Energy Policy Advisory Council Bios
Dr. Abdoulaye "Abdul" Djire
Dr. Abdoulaye "Abdul" Djire is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering at Texas A&M University with an additional affiliation in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering. Prior to joining Texas A&M, Dr. Djire held positions as a Staff Scientist and a Postdoctoral Researcher at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in the Chemistry and Nanoscience Center. He earned his Ph.D. and Master’s degrees in Chemical Engineering from the University of Michigan. At Texas A&M, Dr. Djire serves as the Director of the Discovery Journey to Innovative Renewable Energy (DJIRE) laboratory and program. His team focuses on finding sustainable solutions to combat climate change and promoting global access to clean energy through the exploration of innovative materials and public education initiatives.
Dr. Rusty Towell
Dr. Rusty Towell is the founding director of ACU’s Nuclear Energy eXperimental Testing (NEXT) Lab which is building the first university advanced reactor in the country. Rusty has a BS degree in Engineering Physics from ACU and a Ph.D in nuclear physics from the University of Texas. He served in the U.S. Navy as an instructor at the Naval Nuclear Power School and completed a postdoctoral research fellowship with Los Alamos National Laboratory working at Brookhaven National Lab.
Dr. Joshua D. Rhodes
Dr. Joshua D. Rhodes is a Research Scientist with the Webber Energy Group at UT Austin, a non-Resident Fellow at Columbia University, and a Founding partner & CTO of IdeaSmiths LLC. His current work is in the area of energy systems. He holds a double bachelors in Mathematics and Economics from Stephen F. Austin State University, a masters in Computational Mathematics from TAMU, and a Ph.D. in Civil Engineering from UT Austin.
Dr. Erick C. Jones Jr.
Dr. Erick C. Jones Jr. is an Assistant Professor in the Industrial, Manufacturing and Systems Engineering Department at UTA and the founder and director of the Sustainable and Equitable Allocation of Resources (SEAR) Lab, which investigates how communities, companies, and countries can allocate their limited resources in a way that maximizes their desired outcomes in a sustainable, equitable, and resilient way. His background in oil and gas and engineering design gives him a unique perspective on the opportunities and challenges of the energy transition especially in power generation, transportation, and buildings.
Dr. Margaret Cook
Dr. Margaret Cook is the Deputy Director - Climate Equity and Resilience at the Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC). Her research focuses on the Energy-Water-Climate Nexus and partnering with communities to advance their energy, water, equity, and resilience goals. Dr. Cook's previous research focused on the effects of drought and heat waves on power plants and water recycling in the oil and gas industry. She has previously worked at the Texas Legislature, the U.S. Department of Energy, Apache Corporation, and Austin Energy.
Dr. Daniel Cohan
Dr. Daniel Cohan is a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Rice University where he leads the Cohan Research Group, which studies the interactions of air pollution, climate change, and energy. He is also a faculty fellow in the Baker Institute Center for Energy Studies and a member of EPA’s Board of Scientific Counselors. He received a B.A. in applied mathematics from Harvard University and a Ph.D. in atmospheric science from Georgia Tech. He has written more than 50 peer-reviewed publications, 75 op-eds, and the book Confronting Climate Gridlock: How Diplomacy, Technology, and Policy Can Unlock a Clean Energy Future.
Dr. Emily Beagle
Dr. Emily Beagle is currently a Research Associate in the Webber Energy Group at UT Austin. She currently works on energy policy and pathways to decarbonization of the global energy system with a focus on the deployment of hydrogen to reduce emissions in the hardest to abate sectors. Prior to joining the Webber Energy Group, she was a senior associate with the Climate Aligned Industries program at RMI and led the policy work for the Green Hydrogen Catapult project. She also served as the ASME Congressional Fellow in Energy in the office of Senator Tina Smith in 2020.
