Author: Arne Jacobson

Our good friend Don Tuttle passed away on May 15 at the age of 81. We were very sad to learn the news, and we extend our heartfelt condolences to his wife, Andrea, and his family and friends. 

Don and Andrea Tuttle are longtime friends and supporters of the Schatz Energy Research Center and Humboldt State University. Andrea is a founding member of the Schatz Center’s Advisory Board, and they jointly established the Donald and Andrea Tuttle Fellowship for Clean Energy Studies in 2017. This fellowship provides support to graduate students in the Energy Technology and Policy (ETaP) and Environmental Resources Engineering options of the Environmental Systems graduate program.

Don was a kind, thoughtful, and wise person. Over his long career, his persistent, careful, and historically-minded approach to environmental protection in relation to regional economic and infrastructure development has made a real and lasting difference in our community. We are grateful for his good works and leadership, and we will miss him very much.

~ Arne Jacobson

This month, five student researchers from the Schatz team were recognized by Humboldt State University and by the Environmental Resources Engineering (ERE) department for outstanding achievements. Chih-Wei Hsu and Ciara Emery received masters degrees this December; Sabrinna Rios Romero is graduating this month with a BS in ERE; and Liszet Burgueno and Elizabeth Van Skike are a junior and senior in ERE, respectively. We’re delighted that each of them is being recognized by the campus community, and wanted to share a little about their research here at the Center.

Chih-Wei Hsu

Chih-Wei Hsu graduated in December with a MS in Environmental Systems with a concentration in Energy Technology and Policy. His thesis revealed inequities by race and income in California’s deployment of public charging infrastructure and the cost of owning an electric vehicle. At the Schatz Center, Chih-Wei contributed to transportation projects including a Climate Resilient Electrified Transit Plan for the Humboldt Transit Authority. He also contributed to energy access projects, including analyses related to off-grid solar product adoption in Uganda and the environmental footprint of backup generators in areas with unreliable electric grids.

During his time at Humboldt, Chih-Wei was also deeply engaged in the campus and local community. He was a student director for HSU’s Sponsored Programs Foundation board, a member of the Humboldt Energy Independence Fund governing committee, an active volunteer with GRID Alternatives — and helped to install the Schatz Center’s solar array in 2018! Chih-Wei is now the EV Fellow at the International Council on Clean Transportation. This month, he was awarded the Patricia O. McConkey award as an Outstanding Graduate Student.

Ciara Emery

Ciara Emery graduated in December with an MA in Environment and Community. Her thesis contributed to the Center’s offshore wind feasibility research by interviewing local stakeholders to understand their perceptions of the challenges and potentials for wind farm development off Humboldt Bay. Ciara also attended conferences and workshops to evaluate the discussions being held within the community. Ciara presented her findings as part of the California State University research competition in April.

Ciara is now the Field Representative for Congressman Jared Huffman in Humboldt, Del Norte, and Trinity counties. This month, she was recognized by HSU for Outstanding Student Research.

Elizabeth Van Skike

Elizabeth Van Skike is a 2020 recipient for the Homer Arnold award for Applied Research in Environmental Resources Engineering. A key member of our solar products test lab team since 2018, Ellie has helped perform safety, durability, and performance testing on solar lighting products and appliances — including televisions, radios, and solar water pumps. She has designed and built electrical systems and components, including a data acquisition circuit for overprotection and solar charge product tests. And, she has trained fellow student researchers and new employees on product test protocols.

Elizabeth is continuing at the Schatz Center this summer, and will work on multiple projects related to quality assurance for off-grid solar products. 

Sabrinna Rios Romero

In 2018, Sabrinna Rios Romero furthered our understanding of biomass life cycles by quantifying the decay rates for the post-harvest residues of seven California crops. Measuring decay rates allows us to better assess how leaving agricultural residues in the field — versus converting them into electricity — impacts greenhouse gas emissions. Sabrinna also conducted a survey of state foresters to assess which post-logging residue pathways (e.g. piling, burning, and scattering) were most commonly used across California. And, she worked in the Center’s biomass lab to measure the performance of a gasifier system.

In addition to her Center research and engineering clubs activities, Sabrinna accomplished her ERE degree in only four years, an atypical achievement within this challenging major program!

