A Partnership of UConn and Eversource
Eversource Energy Center
Clean Energy Summit 2024 Take Aways
Last Monday (September 23, 2024) we had over 300 UConn students and faculty, and attendees from the state government, organizations, and industry participating at the UConn and Eversource Sustainable Clean Energy Summit: Decarbonizing Society and the Grid. In addition to an outstanding keynote address from Gene Rodrigues, U.S. Department of Energy Assistant Secretary for Electricity, we heard from some thought-provoking panels, announced the Connecticut Sustainable Energy Institute at Avery Point, and signed a new three-year memorandum of understanding with Eversource for energy efficiency upgrades across all our campuses. UConn graduate students Zhiqing “Lucy” Li, Steven Matile and Meshach Ojo, were awarded the Clean Energy and Sustainability Innovation Program (CESIP) award for their research, “Potential Micro-Hydropower Retrofits at Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plants,” and will receive additional funding from Eversource to further explore their project.
Several themes and key takeaways emerged from the panel discussions at the Summit, including:
- the necessity of maintaining grid reliability amid growing demands from artificial intelligence, the electrification of transportation, and overall increases in energy consumption.
- that the transition to a clean energy grid must not compromise accessibility, and that achieving balance will require thoughtful policies and investments that prioritize both innovation and equity.
- that a multifaceted approach, integrating advanced technologies and partnerships, is essential for building a cleaner, more resilient energy future for Connecticut and the region.
- the necessity for collaborative planning approaches, partnerships between state and federal entities, and engagement with academic institutions to foster innovation and facilitate the transition to a more resilient energy system.
- that neglecting investment in modernization ultimately leads to higher long-term costs, disproportionately affecting vulnerable populations.
Check the CLEAN EARTH Laboratory website (https://cleanearth.engr.uconn.edu/?p=1266) for these, and other highlights from this year’s Summit.
Manos Anagnostou, Executive Director, UConn Tech Park, and Director of the Eversource Energy Center at UConn
Published: September 27, 2024
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