Tax Credit, which was set to expire on December 31, 2012. Not knowing the "rules of the game" for 2013 and beyond, wind investors and developers responded by curtailing their plans for growth in 2013. This is a classic example of institutional uncertainty on growing industries. For wind power in the United States, this is just the latest example of a longstanding detrimental institutional structure - and is responsible for the lag behind other developed nations in renewable energy adoption.

The Ostrich Just Got Its Head Out of the Sand: Can We Have a Word With Her Before She Buries Her Head in the Sand Again?

Dr. Sened is a Professor of Political Science at Washington University in St. Louis, and former chair of the Political Science Department at Washington University. His main interests are comparative theory of institutions, game theory and mathematical modeling. Dr. Sened teaches Undergraduate and Graduate level courses in the Political Science Department.

Following the devastation of hurricane Sandy, a debate about how to protect New York City with sea barriers has opened up.  In this post we argue that as a solution to global warming this amounts to science fiction and suggest a rapid return to the more important debate: how do we get over our addiction to fossil fuels, which is the only way to protect the global sea shores wherever they are. When Ostriches get scared they bury their heads in the sand.  At least so the legend says.  When human get scared or just too frustrated they turn to science fiction.  This is very natural, but as the only highly intelligent living species on the globe we must be able to do better than that in light of imminent threat of global warming.

Global Clean Energy Market Summary

Ben Gottesdiener is a junior at Washington University in St. Louis, majoring in Political Science with minors in Legal Studies and Institutional Social Analysis. Ben currently is interning with the ISI Group in Homebuilding Equity Research, and will spend the summer with Bank of America Merrill Lynch in Global Research. 

 In this article, Ben summarizes the three major global clean energy indexes over the course of the past week, and looks at their performance in comparison to the overall markets.

Corn is Food, Not Fuel

Adam Klestadt is a senior at Washington University in St. Louis studying economics. He spent the summer of 2012 at the Environmental Defense Fund working on issues and models related to energy and environmental economics. He is pursuing a career in energy consulting or finance.

In this article, Adam Klestadt discusses the impracticality of corn-ethanol as a legitimate fuel source. Combined with the effects of natural occurrences such as drought, devoting corn to biofuel production causes unnecessary increases in prices felt by every American, particularly farmers themselves.

The Week Ahead

This week, we look forward to featuring two pieces of analysis from our writers.

On Wednesday, Adam Klestadt, a senior and Economics major at Washington University in St. Louis, will discuss Ethanol and its role as a source of fuel and why he feels corn should be limited to food and not fuel.

On Friday, Ben Gottesdiener will provide a recap of the Global Equity Markets in the Clean Energy sector and identify key trends and developments observed over the course of the week.  

Welcome to the Gottesdiener Sened Clean Energy Index

Dr. Sened is a Professor of Political Science at Washington University in St. Louis, and former chair of the Political Science Department at Washington University. His main interests are comparative theory of institutions, game theory and mathematical modeling. Dr. Sened teaches Undergraduate and Graduate level courses in the Political Science Department.

The reason we decided to launch a new Clean Energy Blog is rather obvious but may not look that way at first sight.  On the surface, there is a lot of talk of green energy and its potential to literally save the planet from global warming and other public harm associated with the emission of CO₂ and other toxins in all processes of producing energy from fossil fuels.  Beneath the surface and away from the public eye, the pace of the implementation and spread of the use of clean energy is painfully slow.  The question is why?  If clean energy is so potentially beneficial why are we not replacing all fossil fuel based energy production with clean energy sources?  After all the leading potential energy sources, wind and solar, are readily available at almost no cost.  Our clean energy blog will be dedicated to tireless search for the truth on this matter.