Liszet Burgueno

Liszet Burgueno is a second year engineering student who has excelled academically while demonstrating ongoing commitment to bettering her community. She holds officer positions in both the Renewable Energy Student Union (RESU) and the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE), and also works for the Humboldt Energy Independence Fund, an organization that funds the implementation of green projects on campus. In 2019, as a student research assistant at the Schatz Center, Liszet contributed substantially to a literature review and experimental protocol development for measuring greenhouse gas emissions from stored woody biomass.

Liszet is the 2020 recipient of the Engineers Without Borders award. The EWB award honors a student’s contribution to ERE club projects, fundraisers, and community service, as well as professional-student interaction and social responsibility within and outside the ERE community.

We are very proud of our students and their work, and we congratulate Chih-Wei, Ciara, Elizabeth, Sabrinna, and Liszet for their accomplishments. ~ Arne Jacobson

In 1989, two environmental resource engineering professors — Peter Lehman and Charles Chamberlin — began the Schatz Solar Hydrogen Project. In April, we celebrated the Schatz Center’s 30th anniversary with a party attended by staff, faculty, and students, alongside members of our advisory board, project collaborators, and campus and community supporters. For me, the celebration was an inspiring and fun event with a wonderful group of people. It also provided an opportunity to reflect on our history and our future. I’d like to share three themes.

First, it is notable how much our team has grown. The initial core team for the Solar Hydrogen Project consisted of two founding directors and four students, with funding from Dr. Louis W. Schatz. Our group now includes nearly 50 people — including 10 faculty, 23 professional staff, and 16 students — and our annual budget has grown from $100K to nearly $7 million today.

Second, since the mid-1990s professional staff have played crucial roles in advancing our work, generating innovative ideas, managing projects, and mentoring students. They are truly a pillar of strength for our organization. During the celebration, we recognized four professional staff members who have been with the Center for more than half of its 30 years: Allison Hansberry, Marc Marshall, Greg Chapman, and Jim Zoellick. We are grateful for the substantial contributions they have made and for their continued leadership.

Third, much of our work continues to focus on the successful deployment of cutting-edge energy systems. Throughout the 90s, the Center was involved in developing hydrogen fuel cell vehicles and renewably generated hydrogen fuel, and in 1997 we deployed the first street-legal fuel cell vehicle in the United States. Mainstream manufacturers subsequently developed their own models, and fuel cell vehicles are now commercially available from companies including Toyota, Honda, and Hyundai.

Today, our work includes technologies ranging from renewable energy microgrids to off-grid solar systems. Our first solar microgrid went live at the Blue Lake Rancheria in 2017, and we have two more scheduled to launch in Northern California, in 2019 and 2021. Renewable microgrids address global climate change by (1) deploying low-carbon energy systems while (2) increasing onsite resilience through improved electrical reliability. This technology is now on the verge of going mainstream, with utilities such as Pacific Gas and Electric considering widespread deployment to mitigate wildfire risk and ensure reliable power for critical facilities. 

Likewise, in West Africa we are engaged in projects to generate reliable electricity for rural health clinics. Where successful, these systems can provide life saving improvements for health services ranging from support for mothers during delivery of babies to vaccination and surgery. In partnership with regional and national organizations and the World Bank, we are developing a new approach to deploy and maintain off-grid solar systems in clinics across Nigeria and Niger.

It is my pleasure to welcome new members to the Schatz Center team. We have hired four new professional staff since the beginning of the year: Tanya Garcia, Eli Wallach, Ian Guerrero, and Max Blasdel. We are also pleased to welcome three incoming graduate student fellows who will join us in August: Aditya Singh (Christina and Jack West Fellowship), Kristine Stern (Blue Lake Rancheria Fellowship), and Amin Younes (Schatz Energy Fellowship). Finally, we have a dynamic crew of thirteen students working for us this summer. We are very glad to have them all on our team.

Happy summer, and goodbye until next time. – Arne Jacobson

The Camp Fire in Butte County has been the most damaging wildfire in California history. Hurricanes, wildfires, cyclones, floods, and heat waves are taking a heavy toll on communities around the globe. While no single weather event can be linked directly to climate change, weather disasters as a whole are expected to become increasingly common and destructive as climate change progresses.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) recent special report on the prospect of limiting climate change to a 1.5°C global average temperature rise relative to pre-industrial conditions indicates that global net human-caused greenhouse gas emissions need to decline before 2030 by about 45% relative to 2010 levels. It is imperative that we do all we can to make progress toward this goal given the expected damages associated with a failure to do so. Simultaneously, given the climate disruption that is already baked into the system, actions to reduce vulnerability and increase resilience to climate damages are also needed.

