Decarbonization Webinar Series
Updating Old Actors and Introducing New Ones in the Race to Carbon Neutrality
Next Seminar: May 13, 5:30 - 7:00 p.m. (ET)
Updating Old Actors and Introducing New Ones in the Race to Carbon Neutrality
In the final webinar of the Pathways to a Decarbonized Economy and a More Livable Planet series convened by CEP research director Prof. Todd Eisenstadt, Hari Gadde, Scott Sklar, Sha Yu, and Elizabeth V. Sturcken will discuss what carbon neutrality means for both old actors and new in industries as varied as government, business, civil society, and academia. Presentations include “Carbon pricing to meet net zero emissions” (Kallhauge); ”Blending Technologies, Financial Tools, Inter-disciplinary Regulations & Education is the Only Way to Achieve a Global Net Zero“ (Sklar); “Climate Risks and Financial Systems in a 1.5°C Future” (Yu); and “What do Large Corporations Need to Focus on in the Next Ten Years on the Journey to Carbon Neutrality?” (Sturcken).
PARTICIPANTS
Todd Eisenstadt, American University
Dr. Todd A. Eisenstadt, Professor of Government and Research Director of American University’s Center for Environmental Policy (CEP), has published multiple award-winning books and dozens of articles, including on environmental issues and climate change. He just concluded a World Bank study of attitudes towards climate change among the most vulnerable in Bangladesh and in 2019 he co-authored Who Speaks for Nature? Indigenous Environmental Movements, Public Opinion, and Ecuador's Petro-State (Oxford University Press), based on a National Science Foundation-funded survey exploring how indigenous communities experience climate vulnerability in Ecuador’s Amazon region. His textbook for undergraduates, Climate Change, Science, and the Politics of Shared Sacrifice (co-authored with natural scientist Stephen MacAvoy), is being published in 2021 by Oxford.
Hari Gadde, World Bank
"Carbon pricing to meet net zero emissions"
Hari Gadde is a Senior Climate Change Specialist in the Carbon Markers and Innovation practice of the Climate Change Group in the World Bank. He has been working on climate change related issues, especially on carbon markets and carbon pricing for more than 15 years. He is currently coordinating the technical work program of the Partnership for Market Readiness and the Partnership for Market Implementation. He is one of the leading members of the Article 6 work program for piloting next generation of carbon market concepts in the World Bank and leads the development of Approach Papers of the Article 6 Warehouse program and the digitalization of MRV systems. Hari also leads the Standardized Crediting Framework implementation under the Carbon Initiative for Development (Ci-Dev).
Scott Sklar, The Stella Group, Ltd.
"Blending technologies, financial tools, inter-disciplinary regulations & education is the only way to achieve a global net zero"
Scott Sklar is President of The Stella Group, Ltd. since 2000, a global clean technology optimization owner’s rep firm facilitating clean distributed energy utilization and technology integration primarily for commercial, industrial, institutional, infrastructure and local government. Sklar serves as the Energy Director of GWU’s Environment & Energy Management Institute (EEMI). Prior, Scott Sklar served for 15 years (1985-2000) as Executive Director of both the Solar Energy Industries & the National BioEnergy Industries Associations before he was Political Director of The Solar Lobby, a clean advocacy organization. Prior, he was Washington Director & Acting Research Director of for three years at the National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT). As an aide for 10 years (1970-80) to Senator Jacob K. Javits (NY) Sklar focused on energy and military matters and cofounded the Congressional Solar Caucus that lead much of the innovative legislation promoting renewable energy in the 1970’s.
Sha Yu, Joint Global Change Research Institute, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Center for Global Sustainability, University of Maryland
“Climate Risks and Financial Systems in a 1.5°C Future"
Dr. Yu is a senior scientist at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s Joint Global Change Research Institute and an associate research scholar at the Center for Global Sustainability (CGS). Dr. Yu is an expert in energy and environmental issues, with a focus on climate finance, energy and climate policies, and decarbonization pathways. She leads research on long-term deep decarbonization strategies in the United States, China, and India. Dr. Yu also leads the development and application of a state-of-art integrated assessment model with subnational details in China (GCAM-China). At CGS, Dr. Yu co-leads the China research portfolio. She holds an MS and PhD in Energy Policy from the University of Maryland.
Elizabeth V. Sturcken, EDF
“What do Large Corporations Need to Focus on in the Next Ten Years on the Journey to Carbon Neutrality?"
Elizabeth Sturcken is Managing Director at Environmental Defense Fund. She leads work with companies for the EDF + Business team, leveraging the power of the marketplace to create a thriving planet. She launched EDFs partnership with Lyft to change their cars to 100% electric vehicles by 2030. And, working with Microsoft, she created and launched Transform to Net Zero, a coalition of nine leading companies who aim to show the way to net zero climate emissions for companies and the world. She created the first NGO partnership with Walmart, addressing all aspects of their environmental impact on climate, oceans and ecosystems resulting in the first supply chain carbon reduction commitment from a retailer and creating millions of greener products. She also led corporate partnerships with other major companies such as FedEx, to develop the next generation delivery vehicle and UPS, to create more sustainable overnight shipping packaging.