Dr. Timothy "Tip" A. Meckel
Dr. Tip Meckel has spent the last 17 years as a Research Scientist investigating carbon capture and storage (CCS) for the Bureau of Economic Geology at UT Austin. During his time with the Gulf Coast Carbon Center, he led many field projects funded by US-DOE-NETL, including offshore CCS in the Gulf of Mexico. Meckel was a technical contributor to parts of the 2019 National Petroleum Council study on CCUS provided to the Secretary of Energy, and participated in the formation of the Society of Petroleum Engineer’s Storage Resource Management System (SRMS). Tip has published over 100 articles on CCS topics, and has been PI or Co-PI on CCS projects with over $75M in total funding since 2006. He is a member of the 2023 White House Task Force on CCS on Federal Lands, including the Outer Continental Shelf.
Dr. Bobuchi Ken-Opurum
Dr. Bobuchi Ken-Opurum is a Research Director at the Building Electrification Institute. Dr. Ken-Opurum is using people-centered research to help cities prioritize the needs and lived experiences of marginalized communities in developing and implementing climate and clean energy solutions. Previously, Dr. Ken-Opurum served as the Director of Research at the Texas Energy Poverty Research Institute (TEPRI), leading impactful applied research projects to improve clean, affordable, and resilient energy access for underserved communities. At TEPRI, she led the research and launch of the first Statewide Community Voices in Energy Survey Reports, focusing on the lived experiences and needs of low- to moderate-income households in Texas. Dr. Ken-Opurum earned a Ph.D. in Architecture-Engineering-Construction Management from Carnegie Mellon University, a MS in Sustainability Management from Columbia University, and a BS in Construction Engineering Management Technology from Purdue University. She has published numerous journal and conference papers related to energy equity and justice, indoor environmental quality, energy efficiency, and resilience of the built environment. She is on the 2023 Forbes 30 under 30 list and is named one of Grist Magazine’s “50 climate leaders driving fresh solutions to our planet's biggest problems.”
Dr. Ken W. Wisian
Dr. Ken W. Wisian is the Associate Director of the Environmental Division for the Bureau of Economic Geology at UT Austin. Previously, Dr. Wisian was a senior state executive responsible for disaster recovery, oil spill prevention and response, and coastal infrastructure and environmental protection for Texas. As a military officer, General Wisian participated or led military disaster response efforts for the Shuttle Columbia crash and multiple hurricanes. Dr. Wisian is a geophysicist whose main research is in geothermal systems, modeling, and instrumentation & data analysis. General Wisian, a navigator/bombardier, flew bombers, transports and fighters, is a graduate of the USAF Test Pilot School and commanded the 147th Reconnaissance Wing flying the MQ-1 Predator. He has combat time in Iraq, Afghanistan and Bosnia and his combat medals include the Bronze Star and Air Medal.
Dr. Arvind P. Ravikumar
Dr. Arvind Ravikumar is the co-Director of the Energy Emissions Modeling and Data Lab (EEMDL) at the University of Texas at Austin and a Research Associate Professor in the Department of Petroleum and Geosystems Engineering. He has published over 50 articles in peer-reviewed journals, primarily in the areas of greenhouse gas emissions measurements and energy systems analysis. Dr. Ravikumar has been a lead investigator for several large-scale, field campaigns in the US and Canada on methane emissions from oil and gas supply chain and evaluating new technologies for monitoring greenhouse gases. He routinely advises state and federal governments, provides expert testimony in Congress on greenhouse gas emissions from energy supply chains, and currently serves on the US Department of Transportation’s Gas Pipeline Advisory Committee. Dr. Ravikumar is a Senior Associate with the Center for Strategic and International Studies and graduated with a Ph.D. from Princeton University.
Dr. Suhas Pol
Dr. Suhas Pol is the Director of the Renewable Energy Program at Texas Tech University. As a faculty lead, his focus is on curriculum development and enhancement to meet Renewable Energy workforce needs. Dr. Pol’s research includes advancing innovations to improve wind farms’ performance, exploring the use of Data Science for Renewable Energy applications, and identifying technological and policy changes to promote Distributed Energy.