ELEVATE Fellows

Oyewole Abe

Civil Engineering

Oyewole Abe is a PhD student working under Dr Sanjay Arwade in the Wind Energy Research Centre at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. He completed his undergraduate degree in Civil Engineering and a Master of Engineering in Structural Engineering. With prior industry background and experience, he was involved in numerous large private and public sector engineering projects. His efforts will subsequently focus on offshore wind turbine systems, one of the fastest-growing renewable energy technologies with tremendous potential.

LinkedIn page: https://www.linkedin.com/in/oyewole-abe-8b9616ab

Keywords: Wind Turbine analysis and structures, Floating systems, Reliability, Wind, and Waves

Mahsa Arabi

Civil Engineering

Mahsa Arabi is a PhD candidate in Civil Engineering–Transportation and a master’s student in Computer Science at UMass Amherst. Her research focuses on energy, sustainability, and the application of machine learning to optimize transportation systems. With a background in Industrial Engineering, Mahsa is dedicated to developing innovative solutions for sustainable and equitable infrastructure. Her work includes projects on electrification pathways, energy consumption prediction, and creating resilient frameworks aimed at fostering a sustainable future.

Keywords: Energy, Sustainability, Machine Learning, Transportation Systems, Electrification, Resilience

Ximena Aristizabal Clavijo

Economics

Ximena (she/her) advocates full decarbonization while ensuring Social and Environmental Justice. Her research is focused on investigating the macroeconomic impact of carbon trading on host countries in the Global South. She aims to unfold the Paris Agreement requirement of using UNFCCC instruments for development support and assess if there is an improvement or detriment in development indicators through the history of implementation of these economic instruments. Ximena has a background in environmental engineering and has worked on structuring climate policies for various economies.

LinkedIn page: www.linkedin.com/in/ximena-aristizabal-56ab67202

Key words: climate policy, development goals, carbon trading, emissions trading

Jonisha Aubain

Mechanical Engineering

Jonisha Aubain is a Mechanical Engineering PhD student working under Dr. Erin Baker and Dr. Krish Sharman. Her work is on the experimental design and construction of a reference tidal turbine to be tested in the Ocean Resources and Renewable Energy (ORRE) Lab. Connected to this, she is doing a techno-economic analysis of tidal energy being applied to her home, the US Virgin Islands, to replace the use of diesel power as an energy source. 

LinkedIn profile: www.linkedin.com/in/jonisha-aubain-923a6310b

Key words: Tidal energy, energy justice, techno-economic analysis, offshore renewable energy.

Natalie Baillargeon

Public Policy

Natalie Baillargeon received a BA in Environmental Science & Policy from Smith College, where she studied how ecological systems are influenced by land use and climate change. Prior to joining UMass, she worked as a Policy Analyst at Woodwell Climate Research Center. At UMass, Natalie is a Master of Public Policy and Administration Candidate, and her research with ELEVATE will explore the role that nonprofits play in the just energy transition and the sociopolitical barriers to renewable energy development. 

Keywords: climate change, nonprofits, policy, energy transitions 

Shannon Callaham

Environmental Conservation

Shannon’s research explores social and behavioral dimensions of the climate movement and energy transition. Her interest in the individual’s influential power, grassroots models of change, environmental justice, and community resilience stems from her background in nonprofit and sustainability program management as well as climate consulting.

LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shannon-callaham-3ba84561

Keywords: Behavioral science, climate mobilization and leadership, community resilience

Ryan Cameron

Mechanical Engineering

Ryan Cameron graduated with a B.S and M.S in Aerospace Engineering Sciences from CU Boulder, where he developed a knack for aerodynamics and the mechanics of flight. Growing up in the Denver metro area, he was interacting with NREL outreach programs from an early age and became interested in applying a passion for fluid dynamics to wind energy research. As an ELEVATE Fellow, he is working on aerodynamic design problems for floating offshore wind energy, combining numerical and analytical modeling techniques to help design a future in renewable energy that we can all share.

LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rcameron-cu/

Keywords: Wind Power Engineering, Aerodynamics, CFD, Airfoil Design 

Hannah Darling

Mechanical Engineering

Hannah is a second year Mechanical Engineering PhD Student working under Dr. David Schmidt. Her research uses Computational Fluid Dynamics to model aspects of offshore wind turbine designs.

Keywords: CFD, Offshore Wind Energy, turbine,

Tyler DeShong

Geosciences

Tyler (He/him) received a BA in Environmental Geology from Middlebury College, where he used remote sensing and GIS to model how rivers respond to anthropogenic and tectonic disturbances. He spent two years working in the building energy policy realm for the State of Vermont, as the coordinator for the state's Municipal Energy Resilience Program. At UMass, Tyler will be working in the hydrology group under Dr. David Boutt, researching surface and groundwater dynamics in closed arid basins to further the sustainable management of renewable energy resources including lithium. 

