Is it possible to feed the growing world without starving the planet? A team of Associated Press journalists explored this question with a group of world experts, including Sanford’s Norbert Wilson, director of the World Food Policy Center, to learn more about how food production affects the climate and environment and how that could change in the future. Demand for protein — especially meat, which is agriculture’s largest toll on the environment — is soaring as the population grows, tastes change and incomes rise. The AP deployed journalists in 2022 to 16 locations in 10 countries on five continents to better understand this protein problem — and learn about ways some creative thinkers and innovators are trying to solve it. Results of this work were published in 2023.
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Distinguished professor of law Sarah Bloom Raskin was invited to become a member of the Senior Consultative Group for the Energy Transition Accelerator, an initiative of the U.S. Department of State, Bezos Earth Fund, and the Rockefeller Foundation that is aiming to accelerate the just clean energy transition by mobilizing private capital to pay for carbon credits. The consultative group, chaired by John Kerry, the inaugural U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate and former Secretary of State, brings together independent experts with a range of experience and knowledge in areas including carbon markets, energy transition, equity, and diplomacy.
Raskin also conducted an independent consultation for the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Secretariat to ensure greater transparency and accountability of individual non-state entities’ net-zero pledges, transition plans and progress reporting.
Distinguished professor of law Jonathan Wiener spoke about his research at venues such as the Inter-American Development Bank, the NYU Law School European University Institute (EUI), Paris Dauphine-PSL University and in several locations throughout Iceland. He also chaired a session entitled “Solar Radiation Modification: A Conversation with the Right Honourable Kim Campbell, former Prime Minister of Canada,” at an event hosted by Resources for the Future (RFF) in Washington, D.C.
Clinical professor of law Michelle Nowlin spoke at the Mid-Atlantic Marine Debris Summit in December 2023; Nowlin and Nancy Lauer also worked with several waterkeeper organizations across the state to collect and analyze data on litter pollution, worked with several plastic coalitions to reduce plastic waste, and helped host a workshop about plastics at Duke in D.C. to bring together members of the government, NGOs, and academia.
In the halls of Congress, distinguished professor of international business law Timothy Meyer testified about international trade, greenhouse gases and the U.S. steel and aluminum industries. Senior lecturing fellow Stephen Roady testified before a subcommittee of the United States House of Representatives in opposition to efforts to accelerate oil and gas drilling in the Gulf of Mexico. Roady also presented at the University of Miami and serves as member of the “The Code Project” assembled by the Pew Charitable Trusts focused on protecting the ocean floor.
Duke Divinity School hosted the 2024 cohort of the Faith for Our Planet Youth Fellowship program January 8-14 for a week-long retreat on connecting faith traditions to climate and sustainability work. Faith for Our Planet is an interfaith NGO that provides opportunities for people of many different faiths to explore ways they can work within and among religious communities to advance climate action. It sponsored the 24 Fellows from all across the world to spend a week training alongside religious studies and climate experts, exploring the connections of environmental stewardship and faith and developing ideas for cultivating sustainability in their faith traditions. The workshop was co-led by Norman Wirzba, Gilbert T. Rowe Distinguished Professor of Christian Theology in Duke Divinity School and Director of Research for the Office of Climate and Sustainability, and Abdullah Antepli, Associate Professor of the Practice of Interfaith Relations in Duke Divinity School and Associate Professor of the Practice in the Sanford School of Public Policy. Duke Divinity School partnered with Faith for Our Planet to develop the fellowship program.
Working with Resources for the Future (RFF), Duke Center on Risk Research Director Tyler Felgenhauer served as a co-organizer for the two-day workshop, “Solar Geoengineering Futures: Interdisciplinary Research to Inform Decision-making,” held in Washington, DC, from September 28-29, 2023. Co-organizers included Billy Pizer (RFF), Joe Aldy (Harvard), Massimo Tavoni (European Institute on Economics and the Environment), and Shuchi Talati (Alliance for Just Deliberation on Solar Geoengineering). The public-facing meeting brought leading SRM experts and stakeholders together to look into the major social science questions on the risks, benefits, and uncertainties of SRM technologies.
Energy Week, an annual Duke student-organized series of events bringing together students, faculty, and industry professionals for events that promote collaboration, knowledge-sharing, and professional networking about energy-related topics, returned to Duke from November 6-10, 2023. This year’s series, “Creating a Just Clean Energy Transition: Moving from Rhetoric to Reality,” featured panel discussions about leveraging the Inflation Reduction Act and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act for clean energy development, community organizing, financing for renewable energy development, and addressing critical mineral challenges.
The cornerstone event of the week, the Duke University Energy Conference, took place on Wednesday, November 8 in Geneen Auditorium in the Fuqua School of Business. In its 15th year, the conference focused on the theme, “Energizing Disruption: Fostering Innovation and Collaboration Across the Energy Ecosystem,” and featured keynote remarks by Eric Toone, Mark E. Hickson, and Audrey Lee, speaker panels on the roles of policy and finance in the clean energy transition, a company expo, and a networking reception.
Each semester, the Duke Undergraduate Energy & Climate Club (DECC) collaborates with energy and sustainability organizations to offer pro-bono consulting projects. These projects connect students with industry professionals, offering practical experience while delivering results for partners. Over the 2023–2024 academic year, DECC hosted 11 project teams with organizations like Modern Hydrogen, Third Derivative, and Duke Energy.
