UT Energy Symposium
A weekly guest lecture series that is both free and open to the public and available for course credit.
In an effort to provide a multidisciplinary platform for UT faculty and students to interact on the most pressing energy issues facing our world, the Energy Institute sponsors the UT Energy Symposium (UTES), which entered its 28th semester in spring 2025.
The UTES serves as a “convener” for the campus community, uniting students interested in energy issues with faculty and others working on sustainable energy security. Students who register for the symposium receive one credit hour for the 15-week seminar course, which is open to both undergraduate and graduate students. The course is taught in both the fall and spring semesters.
Ongoing themes for UTES include climate change policy, innovation and diffusion of energy technologies, low-carbon technology options and status, and behavioral aspects of energy consumption.
Each UTES talk is recorded and posted on this page and on the Energy Institute YouTube channel.
Instructor: Carey King
Unique Number (Fall 2025): 65605 (graduate students) / 65310 (undergraduates)
Day & Time: Tuesday, 12:30 – 1:45 p.m.
If you need an accommodation to participate in this event, please contact Christa Hopkins, who can be reached at 512-475-8447 or christa@energy.utexas.edu, no later than five (5) business days prior to the event.
UT Energy Symposium Talks
April 30, 2015
The Future of Vehicle Transportation — The Better Battery
Nihar Patel, Former Vice President, North American Business Strategy Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc.
April 23, 2015
Rethinking Our Energy Future: Grand Challenges and Opportunities
Doug Arent, Executive Director, Joint Institute for Strategic Energy Analysis, National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL)
April 16, 2015
2015 State of Electric Vehicles
Dave Tuttle, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin
April 9, 2015
Student Research Showcase
- Margaret Cook (CAEE)
- Donna Chen (CAEE)
- Alex Headley (ME)
April 2, 2015
Energy Infrastructure with Architectural and Civil Engineers
CAEE team presentation by Richard Corsi, Lance Manuel, Atila Novoselac, Kara Kockelman, Charles Werth, Kevin Folliard
March 26, 2015
Past, Present, and Future Climate Change Impacts on Texas Water: Science and Policy
Jay Banner, Professor, Department of Geological Sciences, Jackson School of Geosciences, The University of Texas at Austin
March 12, 2015
Oil-Climate Index: GHG Emissions Along the Oil Production Supply Chain
David Livingston, Associate, Energy and Climate Program, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
March 5, 2015
Energy and Development in Asia
Richie Ahuja, Regional Director for Asia, Environmental Defense Fund
February 26, 2015
Ten Strategies to Systematically Exploit All Options to Cope with Anthropogenic Climate Change
Kelly Klima, Research Scientist, Department of Engineering and Public Policy, Carnegie Mellon University
February 19, 2015
Energy and Climate Goals in Nordic Countries and Implications for the U.S.
Benjamin Sovacool, Director, Danish Center for Energy Technology at AU-Herning and Professor of Business and Social Sciences, Aarhus University, Denmark
February 5, 2015
Next Generation Photovoltaic Technologies
Brian Korgel, Edward S. Hyman Endowed Chair in Engineering & T. Brockett Hudson Professor of Chemical Engineering, Director, Industry/University Cooperative Research Center for Next Generation Photovoltaics, The University of Texas at Austin
January 29, 2015
Comparative Analysis of Regulations for Offshore Oil Drilling in U.S., U.K. and Norway
Lori Bennear, Associate Professor of Environmental Economics and Policy, Duke University
January 22, 2015
Engineering and Socio-economic Aspects of Sustainable Energy
Mehrdad Ehsani, Robert M. Kennedy Endowed Professor, Director, Sustainable Energy & Vehicle Engineering Program, Power Electronics & Motor Drives Laboratory, Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, Texas A&M University
May 3, 2012
Americans’ Vehicle and Travel Choices: Opportunities for Plug- In Vehicles in the Nation’s Fleet Evolution
Dr. Kara Kockelman, Professor & William J. Murray Jr. Fellow, Department of Civil, Architectural & Environmental Engineering, The University of Texas at Austin
April 26, 2012
The Future of Water in Texas, and What It Means for Energy
Thomas Mason, Former General Manager of the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) and currently with the law firm Graves, Dougherty, Hearon & Moody
April 12, 2012
Taking Green Technologies from Innovation to the Market: A VC’s Perspective
Ashmeet Sidana, General Partner, Foundation Capital
April 5, 2012
California’s March Towards Sustainable Energy: Assessing the Record and Lessons for Future
Andrew McAllister, Managing Director, California Center for Sustainable Energy
March 29, 2012
Simulating Complex Systems: Applications to Energy
Dr. Charles Macal, Senior Systems Engineer, Argonne National Laboratory
March 22, 2012
The Energy Industry’s Media Triumphs and Disasters
Mark Fischetti, Energy and Environment Editor, Scientific American
March 8, 2012
National Oil Companies: Fueling Anxiety
Mark Thurber, Associate Director for Research, Program on Energy and Sustainable Development, Stanford
March 1, 2012
What the Characteristics of Wind and Solar Electric Power Production Mean for Their Future
Jay Apt, Professor of Technology, Tepper School of Business, Carnegie Mellon University
February 23, 2012
From Here to Eternity (and Beyond): Transforming to a Clean Energy Economy
David Crane, President and CEO, NRG Energy
February 16, 2012
Student Research Showcase
- Sudamsh Bai-Reddy, McCombs School of Business See PDF slides in a new window
- Benjamin Sigrin, Energy and Earth Resources and LBJ School of Public Affairs See PDF slides in a new window
- Dave Tuttle, Electrical and Computer Engineering See PDF slides in a new window
- Dan Weisberg, Pecan Street Inc. See PDF slides in a new window
February 8, 2012
Geopolitical Implications of Shale Gas
Amy Jaffe, Fellow in Energy Studies and Director of the Energy Forum, Baker Institute, Rice University
January 19, 2012
Utility of the Future
Roger Duncan, Research Analyst, Center for International Energy and Environmental Policy