ERCOT’s unique connect-and-manage interconnection process is significantly faster than that of any other US energy market. Tyler Norris, a Ph.D. student at Duke's Nicholas School of the Environment, spoke to Utility Dive how other markets could use ERCOT's template to speed up interconnection queues and reduce the cost of network upgrades.

Victoria Salinas, a globally recognized leader in climate resilience, risk reduction and disaster recovery, began a yearlong term as Duke University’s fourth Climate Leader in Residence (CLIR) in June. The CLIR program brings top thought leaders to Duke to share insights and expertise, sparking discussion and action to advance climate solutions.

More than 70 people convened at Duke University and virtually to highlight successes, challenges and opportunities across research, industry and policy on regional electric mobility in the Southeast during the April 2025 Southeast Electric Transportation Regional Initiative (SETRI) meeting. The event was hosted by the Nicholas Institute and Georgia Tech Strategic Energy Institute, in collaboration with SETRI partner organizations.

Duke experts are exploring ways to enhance community resilience to extreme weather events. Lydia Olander and Francis Bouchard joined engineering professor Mark Borsuk in leading a 2024-2025 Bass Connections team exploring community-based catastrophe insurance.

The Illuminating Hidden Harvests initiative—a collaboration between FAO, Duke University, WorldFish and the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability—brings together more than 800 experts to examine the contributions that small-scale fisheries make to sustainable development at the national, regional and global levels. A new collection from Nature and the Nature portfolio and partner journals presents some of the project’s findings, together with opinion pieces on the initiative.

In June 2024, more than 100 experts, scientists, policymakers, and corporate and community leaders gathered at Duke University for the inaugural HeatWise Policy Partnership Summit to discuss how to make communities more resilient to extreme heat. A new playlist features a set of briefings that informed conversations at the summit, as well as a fireside chat with Jeff Goodell, author of "The Heat Will Kill You First: Life and Death on a Scorched Planet."

As summer approaches, public health and climate experts remind residents to take precautions against heat-related illnesses, especially as forecasts point to a warmer-than-average summer, reports WLOS-TV in Asheville. The N.C. Department of Health and Human Services uses a Heat Health Alert System developed with Duke's Heat Policy Innovation Hub to issue alerts when heat is forecast to reach unhealthy levels for a particular area.

The National Weather Service has warned people under extreme heat warnings in three Western U.S. states to avoid consuming alcohol or caffeinated drinks as they can accelerate dehydration. "When it's dangerously hot, the safest bet is to stick with water or electrolyte beverages, take breaks in the shade or AC, and avoid strenuous activities during the hottest parts of the day," Ashley Ward, director of the Heat Policy Innovation Hub, told Newsweek.

The SALA & Duke Climate and Sustainability Summit gathered more than 100 leaders, researchers and advocates May 21–22 at Duke University to explore bold climate solutions and institutional commitments. Duke Today wrote about some of the university scholars who participated in the summit, including Brian Murray, Nicholas Institute director, and Alison Taylor, Duke Climate Leader in Residence.

While communities across the United States are facing growing threats from climate change, municipal bonds continue to be priced without these risks in mind, reports Dividend.com. A 2023 paper written by Nicholas Institute expert Martin Doyle and several co-authors found that increasing an issuer’s climate risk by 32 times only added 4.2 basis points to its yield.