The “From Billions to Trillions” summit convened stakeholders at Duke University on Feb. 28 to create a shared vision for unleashing private capital for climate solutions. The summit featured public officials, business leaders, and Duke faculty sharing insights on how the influx of federal funding from the Inflation Reduction Act, CHIPS Act, and the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will impact and stimulate private green investment.

Energy Pathways USA hosted a briefing about the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s newly released power sector regulations on May 7. Nicholas Institute expert Tim Profeta, former EPA special counsel for the power sector and senior advisor, explained the new standards for existing coal and new gas-fired power plants, outlined the key implications and questions for U.S. decarbonization and answered attendee questions.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today released four pollution rules that could largely remove coal from the U.S. power grid by the early 2030s, reports E&E News. “These are very significant and important rules for the general transition of [the power] sector,” said Tim Profeta, senior fellow at the Nicholas Institute for Energy, Environment & Sustainability.

Senior fellow Tim Profeta spoke with Inside Climate News about the legacy and impact of the late Sen. Joseph Lieberman. Profeta, Lieberman’s top aide on environmental issues during his Senate tenure, said the bipartisan Lieberman-McCain Climate Stewardship Act “changed the dynamic on climate, politically,” even thought it didn't pass. “It put climate actually into the realm of the possible, and not in the realm of a bridge too far.”

Federal officials and business leaders at a Duke University summit on Feb. 28 identified critical steps toward a low-carbon future. The full day of conversations drew nearly 500 people from the Duke community, the public and private sectors, nonprofit organizations and other academic institutions.

Three Nicholas Institute experts discussed the key findings of a report offering new insights into US energy transition investments during a webinar held Jan. 25. The report from Energy Pathways USA models the intersecting effects of the Inflation Reduction Act, clean electricity development cost increases and the impacts of proposed U.S. Environmental Protection Agency greenhouse gas regulations for fossil fuels.

Modeling from Energy Pathways USA finds the two policies can combine to move the country closer to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions, but complementary action is needed to reach the goal by 2050.

Now in its 11th year, the competition engages diverse, creative teams of graduate students to address real energy challenges affecting the developing world. Teams from the University of Colorado at Boulder and the IESE Business School rounded out the top three, which were collectively awarded $15,000.

The New York Climate Exchange on Governors Island will be a laboratory for universities, corporations and public interest groups to develop solutions to the global climate crisis through education, research, workforce training, and community programs. During Climate Week NYC, several Duke experts explored Governors Island as part of a tour offered by the Exchange, Duke Today reports.

The Climate 21 Project tapped the expertise of more than 150 people with high-level government experience to provide the incoming Biden administration with recommendations for taking urgent and meaningful action on climate change.