Keywords: hydrology, arid hydrology, groundwater modeling, lithium

Rebekah Garza

Geosciences

Rebekah’s (she/they) research interests lie at the intersection of present day biogeochemical and hydrologic cycles. They are particularly interested in critical zone carbon cycling and understanding how climate change impacts these vital processes.

Keywords: carbon cycling, biogeochemistry

Trisha Hengan

Environmental Health Sciences

Trisha Henegan is a PhD student in Dr. Richard Peltier’s laboratory, in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences of the School of Public Health and Health Sciences. Her research focuses on the intersection of exposure assessment and environmental epidemiology in energy transition. She seeks solutions to air quality related problems and communicating how to mitigate and adapt the increasingly intensifying effects of environmental injustices and the effects of climate change on vulnerable populations. She received her undergraduate degree in chemistry from Susquehanna University; and more recently, earned her MPH from George Washington University.

LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/patricia-henegan-53409660/

Key Words: Air pollution, exposure assessment, environmental justice

Arash Khojaste

Industrial Engineering

Arash is a Ph.D. student at PEARL Lab in the Industrial Engineering and Operations Research Department. He holds a Master of Systems optimization degree from Sharif University and a bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering from Khaje-Nasir University in Iran.

His research is focused on the integration of renewable energy, in particular wind, within electricity markets. Due to its nature, wind energy is intermittent and prone to the potential shortfall. It is, therefore, imperative that sufficient levels of backup are secured to cover any shortfall from the wind. The backup generation level should consider seasonal and diurnal patterns of wind, correlations with electricity demand, etc. Arash will use stochastic optimization models to capture the wind structure for designated wind generation areas in New England and then embed these in a stochastic investment model to find the optimal backup for New England.

LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/arash-khojaste-b21732135

Keywords: Wind power; electricity markets, intermittent energy, stochastic modeling

Adam Lechowicz

Computer Science

Adam’s work focuses on the intersection of theory and application, with a focus on problems holding implications for energy, equity, and climate change. From a theoretical perspective, Adam leverages new techniques to design fair and efficient optimization algorithms. On the application side, he uses computational methods to augment the decarbonization of energy systems and computing infrastructure.

Personal Website: https://adamlechowicz.github.io

Keywords: Algorithms, energy systems, equity, optimization

Pedro I Matos Llavona

Geosciences

I study two interconnected topics involving sediment transport from its source in the mountains to its fate on the coast. First, my research aims to quantify sediment delivery to reservoirs in Puerto Rico following Hurricane María island-widespread landslides. Second, I aim to quantify net sediment transport in mangrove forests in Puerto Rico and assess their resilience to projected sea-level rise.

Keywords: Geosciences, sedimentology, coastal resiliency, natural hazards

Toni McElrath

Comparative Literature and Environmental Humanities

Toni McElrath is a proven leader in environmental justice, equity, and diversity, driving impactful legislative changes at the local level while promoting positive change through strategic outreach and collaboration. His research addresses systemic inequity and statistical discrimination in sustainable solutions for pollution and carbon reduction. He applies a comprehensive approach integrating local policies, climate and pollution data, and social analyses to inform equitable development and implementation. Achieving climate change mitigation and effective clean energy efforts requires a deep consideration for humanity and a concerted effort to dismantle discriminatory practices that hinder progress.

Keywords: climate change mitigation, environmental justice, sustainable sollutions

Musaab Mohammed Ali

Electrical & Computer Engineering

Musaab Mohammed Ali is a first year PhD student working under Dr. Jay Taneja in the STIMA lab at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. His research interest is distributed energy generation (DEG) such as solar PV, wind and battery storage and their integration into the electric grid in the U.S and Sub-Saharan Africa. He is also interested in exploring how renewable energy deployment could reduce dependency on fossil fuel and alleviate energy shortage in Sub-Saharan Africa.

LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/musaab-m-ali/

Keywords: Tenewable energy, distributed energy generation (DEG), microgrid, smartgrid

Vivian Ogechi Nwadiaru

Industrial Engineering

Vivian Ogechi Nwadiaru received a BEng in Metallurgical and Materials Engineering  and an MS in Energy Engineering. Prior to joining UMass as a PhD student, she completed an International Climate Protection Research Fellowship funded by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation at the Technical University of Berlin and University of Oxford investigating Nigeria's energy transition and proliferation of fossil backup generators. Her research with ELEVATE explores equitable demand response strategies such as pricing schemes for the deployment of solar and storage technologies to reduce cost and improve reliability in low-income communities.

Vivian enjoys threading the line between engineering and policy and is also dedicated to bridging the skills gap for STEM students in Nigeria through STEMJets, an NGO she co-founded.