Deliverables included technoeconomic analyses, lifecycle assessments, market research, and policy recommendations, with one spring project extending into a summer internship. Project managers and analysts frequently cite their experience on a DECC project team in job interviews. DECC is continuing and expanding upon its project program for the 2024-25 academic year.
DECC also hosted a fall 2023 panel with over 50 attendees on electric vehicle start-up challenges. Panelists affiliated with Joules Accelerator came together to discuss electric vehicle startups, including innovations in battery chemistry and grid electrification and the difficulties commercializing new EV technologies. This general body meeting is one example of many educational speaker events hosted by DECC to facilitate discussions with industry experts and opportunities for networking.
Through its office in Washington, DC, Duke University actively engages with policymakers, legislators, and NGOs to address climate adaptation and mitigation. In partnership with Duke Government Relations, Duke State Relations and Duke Health Government Relations, Duke in DC hosted the Building Extreme Weather Resiliency in North Carolina dinner on March 20, 2024, featuring a panel of experts who discussed grassroots resilience efforts, statewide planning, hospital emergency management, and Duke’s Climate Commitment, offering insights into strengthening resilience across North Carolina and beyond. The conversation focused on how policymakers, businesses, and the public can enhance community resilience to climate change, and was attended by Rep. Valerie Foushee (NC-04) and representatives from the offices of Sen. Thom Tillis (NC), Rep. Deborah Ross (NC-02), Rep. Greg Murphy (NC-03), and Rep. Richard Hudson (NC-09).
The panel, moderated by Duke’s Vice President and Vice Provost for Climate and Sustainability Toddi Steelman, included experts Niroj Aryal from NC A&T University, Avery Davis Lamb from Creation Justice Ministries, Andrea Webster from the NC Office of Recovery and Resiliency, and Jason Zivica from Duke University Hospital.
Duke in DC’s Beyond Talking Points series also featured a discussion on April 16, 2024, about climate financing and federal incentives following the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Panelists, including Duke experts Jackson Ewing, Judy Ledlee, and Lee Reiners, and moderator, Interim Stanback Dean of the Nicholas School of the Environment Lori Bennear, explored climate finance, public and private sector efforts, and the importance of policy-driven investment. The event provided recommendations to congressional staff on mobilizing IRA resources for climate resilience.
In April 2023, Duke was announced as an affiliate member of the New York Climate Exchange, a collaboration of over 40 organizations – including academia, industry and community NGOs – engaged in responding to climate change. In 2024, Duke moved from affiliate partnership in the Exchange to being one of nine core partners. Core partnership provides Duke with voting status on the Exchange’s Board of Directors.
The Exchange’s mission is to “confront urgent climate impacts and issues of environmental justice, breaking down silos through an innovative, scalable, and sustainable model that will rapidly develop new urban climate solutions.” The Exchange aims to open a 400,000 square-foot campus on Governors Island in New York City in 2028; in the meantime, Duke has been highly involved in the Exchange’s early work to advance climate action through education, research, community and civic connection, economic development, and workforce training.
In February 2024, Duke leaders working on the Exchange hosted a virtual town hall for faculty and staff interested in the Exchange’s planned programs and efforts. Additionally, Exchange CEO Steve Hammer visited Duke’s campus in February 2024 to meet Duke experts contributing to Exchange work and to learn about climate efforts happening within Duke.
The 2023 Duke International Forum, an annual meeting hosted at Duke Kunshan University on topics of global relevance, examined a number of themes related to climate change and sustainability, especially as they intersect with U.S.-China relations. The forum, titled “Climate and Sustainability: Green Technology, Policy, Investment & Education” on November 17, 2023 featured opening remarks by Duke, DKU, and local government officials. Additional highlights from the event included panel discussions, research presentations by students, and afternoon breakout sessions on each of the thematic topical areas: green technology, policy, investment, and education.
The forum capped off a 12-day Asia trip in November 2023 for a delegation of Duke Climate Commitment leaders, faculty, and staff that included stops in Singapore and China, including meetings with key diplomatic partners in Beijing and Shanghai such as U.S. Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns and Chinese Minister of Ecology and Environment Xie Zhenhua.
While Congress has committed hundreds of billions of dollars to advance decarbonization in the United States, trillions more in private investment are needed for the country to reach its climate goals. The Nicholas Institute and the Fuqua School of Business convened From Billions to Trillions: The Inflation Reduction Act as a Catalyst for Private Investment, a day-long summit in February 2024 to create a shared vision for unleashing private capital for climate solutions. Panelists offered insights into how the influx of federal funding from the Inflation Reduction Act, CHIPS and Science Act, and the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will impact and stimulate private green investment.
The summit featured an all-star lineup of public officials and business leaders in conversation with Duke faculty. The keynote speaker was John Podesta, Senior Advisor to President Biden for Clean Energy and Innovation Implementation, and panelists included Gregg Lowe, CEO, Wolfspeed; Jigar Shah, Director of the Loans Program Office, US Department of Energy; Antha Williams, Leader of Global Climate & Environment Programs, Bloomberg Philanthropies; Melissa James, Vice Chairman, Morgan Stanley; and Mark Florian, Managing Partner and Head, BlackRock Global Infrastructure Funds. This initial gathering laid the groundwork for an annual event, with a second summit scheduled for early 2025.