Penn Energy Week!

PEW

As the world strives to reduce emissions and transition to more sustainable energy sources, here at the University of Pennsylvania we are pleased to dedicate March 20–24 to this crucial topic.

This year marks our third Energy Week at Penn—five days of energy-focused activities across campus that underscore the University’s commitment to innovations in energy policy, science, and technology.

Hosted by the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy and the Vagelos Institute for Energy Science and Technology, this year’s event lineup offers nearly two dozen events across seven schools.

At Energy Week 2023, you can examine new scientific thinking behind carbon capture and carbon-neutral fuels and new engineering breakthroughs that reduce energy-intensive farming techniques. You can also explore pathways for decarbonizing a university, creating more energy equity here and abroad, and establishing energy security in the face of war.

For students, Energy Week offers the chance to present research, connect with alumni in the energy sector, and learn about energy-related student groups on campus—like Penn Electric Racing and the Wharton Undergraduate Energy Group.

For a full schedule, visit: energyweek.upenn.edu

As we head into Energy Week, we recognize the visibility and impact of Penn students and faculty at critically important efforts like the UN’s annual climate meetings, known as COP. This year, Penn sent its largest ever delegation to COP27 in Egypt, where much of the discussion focused on the dominant role energy systems play in climate change.

We are also proud of Penn’s strong action on climate and energy. We have made enormous strides in our operations, including:

• Reducing campus carbon emissions by nearly 40% since 2009 and committing to a fully carbon-neutral campus within the next twenty years.
• Setting new standards for green energy in Pennsylvania and among peer universities by investing in two new solar energy facilities in central Pennsylvania, which will provide 70% of the electricity for Penn and the Penn health system by early 2024.
• Launching the Penn Environmental Innovations Initiative in 2019 to catalyze solutions to significant real-world environmental challenges of our time, particularly climate change, biodiversity loss, and human vulnerability.
• Greening our campus—guided by the Climate and Sustainability Action Plan—while maintaining a third of the campus as green space, or a carbon sink.
• Developing 43 buildings with LEED certification, to reduce emissions, support human health, preserve water resources, invest in the green economy, and improve our community.

In the spirit of these important and ongoing efforts, we invite you to attend Energy Week at Penn and learn more about how we can work toward a more sustainable and just energy system—here on campus and across the globe.