Read a recap of this event.
The Hamilton Project (THP) at the Brookings Institution and the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability hosted an event exploring the roadblocks and tradeoffs that policymakers need to confront in order to create a resilient and clean electricity grid. Even as the federal permitting process has become more efficient, the fragmented governance of the grid has slowed projects and needed investments. Solving those issues is not enough: Utilities must also act to mitigate the increasing risk of wildfires from climate change and the aging grid.
The event featured two fireside chats, the first with U.S. Senator Alex Padilla and the second with Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Commissioner Allison Clements.
In addition, the event included two panel discussions. Panelists include Wendy Edelberg (Brookings), Suzi Kerr (Environmental Defense Fund), Maria Pope (Portland General Electric), Mark Toney (TURN-The Utility Reform Network), Michael Mastrandrea (Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability), Shelley Welton (University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School), and Catherine Wolfram (MIT Sloan School of Management).
The event coincided with the release of two new policy proposals focused on the governance of the electricity grid and the intersection of wildfire risk and utilities. The Hamilton Project also released a facts document highlighting permitting reform.
For updates on the event, viewers followed @HamiltonProj and joined the conversation using #CleanEnergyFuture to ask questions or emailed [email protected].
Agenda
1:30 p.m. | Welcome
Robert E. Rubin, Former U.S. Treasury Secretary; Chairman Emeritus, Council on Foreign Relations
1:35 p.m. | Fireside chat with Senator Padilla
The Honorable Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), U.S. Senator
Moderator: Evan Halper, Energy Reporter, The Washington Post
2:05 p.m. | Panel discussion: Clean energy transition and the trade-offs required to move quickly and efficiently
Michael Mastrandrea, Director of Policy, Sustainability Accelerator, Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability
Shelley Welton, Presidential Distinguished Professor of Law and Energy Policy, University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School
Catherine Wolfram, William F. Pounds Professor of Energy Economics, MIT Sloan School of Management
Moderator: Sanjay Patnaik, Director, Center on Regulation and Markets, Bernard L. Schwartz Chair in Economic Policy Development, Senior Fellow, Economic Studies, Brookings Institution
2:55 p.m. | Break
3:05 p.m. | Fireside chat with Commissioner Clements
The Honorable Allison Clements, Commissioner, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
Moderator: Michael Wara, Senior Director of Policy, Sustainability Accelerator, Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability
3:35 p.m. | Panel discussion: Challenges and solutions to clean energy infrastructure trade-offs
Suzi Kerr, Senior Vice President and Chief Economist, Environmental Defense Fund
Maria Pope, President and CEO, Portland General Electric
Mark Toney, Executive Director, TURN – The Utility Reform Network
Moderator: Wendy Edelberg, Director, The Hamilton Project, Senior Fellow, Economic Studies, Brookings Institution
