One system, every discipline: technology, markets, policy, and people.
The Certificate in Energy & Environment is a six-course interdisciplinary program for Duke undergraduates who want to understand our global energy system and work toward solutions that make them more sustainable, affordable, reliable, and resilient.
Energy challenges are not only technical. They are also economic, political, environmental, and social. This certificate will help you connect those perspectives and apply them to real-world energy and climate questions.
Select the Academic Plan Change Form.
Connect with an Advisor
Wondering if the certificate fits your academic plan? Trying to decide which course to take next? Contact one of the certificate co-directors:
For Trinity students: Dr. Luana Lima, luana.marangon.lima@duke.edu
For Pratt students: Dr. Rebecca Simmons, rebecca.simmons@duke.edu
What’s Involved in the Energy and Environment Certificate?
To earn the certificate, undergraduate students complete:
- 1 core course
- 4 electives across markets & policy, environment, and energy science & technology
- 1 yearlong capstone project
- 7 courses total
The certificate is designed to complement a wide range of majors in the Trinity College of Arts & Sciences and the Pratt School of Engineering.
Duke University is at the cutting edge of research and innovation for the new energy economy, and the Energy and the Environment certificate program lets students tap into that expertise. The program leans into “first principles” for understanding energy systems, which gave me a strong background in the physics, economics and engineering that underpin energy technologies. Transforming our energy systems demands an interdisciplinary approach, and completing the certificate helped equip me to think and work that way.
Who Should Pursue the Energy and Environment Certificate?
This certificate is open to undergraduates of any major at the Trinity College of Arts & Sciences or the Pratt School of Engineering.
It is designed for students from many academic backgrounds, including engineering, public policy, economics, environmental sciences, political science, biology, chemistry, computer science, statistics, history, journalism, and more.
It is especially relevant if you are interested in:
- Energy and climate policy
- Environmental management and sustainability
- Clean energy and emerging technologies
- Economics, markets, and regulation
- Infrastructure, resilience, and energy access
- Interdisciplinary approaches to global challenges
What are the Energy and Environment Certificate Requirements?
- Core course: Get an introduction to the shared concepts, vocabulary, and interdisciplinary framework you'll build on throughout the certificate.
- Markets & Policy elective: Examine how regulation, markets, and public policy shape energy production, pricing, and decision-making.
- Environment elective: Explore the environmental impacts and resource tradeoffs tied to how we produce and consume energy.
- Energy Science & Technology elective: Get grounded in the technical and scientific fundamentals behind energy generation, storage, and delivery.
- Additional elective: Take one more course from any of the three elective areas above to deepen your focus or broaden your perspective.
- Capstone Sequence: Put everything you’ve learned into practice in a yearlong, project-based capstone experience developed in partnership with Duke’s Facilities Management Department.
What is the Energy and Environment Certificate Capstone?
During the capstone sequence, you’ll take on the role of a contractor-consultant working on real, active projects drawn from Duke’s own electricity, water, and steam systems.
The capstone sequence will span the fall semester (0.5 credit) and spring semester (1 credit) of your senior year:
The fall semester opens with an immersive bootcamp: touring campus energy plants, digging into Duke’s facilities archives, and learning to read system performance data, conduct equipment inspections, and audit energy and environmental reports.
In the spring, you’ll join a small team to develop a full portfolio of real planning documents — including a project charter, feasibility study, cost estimate, and environmental assessment — for a project pulled directly from the University's facilities maintenance backlog.
The experience culminates in a public symposium where you’ll present your work to Duke faculty, staff, and facilities professionals, tackling open-ended, real-world problems along the way and building the collaborative, organizational skills needed to navigate a large, complex institution.
What Will I Gain by Pursuing the Energy and Environment Certificate?
Through the certificate, you will learn to:
- Analyze how energy systems are shaped by technology, policy, markets, and environmental constraints
- Evaluate tradeoffs among affordability, reliability, sustainability, and resilience
- Understand how energy decisions affect communities, institutions, ecosystems, and economies
- Apply interdisciplinary approaches to real-world energy and climate problems
- Communicate about complex energy issues across technical and nontechnical audiences
- Build relationships with Duke faculty, facilities and sustainability professionals, and fellow students through field trips, guest speakers, and hands-on collaboration — a network that extends well beyond the classroom
What Does the Energy and Environment Certificate Help Prepare Me For?
This certificate provides a strong foundation for students pursuing careers or graduate study in:
- Energy and climate policy
- Environmental consulting and management
- Clean energy and sustainability
- Civil, environmental, and energy engineering
- Environmental science
- Finance and economics related to energy markets and emerging technologies
- Business, law, journalism, and public communication
How Do I Enroll in the Energy and Environment Certificate?
All Duke undergraduates can declare the certificate through the Office of the University Registrar’s Academic Plan Change form.
Frequently Asked Questions
When is the best time to declare the Energy and Environment Certificate?
The certificate is easiest to complete if you declare it at the same time as your major, allowing you to factor the program into your long-range course planning.
Can first-year students declare the Energy and Environment Certificate?
With rare exceptions, Duke students cannot make curricular declarations during their first year.
Can I complete the Energy and Environment certificate if I am already a junior?
Yes. Make sure you plan to enroll in the capstone for both semesters of your senior year.
Do I have to take the core course first?
No, elective courses may be taken before the core course.
Do FOCUS and Constellations courses count toward the Energy and Environment Certificate?
Relevant FOCUS and Constellations courses may fulfill the Additional Elective requirement—contact a certificate co-director for approval. No more than one FOCUS or Constellations course may be applied to certificate requirements.
Can a course count toward both my major and the certificate?
No more than two courses that count toward the certificate may be used to also satisfy the requirements of any major, minor, or other certificate program.
Are there any additional course restrictions?
No more than three courses (excluding the capstone) may originate in a single department.
Can study abroad courses count?
Study abroad courses may fulfill certificate requirements with the approval of a certificate co-director.
Can independent study or research count?
Independent study courses can count toward certificate requirements with the approval of a certificate co-director.
How does the capstone work?
In their senior year, students undertake a two-semester capstone project, receiving 0.5 credits for the fall semester and one credit for the spring. The purpose of the capstone is to connect technical energy and infrastructure analysis with sustainability, organizational collaboration, and practical project delivery. Overall, the capstone uses Duke’s campus as a “living laboratory,” giving students hands-on experience with utilities management, interdisciplinary problem-solving, uncertain learning, and real-world sustainability challenges.