A PERSONAL INTRODUCTION TO OPPORTUNITIES AND RESOURCES FOR: RESEARCH AND ACTIVISM IN ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & POLICY

Daniel M. Kammen

Associate Professor of Energy and Society
Director, Renewable and Appropriate Energy Laboratory
Energy and Resources Group
University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-3050 USA

WWW: http://socrates.berkeley.edu/~dkammen/
Email: kammen@socrates.berkeley.edu

Corrections and additions are appreciated.

INTRODUCTION:

I am often asked by young scholars from the social and physical sciences (and particularly by physicists), about the options, avenues, and support resources available to them as they expand their interests, or contemplate career shifts into the area broadly defined as the science and policy of `energy and the environment'. Providing a complete, or even coherent, guide to the degree programs, fellowships, job opportunities, mentors available, and pitfalls is probably impossible, and I won’t even make an attempt. Instead, I have collected here a highly personalized set of opinions and some pointers to resources that people newly interested in this field might want to consult.

USEFUL EXPERIENCE AND FORMS OF TRAINING:

One of the most common questions I am asked, and probably the least answerable is, "when should I try to move from mainstream physics (or substitute here chemistry, engineering, economics, etc. ...) to energy and environmental research? Should I get a Ph.D. in a field of science, then get policy training, or should I get an interdisciplinary degree in the first place?" There are obviously a myriad of good answers, as well as stories of success, and of frustration.

My only consistent response is to study what you enjoy over what think will afford you some idealized credential. Enthusiasm, dedication, and willingness to do the hard work to learn the literature and the state-of-the-art in other fields may be the best measure of when to ‘make the change’. This is certainly harder than it sounds; some tremendously capable scientists have succumbed to the ‘prophet in a foreign land’ mentality described in Ibsen’s Peer Gynt. They often ended up disappointed, having done an insufficient amount of back ground training and research. Their work in the energy and environmental field is often only a brief foray, or worse, a dabbling.

One particularly prickly issue relating to the question of ‘when to enter the field’ concerns the extent to which disciplinary, or interdisciplinary training is crucial. Most people in the field today were trained in traditional disciplines: physics; economics; engineering, and so forth. Not surprisingly they tend to view disciplinary training as an important foundation and as a useful credential. Equally unsurprising, this view is far from universal. While there are a few truly interdisciplinary doctoral programs and centers -- such as the Energy and Resources Group (ERG) at the University of California, Berkeley -- they are rare. Graduate education, however, is constantly evolving. Many universities have now formed, at least on paper, interdisciplinary research or teaching units, often organized around questions of environmental science, social science, and/or policy. The students who will shortly begin to emerge from these programs will have a very different training (and perspective?) from the previous generations.

One Case History:

In my case, I completed a BA, MA, and then a Ph.D., each in physics, focusing my dissertation on solid state physics, neural networks, information theory and biological computing. I began my post-doctoral fellowship at Caltech not altogether sure which way I would go: continue my ‘physics’ research on neural networks or branch into energy and environmental issues? Caltech in general, and my advisor in particular, were exceptionally flexible and supportive. I was funded by the Weizmann Fellowship that freed my advisor from direct salary responsibility for me, but left travel, equipment, and other expenses as well as the most expensive component of all: investment in training a young scholar. During my postdoctoral fellowship my work ‘migrated’ from about an 80:20 physics:development mix to a reversal three years later. During that time, my advisor Christof Koch in the Computation and Neural Systems Group (Division of Biology) supported my increasing contacts with faculty in the Division of Humanities and Social Sciences, and my increasingly frequent trips to ERG and the International Energy Group at the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, and to Central America where I pursued field research. The Division of Biology also encouraged (and funded) me to teach a course on “Tropical Development and Conservation”. My path was neither fully planned, nor particularly coherent. I simply kept working on what interested me. The most important feature, and really the only constant, in my case was the tremendous amount of advice and (generally) encouragement that I received from people already working on energy and environmental issues, as well as broadly curious and unselfish scholars such as Christof Koch.

GENERAL RECOMMENDATIONS:

‘Getting started’ in energy and environmental work is not clear-cut in that there are few courses, or conferences devoted to the topic. At the same time, most everyone working in this area will go out of their way to help you. That is not an invitation, however, to let others do your homework for you. If you are an undergraduate, or early graduate student it is certainly not expected that you are familiar with the energy and environmental organizations or literature. But, you need to have done some advance reading and searching on the WWW. A good start are the journals listed at the end of this document. As a senior graduate student or recent Ph.D. you need to have done considerably more, by one account “three-fourths of the people applying our research group for post-doctoral positions are unable to articulate their interests beyond simple statements of interdisciplinarity.” There is no excuse for not reading a sampling of papers by the people you plan to approach. This is not only useful intellectually, but it also shows that you are serious. It is remarkable how many people call up and say that they are interested in ‘energy and development’, ‘the environment’, or ‘appropriate technology’ and have read next to nothing in the field. You would never do this (I hope!) in a traditional field.

Consistently I am told that a cover letter and resume are useful in advance of a phone call. Indicate in the cover letter (briefly!): (a) your accomplishments to date; (b) the types of research or activities you would like to undertake in the future; and (c) how you could contribute to the goals of the laboratory or organization you are contacting. Suggest in this letter that you will be following up with a phone call. The letter is useful both because it gives you the opening line of your phone conversation (‘My name is Jill Johnson, I sent you a letter a couple of weeks ago’) and it will have already forced you to figure out your fit with the organization you are contacting. If you get nervous and tongue-tied during the phone call, you can refer to the letter.

