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ENERGY CONSERVATION IN SOUTH COULD SAVE BILLIONS, CREATE JOBS
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Energy-efficiency measures in the southern U.S. could save
consumers $41 billion on their energy bills, open 380,000 new jobs, and save
8.6 billion gallons of water by 2020, according to a new study from the
Nicholas Institute and the Georgia Institute of Technology. The study concludes
that investing $200 billion in energy efficiency programs by 2030 could return
$448 billion in savings.
The researchers modeled how implementation of nine policies
across the residential, commercial, and industrial sectors might play out over
20 years in the District of Columbia and 16 southern states. "We looked at how
these policies might interact, not just single programs," says Etan Gumerman of
the Nicholas Institute and co-lead researcher of the study. "The interplay
between policies compounds the savings. And it's all cost-effective. On
average, each dollar invested in energy efficiency over the next 20 years will
reap $2.25 in benefits."
Policies considered by the study, "Energy Efficiency in the
South," include new appliance standards, incentives for retrofitting and
weatherization, upgrades to utility plants, and process improvements.
The
report, which garnered widespread national media coverage, is available on the
Institute web site. |
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INSTITUTE PREMIERE EVENT IN D.C. FEATURES
HIGH-LEVEL DISCUSSION OF ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS
| The Nicholas Institute partnered with the Duke
Alumni Association to host a premiere event in Washington, D.C. on April 8,
drawing a capacity crowd of Duke alumni and friends for a high-level, probing
conversation on the relationship between energy and environmental policy and
the future of the US economy. Three major voices in environmental policy and
practices, all of whom serve on the Institute's Board, joined Director Tim
Profeta for the evening's discussion. They were former EPA Administrator William
Reilly, retired DuPont Chairman and CEO Chad Holliday (elected this week as
Chairman of the Board of Bank of America), and World Wildlife Fund President
Carter Roberts, who hosted the event at his organization's headquarters. The
Institute also welcomed distinguished members of EnLIST, its growing community
of supporters and friends. The evening was sponsored by the Nicholas Institute
and the Duke Alumni Association.     The featured guests brought insight, insider
updates, and a sense of history to current debates about climate change risk in
the nation's capital in beyond. Reilly and Holliday recounted the speed and
effectiveness with which governments and the private sector worked together
more than 20 years ago to eliminate industrial chemicals responsible for
creating a dangerous hole in the atmosphere's ozone layer. Duke alumni asked
tough questions, in one case drawing into discussion Institute Board member and
event attendee Jim Rogers, chairman, president, and CEO of Duke Energy. Toward
the end, one attendee asked the event speakers what single technology might
have the greatest influence on reducing industrial carbon dioxide emissions and
reversing deforestation. Roberts answered with thought-provoking simplicity: "The
tree." |
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T-AGG MEETING FOCUSES ON DEVELOPMENT OF
PROGRAMS, POLICIES FOR AGRICULTURAL GHG MITIGATION
| The Technical Working Group for Agricultural
Greenhouse Gases (T-AGG) convened a meeting in Chicago this month that brought
together some of the nation's leading experts in soil science, modeling, and
economics for a discussion regarding the development of programs or protocols
for agricultural greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation. More than 30 academic or USDA
experts, as well as USDA and EPA program leads, the voluntary offsets program
registries (CCX, VCS, CAR, ACR), and a few agricultural company representatives
engaged in the discussion. T-AGG is coordinated by the Nicholas Institute,
working with colleagues from Duke and Kansas State universities. Its mission is
to lay the scientific and analytical foundation necessary for building accounting
methodologies for high-quality GHG mitigation in the agricultural sector. Lydia
Olander, who directs the ecosystems services program at the Institute, leads
the project. Copies of the presentations from the meeting will be available on the
T-AGG website soon. To receive announcements of T-AGG activities, sign up for
the mailing list at https://lists.nicholas.duke.edu/sympa/subscribe/t-agg_
announcements. More information: T-AGG web site |
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MURRAY LEADS ASPEN INSTITUTE DISCUSSION FOR U.S.
LEGISLATORS ON PRICING CARBON
| Brian Murray, director for economic analysis, was
an invited scholar at the Aspen Institute Congressional Program on Energy
Security and Climate Change, held in Lisbon, Portugal, this month. Murray spent
five days with 16 members of the U.S. Congress and led the group through a
half-day discussion on "Pricing Carbon and Other Options for Addressing the
Economic Challenges of U.S. Climate Legislation." He is widely recognized for
his work on the economics of climate change policy, including the design of
cap-and-trade policy elements to address cost containment and inclusion of
offsets from traditionally uncapped sectors such as forestry and agriculture.
More information:
Brian Murray's bio |
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CHOGE JOINS INSTITUTE AS
WATER POLICY ASSOCIATE |
Cheryl Choge has joined the Nicholas Institute as a
water policy associate, based in Washington, D.C. She will work on the
Institute's initiatives related to improving access to water supply and
sanitation in the developing world, including monitoring the water policy
environment in Washington.
Prior to joining the Institute, Choge consulted on
water, sanitation, and hygiene programs in sub-Saharan Africa for the Bill and
Melinda Gates Foundation, the Global Water Challenge, and the Millennium Water
Alliance. Her experience ranges from researching integrated water resources
management to building a rainwater harvesting system for a primary school in
Ghana.
She also is interested in alternative financing
mechanisms, particularly microfinance. While in Tanzania, she established a
microcredit program serving women with HIV/AIDS.
Choge
completed a dual-degree Masters in Public Administration with a focus on
economic and political development from the London School of Economics and
Political Science, and Columbia University's School of International and Public
Affairs. She earned a B.A. in international relations from Alliant
International University. |
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