Community Dinner: Fueling Dialogue on the Southeast’s Energy Future
Monday, November 11, 6 – 8 p.m.
Join the broader Duke University community for a dinner and discussion exploring the Southeast’s energy future.
Location: The Commons (Broadhead Center, top floor), 416 Chapel Drive, Durham, NC 27710
Curious about the future of energy in the Southeast and how the region can shape a clean energy transition? Duke University students, faculty, alumni, and local community members are invited to join us for a special evening of dinner and discussion. The dinner will feature leading experts who will offer insights on the challenges and opportunities in the Southeast’s energy landscape, touching on topics like policy, technology, and social equity. Enjoy a great meal while fueling meaningful dialogue that can help shape the path forward for a more sustainable and equitable energy system.
Open to current Duke students only.
Featured Speakers:
Matt Abele is the executive director of NC Sustainable Energy Association where he helps to drive the internal and external strategies necessary to implement successful policy solutions designed to transform North Carolina’s energy market. He serves as the host and producer of the Squeaky Clean Energy Podcast – a production that has driven brand recognition and attention to the organization from across the country. Prior to joining NCSEA, he worked with numerous national and regional clean energy non-profit organizations, helping to implement communications, marketing, and policy strategies.
Eric Fins is the vice president of Grove Climate Group. In this role, Fins works directly with clients to achieve their climate goals, providing policy advice, strategic guidance, and research and analysis. He also worked for 15 years in the U.S. House of Representatives in a variety of capacities, most recently as the deputy staff director of the House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis (SCCC) from 2021-2022. Fins received his J.D. from American University Magna Cum Laude and served as a staff member on the American University Law Review for two years.
Brian Murray is the director of the Nicholas Institute for Energy, Environment and Sustainability at Duke University which accelerates solutions to critical energy and environmental challenges. He is also a research professor at Duke University’s Nicholas School of the Environment and the Sanford School of Public Policy. Murray is among the original designers of the allowance price reserve approach for containing prices in carbon markets that was adopted by California and the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) cap-and-trade programs and served on a National Academy of Science panel to examine the effects of the U.S. federal tax code on energy-related greenhouse gas emissions. Prior to working at Duke, Murray served as director of the Center for Regulatory Economics and Policy Research at RTI International.
Jennifer Weiss (M.E.M.‘12) is the founder and co-director of the North Carolina Clean Energy Fund, a non-profit green bank that utilizes public and private capital to catalyze investments in clean and efficient energy and transportation projects in the state with a focus on traditionally underserved communities. She was most recently the senior advisor for climate change policy at the North Carolina Department of Transportation. Prior to that role, she worked as the senior policy associate for climate and energy program at the legacy Nicholas Institute at Duke University.
