Thursday, September 04, 2008

Early September at MIT

Monday, September 08, 2008
Denmark's Ambassador to the United States Discusses Climate Change Security
Speaker: Friis Arne Petersen, Denmark's Ambassador to the United States
Time: 3:00p–5:00p
Location: 32-141
Denmark is to host the United Nations Climate Conference in 2009 when the successor to the Kyoto protocol is to be agreed upon. At least 10,000 participants from around the world will be attending, which will be the most significant gathering since the Kyoto meeting in 1997. Denmark is also among the leading nations in the use of renewable energy and has already reduced CO2-emissions by 15 percent. Ambassador Friis Arne Petersen will discuss expectations for the UN Climate Conference, how Denmark has implemented its climate and energy policy, and answer questions from the audience.
Open to: the general public
Sponsor(s): MIT Energy Club, MIT Center for International Studies
For more information, contact:
Amy Fazen
energy-events@mit.edu

Tuesday, September 09, 2008
Profitably Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Speaker: Thomas R. Casten, founder and CEO of Recycled Energy Development
Time: 4:14p–5:45p
Location: 66-110
MIT Energy Initiative Seminar Series
MITEI sponsors a series of energy colloquia featuring leaders from across the energy spectrum. These speakers are the innovators in energy and will be of interest to faculty, staff, and students across the campus and beyond. Other MITEI-sponsored seminars seek to highlight energy research and education activities taking place at the Institute. All posted events are open to the public
Climate change and energy concerns call forth energy policies, but there is a failure to understand societal costs of each alternative action. Furthermore, economists and policy advisors assume the present energy conversion system is economically optimal, given current technology. Drawing on 30 years of developing $2.0 billion of local generation projects that recycle waste energy, Casten analyzes the societal costs and savings of twelve alternate approaches to generating electricity. The presentation will show how the U.S. could achieve two billion tons of CO2 reduction per year while saving over $100 billion per year. The presentation ends with suggested policy changes to induce profitable GHG reductions and start an energy efficiency revolution.

Web site: http://mit.edu/mitei/news/seminars

Open to: the general public
Sponsor(s): MIT Energy Campus Events
For more information, contact:
Karen Gibson
6172586368
kgibson@mit.edu

Wednesday, September 10, 2008
X PRIZE Energy Forum: "Seeking Radical Breakthroughs in Alternative Energy: What I Would Advise the Next President"
Time: 4:30p–7:00p
Location: 34-101
Join us for an exciting forum on innovative solutions to the energy crisis, as we explore what technologies and approaches are most promising, where investments should be made and what policies should change.

Featuring:
Futurist Dr. Ray Kurzweil,
Biologist Dr. George Church,
Inventor Dr. Saul Griffith,
X PRIZE Foundation Chairman and CEO Dr. Peter Diamandis, and other special guests.

Networking reception to follow from 6-7pm in Stata R&D Commons.
Open to: the general public
Cost: FREE
Sponsor(s): X PRIZE Lab @ MIT, MIT Energy Club, X PRIZE Foundation
For more information, contact:
Erika Wagner
617-253-0017
xprize@mit.edu