UW Energy Hub

The University of Wisconsin at Madison has been named the 7th highest ranking “Cleantech” University for 2010. This distinction was awarded to the university based on “a pipeline of collaboration of businesses, universities, state initiatives, investors and research dollars.” Read more at Cleantech Group’s Webpage.

We received the following email from our colleagues at the MIT Energy Club. This is a great opportunity and we encourage UW students to take advantage of it!

Dear students and researchers,

The application process for presenting at the Friday Energy Showcase of the MIT Energy Conference is still open and the deadline for submitting an abstract has been postponed to February 3rd.

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by Daniel Spitzberg, Energy Institute Writer

An ice sculpture of a polar bear outside the conference center in Copenhagen Photo: REUTERS

What exactly happened at the U.N. climate talks last December? While countless commentators have weighed in on international politicking, only a few individuals have discussed the on-the-ground activities and activism.

Speaking before a crowd last Wednesday on UW-Madison campus, two Madison locals shared their first-hand account of their recent excursion to Copenhagen. Molly Stentz of WORT and Free Speech Radio News and John Peck of Family Farm Defenders and La Via Campesina narrated the story alongside dozens of photographs they took both inside and outside the 15th annual U.N. summit.

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Rachel Slaybaugh, a PhD student in Engineering Physics at UW-Madison and a founding member of Energy Hub, published an editorial in Wednesday’s Daily Cardinal (12/15/09) on the rules governing the construction of new nuclear power plants in Wisconsin. 
Link to the article

Rachel argues that nuclear power should not be singled-out with nuclear-specific legal hurdles to new power generation construction. 
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Remember the fun days of science fairs as a kid? Now you can relive those days with the opportunity below. This message comes from Alicia Jackson, Director of the Student Leadership Center at the UW College of Engineering:

Donna Cutler-Landsman, the gifted and talented resource coordinator for two Middleton-Cross Plains area elementary schools is in the process of planning Science Fairs for these schools to be held the evenings of March 11, 2010 and April 12, 2010. Donna is looking for university students to attend the science fairs either to do presentations, have exhibits, or both.

If you would like to do some outreach to elementary school students and/or exhibit at these science fairs  - the time commitment would be from approximately 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. both nights.

Please email Alicia Jackson, ajackson@engr.wisc.edu, if you are interested and available and she can connect you to Donna.

Lots of people (including the Obama administration) are banking on plug-in hybrid electric vehicles as a major factor in reducing our dependence on oil and greenhouse gas emissions.

Autoblog has a thorough profile of probably the most anticipated plug-in hybrid to date, the Chevrolet Volt. The Volt doesn’t hit retailers until late next year, but Autoblog did a test-drive with a pre-production Volt and has a lot of interesting tidbits about the technology involved. Check it out for yourself.

By Claudia Hartley, Energy Institute Writer

“Sustainability starts with people and their needs, not technology,” said Steve Steinhoff while speaking at a Student Bus Advocates meeting on Thursday in the Memorial Union. Addressing an audience largely populated by Urban and Regional Planning graduate students, Steinhoff used his expertise as the Executive Director of the Neighborhood Design Center to lead an informed discussion of what is sustainable neighborhood design and how it can be applied to communities, including Madison.

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Presented by The WI Sustainable Business Council and the
University of Wisconsin Business, Environment and Social Responsibility Program.

When: December 3, 2009, 8:00 am to 5:00 pm (lunch provided)
Where: Discovery World, 500 N Harbor Dr, Milwaukee WI

The WI Sustainable Business Council Conference is the only conference in Wisconsin that brings together businesses from around the state who are interested in, or working towards, sustainability. This conference will give businesses from all sectors, sizes and locations valuable tools to implement sustainability in their business practices. Moreover, attendees will become part of a growing network of businesses active in sustainability, and connect with businesses at the forefront of the green movement.

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by Michelle Hu, Energy Institute Writer

Carbon restrictions are inevitable and will require significant changes to the state’s energy mix—that’s the message from Commissioner Lauren Azar of the Wisconsin Public Service Commission. Azar spoke Tuesday night with Wisconsin Commissioner of Insurance Sean Dilweg about making critical decisions in preparing for the uncertainties of climate change. The lecture was a part of the Nelson Institute’s Community Environmental Forum.

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