Furthering Energy-Related Research

Indiana Consortium for Research in Energy Systems and Policy
Inaugural Workshop
University Place Conference Center, IUPUI
Indianapolis, Indiana
Friday, October 31, 2008

Good morning.
I am honored to be here with all of you today, and to welcome you to this exciting conference, as we celebrate, along with Drs. Buckius and Varahramyan, the exciting partnership between Purdue University and Indiana University represented by the establishment of the Indiana Consortium for Research in Energy Systems and Policy, or CRESP. This is indeed an exciting inaugural event and a milestone for cutting-edge research that explores time sensitive issues surrounding our most crucial energy challenges.

In his recent state of the university address, President Michael McRobbie pledged seed funding for research in the environmental sciences, affirming his support for the direction being taken in establishing CRESP and underscoring that the complex challenges in energy systems research are urgent and globally significant.

In 2003, Sandra Postel wrote in her book, Last Oasis: Facing Water Scarcity, that, "For many of us, water simply flows from a faucet, and we think little about it beyond this point of contact. We have lost a sense of respect for the wild river, for the complex workings of a wetland, for the intricate web of life that water supports." Five years later, this lack of awareness is beginning to shift and the Indiana Consortium for Research in Energy Systems and Policy is poised to be the front-runner in educating the public and shaping policy for altering our world's environment that is sustainable for future generations to come.

It is important to recognize a few colleagues who have been stalwarts in helping to move this initiative forward. Dr. Jan Froelich, former vice chancellor for research at IUPUI, and a professor of medicine at IU's School of Medicine has worked tirelessly to bring together the key faculty to realize IU's goals in the consortium. Thank you, Jan.

Jeff White, associate vice provost for sciences in the Office of the Vice Provost for Research and professor in the School of Public and Environmental Sciences, helped with the development of two new, yet very closely tied, environment centers on the Bloomington campus - The Center for Research in Environmental Sciences, or CRES, led by Professor of Biology Keith Clay, and the Center for Research in Energy and the Environment, or CREE, led by Professor of Environmental Sciences, J.C. Randolph. Thank you, Jeff. And, thanks to Keith and JC as well.

CRES will provide an institutional umbrella and collaborative structure for all centers on the Bloomington campus conducting research related to environmental sciences. CREE will be the IU Bloomington partner in the Consortium, which will take advantage of both collaborative arrangements on the Bloomington campus and multi-institutional efforts through the Consortium.

I would also like to thank John Graham, dean of the School of Public and Environmental Affairs, who, while just beginning his tenure at Indiana University this past summer, quickly articulated the importance of faculty working across disciplines which is the hallmark of CRESP. We are grateful for Dean Graham's leadership and support. Thank you Dean Graham.

The Consortium is a first-rate example of faculty from two stellar institutions working together to uncover solutions to energy production, distribution and use. Solutions will require a mastery of the environmental, technological and economic forces and their interactions.

A collaborative approach is the only path that can lead to sustainable solutions to such multifaceted problems.

As research universities, IU and Purdue both have impressive pools of talent that are being tapped to advance understanding of innovative energy systems, environmental science and energy policy. We can imagine that outcomes of this collaboration will far exceed the potential of each institution working alone.

The spirit of cooperation fostered by Professor Wallace Tyner, Professor Andrew Hsu, and Professor J.C. Randolph demonstrates what can happen when institutional boundaries give way in pursuit of solutions to our greatest environmental challenges. Faculty expertise in a wide array of disciplines, from agricultural economics and engineering, horticulture, geography, and geology to public policy and legal analysis, will provide the competitive edge necessary to attract external funding. This collaboration is indeed a win-win situation for everyone involved.

The keystone center at IU Bloomington, the Center for Research in Energy and the Environment, or CREE, has enormous strengths in environmental sciences, geological sciences, geography and public policy. CREE will be explicitly interdisciplinary and, working through the Consortium, multi-institutional. IU's experts in atmospheric and ecosystem sciences aim to achieve better understanding of the global carbon cycle, particularly on global and regional scales. CREE researchers will examine policies and analyze the transition from voluntary reductions to mandatory limits on carbon emissions. In addition, faculty will explore scientific and policy constraints associated with the development and use of renewable energy resources, particularly those related to biofuels. Researchers are already beginning to use geographic information systems modeling to examine the interactions among several competing land uses in the Midwest, including expansion of forests for terrestrial carbon sequestration, expansion of agricultural land for production of bio-energy crops, and dedication of land for renewable energy production such as wind power.

CREE, along with IUPUI's Lugar Center for Renewable Energy, Purdue's Center for Research in Energy Systems and Policy, will enlarge Indiana's capacity to bring about sound environmental direction and policy change.

We live in a world where the questions of how to live sustainably, both individually and collectively, have captured public debate and permeated individual experience. The research community by way of CRESP, will engage in complex questions raised by environmental change and sustainability concerns, from energy alternatives to a "green" economy to sustaining biodiversity in the face of global development. Addressing pressing questions about how to achieve a sustainable future will drive the research agenda and policy for many years to come.

Thank you and enjoy the conference.