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.