Our work at the Schatz Center is strongly motivated by these challenges. Our renewable energy microgrid work combines efforts to integrate more solar power into the electrical grid while increasing resilience for critical infrastructure including emergency response centers, fuel stations, airports, and Coast Guard facilities. Likewise, our upcoming feasibility analysis of offshore wind development along California’s northern coast will explore a large potential new clean energy resource for our state. Through these and other efforts, we continue to promote clean and renewable energy and to otherwise take measures to address global climate change.

Measures to address climate change will be most effective if they are crafted by diverse teams from all walks of life. Over the past six months, we have been doing some introspective work at the Center related to staff diversity and an inclusive work environment. We held an all-day retreat in August that focused on these topics, and we have begun implementing measures identified at the retreat and subsequent staff and subcommittee meetings. As we work to make progress, I appreciate the thoughtfulness and initiative that our team has brought to the table. We are committed for the long haul when it comes to making a positive difference regarding diversity and inclusion. The successes that we achieve will make us a stronger and more effective organization.

I will close by welcoming Carisse Geronimo and Grishma Raj Dahal to the Schatz Center. Both are graduate students in the Energy Technology and Policy (ETaP) master’s program, and they joined us in August. Carisse is the first recipient of the Donald and Andrea Tuttle Fellowship for Clean Energy Studies. She is working with Dr. Sintana Vergara and other Schatz Center colleagues on biomass energy, waste management, and associated opportunities to reduce greenhouse gas pollution. Grishma, who received the Schatz Energy Fellowship, is working with our off-grid energy access team on research related to off-grid solar power. We are very glad to have them on our team.

Happy winter holidays, and goodbye until next time.

~ Arne

On May 4, we had the pleasure of hosting the Schatz Center Advisory Board for our annual meeting. In addition to our customary discussion of Center activities and strategy, we were happy to be able to include the Advisory Board members in a dedication ceremony for our new building addition, which we have been calling the “West Wing.”

During the meeting, we reported our progress toward the Center’s strategic goals—which are derived from our mission to promote clean and renewable energy—and discussed our portfolio of projects, budget, staffing, and space within this context. We were able to report good news to the Advisory Board in multiple spheres.

We noted that our two most active project areas are those related to (i) renewable energy microgrids, grid integration of renewable energy, and associated demand-side management strategies and (ii) improved access to energy in off-grid and marginal grid communities in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. Together with our partners, we have received recognition for our efforts in both areas: in January alone, the Blue Lake Rancheria renewable energy microgrid was awarded the Project of the Year for Distributed Energy Resources at the annual DistribuTECH conference in San Antonio, Texas, while our energy access team simultaneously played a key role at the premier international conference for the off-grid solar sector, the Global Off-Grid Solar Forum and Expo in Hong Kong. We also have current projects and activities in bioenergy, clean transportation, off-shore wind, energy efficiency, hydrogen energy, clean energy policy, and education/outreach. Our staff expertise continues to deepen, and we have ample opportunities for continued work in pursuit of our mission.

Regarding staffing, we have a motivated, skilled, and professional team, and their strengths provide the foundation for our success. Recent additions to the Schatz Center include Dr. Nicholas Lam (research scientist), Kaileigh Vincent-Welling (engineering technician), Richard Williams (engineering technician), and Jessica Ramirez (administrative assistant). We are pleased to welcome them to our team. During the advisory board meeting, we discussed two strategic foci in relation to personnel. We began by noting the importance of expanding our team’s project management capacity to meet the needs of our growing work portfolio. We then discussed our commitment to increasing staff diversity and ensuring a broadly welcoming work environment. We appreciate our board’s thoughtful advice, and we look forward to a continued focus on these key issues.

And, of course, we celebrated our new building and the opportunities that it enables. Importantly, the increase in space—along with a commitment to student mentorship by faculty and staff on our team—has allowed us to hire nine summer student interns. They join seven continuing student employees, for a total of 16 students working with us this summer. This is the largest number of students working at Schatz Center at one time in the history of our organization. We are grateful for the contributions that each student is making to our work, and I thank my colleagues for all that they have done to create hands-on learning opportunities.

Happy summer solstice, and goodbye until next time. ~ Arne Jacobson