In September 2023, four faculty members of the SEAS-hosted Environmental and Energy Management Institute (EEMI) were awarded a research grant from the University’s Cross-Disciplinary Research Fund (CDRF). The purpose of CDRF grants is to establish collaborative research partnerships within chartered centers and institutes or between two or more diverse disciplines that encourage strong applications to externally funded opportunities The title of the one-year project for which the award was made is “Establishing a GW Research Platform for Promoting an Equitable and Sustainable Green Economy.” Dr. Payman Dehghanian (EEMI Director of Smart Grid Technologies and Associate Professor in the SEAS Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering) will serve as the Principal Investigator for the project. Dr. Mukes Kapilashrami (EEMI Director of Programs and Operations), Dr. Robert Orttung (EEMI Director of European, Russian, and Eurasian Studies and Research Professor in the Elliott School of International Affairs), and Dr. Jonathan Deason (EEMI Executive Director and Professor in the SEAS Department of Engineering Management & Systems Engineering) will serve as co-Principal Investigators.
The project is designed to integrate and enhance GW’s expertise in energy technologies, and to engage with public and private stakeholders to produce community-based research opportunities that will address issues defined by society and stakeholder groups focusing on promoting a green economy. It will involve focus on four specific projects, as follows:
- The evolution of hydrogen as an energy source
- Equity-centered implementation of renewable energy technologies in Washington, D.C.
- The influx of new green energy technologies in Northern Sweden, including tradeoffs among these developments and traditional lifestyles of the local Indigenous population
- Introducing environmentally-friendly measures for data centers in Northern Virginia, a home to the largest number of data centers in the U.S.
It is anticipated that this multi-disciplinary effort will lead to sustained engagement among GW researchers, external stakeholders, and community leaders in the four areas identified above and position GW faculty members to apply for extramural funding from multiple agencies such as NSF, DOE, DOD, the Swedish Government, the European Union, the DC Government, and private foundations.
Each of the four focal areas will emphasize the inclusion of underserved communities. Project outcomes are intended to ensure that adoption and implementation of environmentally sustainable practices and technologies help reduce the negative impacts on disadvantaged communities who often are disproportionately affected by environmental pollution.