As for the timing involved in switching fields there is no formula and the only advice is simple (but surprising how often people don’t consider it). If you are 6 - 12 months away from a Ph.D. stick it out. Switch later. If you have just finished the second year of a five-year process, maybe it makes sense to switch now.

Many job openings are not posted -- if they are posted, they may already have someone in mind. The best way to find an opening is often not through employment/human resources offices but through individual researchers in your area of interest. The key to finding these researchers is networking. Call professors who might have contacts; call authors of articles; call local NGO's and ask them for advice on who to contact in finding a position. Get a list of possible people and call all of them and ask them for advice, etc. Someone along the line may have a position open or know of one or may come across one in the near future. Similarly, look into what conferences exist and attend them if at all possible. Many of the journals list meetings (Environment, the EPRI Journal, etc. ...). Once there, ask questions.

Many people who are trying to make a transition into science policy start at a very high level of education and are expecting a high level position in this new field. Don't be discouraged by volunteer work or short-term internships or entry-level positions. Your advanced degrees may mean that you may be able to work your way up faster, but as you make this transition, you'll need a lot of training and can't necessarily expect to walk into your ideal position right away.

VARIOUS COLLECTED OPINIONS AND BITS OF ADVICE:

  • Start Talking to People

    There is no clear ‘path’, no university, agency, or society, that consistently trains people in this area. Similarly, jobs in this area often arise in unexpected environments. The more diverse contacts you have, the more likely you are to identify interesting opportunities.

  • Develop a Thick Skin

    Rejection, and skepticism are rampant in this field, where projects are chronically underfunded and understaffed. Be prepared to justify your interest and explain your credentials, and to persevere.

  • Learn Some Economics

    Neoclassical economic arguments, good and bad, are a standard part of the diet of energy and environmental analysis. Regardless of whether you regard neoclassical economic as a crucial tool, or as a means mainly to obfuscate the truth, it has an important role in current thought. You do yourself a disservice to begin to work in this area without at least a grounding in economics.

  • Contact People, not Programs

    Address your inquiries to individuals. Take the time to research who is engaged in what project (again, read their papers). In the same vein, mention your contacts: if Dr. Doe recommended that you call Dr. Smith, say so (and indicate this in your letter, too).

  • Specify Your References

    Do not list ‘references provided upon request’ on your resume. Let people know who you would ask for a recommendation. If possible, tailor the list to the organization you are approaching. You may not have taken a course in energy policy (few have!), but if you volunteered at a relevant organization, list it and your reference there up front. Similarly, many technical skills are transferable. If you are applying to, or contacting, a group modeling climate change and you have taken a course in fluid dynamics, inorganic chemistry, or classical mechanics, make it explicit.

    ACADEMIC RESEARCH AND TEACHING UNITS:

    AAAS Guide to Science and Technology Policy Programs

    A particularly useful reference is the Guide to Graduate Education in Science and Engineering and Public Policy (1995), published by the Directorate for Science and Policy Programs of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS Press: Washington, DC).

    In addition, North Carolina State University has a good site for information on Science, Technology, & Society Programs. In fact, this may be the best starting point as the individual entries were written by the programs themselves. There are roughly 25 U. S. based programs listed here, including some of the most well known ones at Boston University, Cambridge University, Carnegie Mellon University, Clark University, Harvard University, MIT, Princeton University, and the University of Maryland.

    A few of the programs have stood out to me personally, they are:

    A FEW INTRODUCTIONS TO NATIONAL LABORATORIES AND SOCIETIES

    The U. S. National Laboratories could be a useful starting point as many of the labs have energy and environmental programs. A massive listing is that of the U. S. Departments of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Network.

    NATIONAL SCHOLARSHIPS AND FELLOWSHIPS

    The U. S. National Laboratories could be a useful starting point as many of the labs have energy and environmental programs.

    Science and Technology Fellowships

    A number of professional societies (as well as some companies such as AT&T/Lucent Technologies, Bechtel Inc., etc....) in science and engineering award fellowships to work in Congress and Government Agencies. These afford an excellent means for young researchers interested in policy work to tackle important issues, acquire unique on-the-job training and experience, and develop contacts.

    RESEARCH INSTITUTES, INDUSTRIAL & CONSULTING OPPORTUNITIES:

    NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS

    The Environmental Careers Organization provides short-term positions for students at all levels. They have offices across the country and write a book called The Complete Guide to Environmental Careers.

    JOURNALS TO CONSULT:

    NEWSLETTERS:

    Acknowledgments:

    This evolving compendium reflects the experiences and input of a number of energy and environmental scientists. I owe a particular debt of candid assessments and testimonials (many used here verbatim) to Sivan Kartha, Ann Kinzig, and Debra Lew.

    The researchers who encouraged me along the way, and challenged me to clarify my thinking and interests in effect served as an extended ‘second Ph.D. committee’ after I completed my formal training in Physics. This group includes William Clark (J. F. Kennedy School, Harvard University), John Harte, John Holdren, and Dick Norgaard (Energy and Resources Group, University of California, Berkeley), Susanna Hecht (Graduate School of Planning, University of California, Los Angeles), Christof Koch (Computation and Neural Systems, California Institute of Technology), David Lee (Department of Physics, Cornell University), Thomas R. Odhiambo (African Academy of Sciences), Arthur Schawlow (Department of Physics, Stanford University), Ted Scudder (Division of the Humanities and Social Sciences, California Institute of Technology), Kirk R. Smith (School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley), Robert Socolow (Center for Energy and Environmental Studies, Princeton University), Frank von Hippel and Burton Singer (Woodrow Wilson School, Princeton University), and Richard Wilson (Department of Physics, Harvard University).

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    Last updated: January 10, 2001


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