Read Vivian’s recent article on her EPRI 2022 Internship

Keywords: Energy equity, storage, reliability, urban energy systems, solar technology

Paola Pimentel Furlanetto

Industrial Engineering

Paola is passionate about power systems and how their evolution can transition society into a more efficient, environmentally responsible, and just era. Her research interests are market structures and public policy dedicated to improving the power grid through renewables, energy storage, and other disruptive technologies.

Keywords: Power systems, electricity markets, environmental justice, equity

Teniel Rhiney

Anthropology

A recent graduate of Smith College, Teniel completed a bachelors in Psychology and a minor in Statistical & Data Sciences. She is experienced with technical languages including R, Python, Github, and SQL, and skilled in interpersonal communication. Teniel is passionate about minority mental health research and discovering systemic patterns that perpetuate health disparities in minority groups.

Peter Schimpf

Mechanical Engineering

Peter is a recent graduate of the University of Notre Dame, where he received a BS in Aerospace Engineering and conducted research on renewable energy technology. He is currently a Mechanical Engineering PhD student under Dr. Emmanuel Branlard at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. His research will be focused on the aerodynamics of floating offshore wind turbines.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/peterschimpf/

Keywords: aerodynamics, offshore wind, renewable energy

Charlie Sullivan

Anthropology

Charlie (they/them) is a first year Anthropology PhD student dealing with issues in urban planning and environmental justice. Charlie's research is focused on Latin American immigrant communities in South Texas and, specifically, how displaced communities establish place, engage in streetscape ownership, and politically mobilize on climate change issues.

Keywords: Urban planning, climate change, environmental justice, streetscape ownership, nonprofit reform, South Texas

Andre Tarleton

Anthropology

Andre Tarleton (he/they) is a graduate of Louisiana State University, where they received their BA in Women's and Gender Studies, MA in Anthropology and Master of Library and Information Sciences in Archival Studies. Their research interests are in climate migration, climate resilience, disaster capitalism, energy transition on the Gulf Coast and environmental justice.

Keywords: Climate Resilience, climate change, climate migration, Gulf Coast, environmental justice

ELEVATE Affiliates

Dan Ai

Resource Economics

Dan’s research mainly focuses on energy justice and adoption of renewable energy. She is also evaluating how energy policy can promote energy transition and sustainable consumption.

Key words: Renewable energy, energy justice, energy policy

Christian Hernandez-Negron

Industrial Engineering

Christian research focuses on the analysis of energy system modeling, technology forecasting, innovation, and technological change (water and energy), decision-making under uncertainty, and understanding strategies for accelerating the sustainable (water and energy) transition. Broader interests also include applied decision science, business analytics, statistical modeling, econometrics, transportation science and logistics, public policy analysis, climate change, sustainability, and interests and experience with household surveys or interviews.

LinkedIn Profile: linkedin.com/in/christian-hernández-negrón-03

Yiwen Wang

Industrial Engineering

Yiwen is a PhD student at Energy, Environment, and Economic Decision Making Lab in Industrial Engineering and Operations Research Department. Her research is focused on understanding the operation of the current energy systems and improving socioeconomic models for renewable energy forecasting. She holds a Master of Environmental Management degree from Duke University and a Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Engineering at Shanghai Jiao Tong University in China. Prior to starting PhD education, Yiwen has worked as energy consulting intern on informing decision making of utilities and policymakers on state-wide renewable energy planning.

Keywords: Renewable energy, electric power economics, planning, and operations

ELEVATE Alumni

April Burrage

Economics

April Burrage is an Economics PhD student at University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMASS). Her research will investigate the distribution of access to resources for economic opportunities in energy transition.

Keywords: Economics of innovation, inequality, energy transition

Emma Grazier

Resource Economics

Emma studies the direct and indirect financial returns from residential solar PV adoption. She also examines demographic disparities in those returns.

Keywords: Financial returns to solar PV adoption; distributional disparities

Cielo Angelica Sharkus Lograsso

Civil and Environmental Engineering

My research is primarily on the impacts of climate change on water resources and society. I model climate hazards (flooding, drought, wildfire, and pollutants) on water quality of vulnerable water systems. Throughout my research, I explore this tangential relationship between climate, society, and policy, where I use quantitative and qualitative data to advocate for low-income minority communities called "environmental justice communities". I integrate a novel approach to human systems engineering by introducing elements of both climate hazards (flooding, drought, and wildfire) and societal vulnerability into my research. I also develop computational models that analyze the socioeconomic and environmental conditions that harm human health in a water crisis disaster scenario, putting emphasis on socially vulnerable and marginalized people.

Keywords: Climate change, water resource engineering, justice engineering, equity and inclusion, hazards

John Wamburu

Computer Science

After getting his PhD with ELEVATE, John accepted a position with IBM Research in Kenya. John’s work focused on cyber-physical systems with applications in smart transportation, energy analytics and smart cities. He primarily use techniques from machine learning, statistical time-series analysis and optimization to derive insight from sensor, textual and image/video data.