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
November 30, 2021
Panel Discussion: Energy Justice and International Development
Mr. Ashvin Dayal, Senior VP, Power and Climate, The Rockefeller Foundation
Dr. Rebekah Shirley, Director of Research, Data & Innovation, WRI Africa
Ms. Dana Harmon, Executive Director, Texas Energy Poverty Research Institute
Moderator: Dr. Varun Rai, Professor, LBJ School of Public Affairs, UT Austin
November 23, 2021
The how and why of energy use in the past: Additional insights from World long-run time series on electricity since 1900
Tânia Sousa, Auxiliary Professor, Instituto Superior Técnico, Universidade de Lisboa (Lisbon University)
November 16, 2021
What clean tech will get us to net zero? An overview based on long-term energy scenarios
Anna Broughel, Program Director of Energy Leadership, Clean Energy Leadership Institute; Adjunct Professor, Johns Hopkins University
November 9, 2021
Survey of California Strategies to Meet Renewable Energy and GHG Goals
Jared Babula, Senior Attorney, California Energy Commission; Faculty member, Empire School of Law
November 2, 2021
Toward a Reliable and Competitive Energy Future: Competitive Power Sector Trends, Progress and Challenges
Todd A. Snitchler, President and CEO, Electric Power Supply Association
October 26, 2021
Cleantech Investing 1.0 to Energy Transition Investing Today – What is different this time?
Eric Danziger, Managing Director – Energy Transition, Riverbend Energy Group
October 19, 2021
The Rise of Analytics and Digital Infrastructure in the Energy Industry
Raiford Smith, Products and Technology, X: The Moonshot Factory
October 12, 2021
Sustainability Trends for the Real Estate Industry
Akshai Rao, Sr Vice President, Ancillary Services, Yardi Systems
October 5, 2021
September 28, 2021
Panel discussion: Perpetual Transition and Emerging Opportunities on the Energy Landscape
Distinguished Lecture Series of the Kay Bailey Hutchison Center for Energy, Law, and Business:
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Shawn Cumberland, Managing Partner, Energy Transition, Encap Investments L.P.
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Deniz Dindoruk, Senior Development Manager, Shell
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Will Glazener, Solution Leader, McKinsey & Company
September 21, 2021
Navigating the Energy Transition Through a New Decision Framework SESAME
Emre Gencer, Research Scientist, MIT Energy Initiative
September 14, 2021
Changing World Oil Markets and the Texas Economy
Brett Perlman, CEO, Center for Houston’s Future
September 7, 2021
BaSKET: Building a Strategy for Key Energy Transitions
Mik Carbajales-Dale, Associate Professor in Environmental Engineering & Earth Sciences, Clemson 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