International Transportation Expert to Speak at Duke Nov. 7

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Tuesday, November 1, 2011

CONTACT: Erin McKenzie
(919) 613-3652
erin.mckenzie@duke.edu

DURHAM, N.C. – Dan Sperling, known widely for his work in transportation, will speak at Duke University’s Levine Science Research Center Monday.

The 60-minute lecture will focus on how California is adopting a mix of policies, regulations and incentives that together provide a coherent and durable framework for transforming vehicles, fuels and mobility. This includes aggressive greenhouse gas performance standards for vehicles with special provisions for plug-in electric vehicles, a zero-emission vehicle mandate, a low carbon fuel standard, and various monetary and non-monetary incentives. Sperling will describe and assess this policy model beginning at 10 a.m. Nov. 7 in room A158 of the LSRC.

The talk will be followed by a 30-minute question-and-answer session. Refreshments will also be provided.

Sperling is the founding director of the University of California Davis's Institute of Transportation Studies, and is recognized as a leading international expert on transportation technology assessment, energy and environmental aspects of transportation and transportation policy.

In February 2007, former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger appointed Sperling to the automotive engineering seat on the California Air Resources Board, where his chief responsibilities include the oversight and design of the state’s climate change, alternatives fuels, vehicle travel, land use, and zero-emission vehicle programs.

In the past 25 years, he has authored or co-authored over 200 technical papers and 11 books, including Two Billion Cars: Driving Toward Sustainability, which considers the environmental impact of automobiles and suggests ways that politicians, car companies and the general public can reduce climate change.

Monday’s event is co-sponsored by the Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions, the Center on Global Change and the Nicholas School of the Environment.

For more information, visit http://nicholasinstitute.duke.edu/events/an-update-on-california-climate-policy-for-vehicles-fuels-and-vmt.

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