2018 AGENDA (ccompleted 14 May 2018 - see Archives for select presentation materials)

8:30-8:59     Registration and Continental Breakfast. 

9:00-9:04     Preamble, Peter J. Schubert, Director of the Richard G. Lugar Center for Renewable Energy

 9:05-9:44     Opening Remarks:  Janet McCabe, Senior Law Fellow at Environmental Law and Policy Center and Professor of Practice, IU McKinney School of Law, “Making the Link – How Having Energy Affects Earth, Sea and Sky”

9:45-10:07     Diane Henshel, Professor, School of Public and Environmental Affairs (SPEA), Indiana University,  “How Pollution and Climate Affect Human Health”

10:08-10:30    Vicky Keramida, CEO & Chief Technical Officer, KERAMIDA, Inc. – “How External Energy Costs are Already Taxed/Regulated in Indiana and the US”

10:30-10:45                         Networking, Refreshments

10:45-11:59     Panel 1:    Historical Perspective on Energy, Technology, and Pollution

Moderator:        Stephen Randall, Professor, Biology Department, IUPUI

The balance between economic necessity and environmental stewardship has changed over time and is currently in a period of flux after having remained essentially in equilibrium for a generation.  New technologies are growing geometrically.  New sensing technologies are available.  Links between pollution and food production, environment and human health are becoming more clear.  What insights can be gained from historic situations and recent trends?Panelists:

• Terry Hall, Partner, Faegre Baker Daniels
• Gabriel Filippelli, Director, Center for Urban Health & IU Environmental Resilience Institute
• Denise Abdul-Rahman, Indiana NAACP

12:00        Lunch and Speaker:  Jeff Dukes, Director, Purdue Climate Change Research Center

12:31-1:32       Panel 2:  Lessons from the Midwest and Around the Globe

Moderator:        Brandon Seitz, Director of Government Affairs, NIPSCO

The speed at which new energy technologies are becoming market players coupled with the decrease in costs for renewable and non-coal power generation sources is rapidly changing how the energy industry and its stakeholders including utilities, environmental advocates, research institutions, and businesses/groups advocating for use of new technologies are interacting in the current energy landscape.  This panel brings a diverse group of stakeholders to discuss emerging technologies including distributed generation, energy efficiency, and transportation and consider what global and other US policy models may be applicable to Indiana.     

Panelists

• Clifford Haefke, Director, Energy Resources Center, UI-Chicago, US DOE Midwest CHP TAP 
• Jodi Perras, Acting Deputy Regional Director, Sierra Club Beyond Coal Campaign
• Carl Lisek, VP, Legacy Environmental Services & Executive Director, South Shore Clean Cities
• Richard Benedict, Director of Project Development, Indianapolis Power & Light (AES)

1:33-2:34     Panel 3:   Engineering Ethics – What is our Responsibility Today

Moderator:        Peter Schubert, Director, Richard G. Lugar Center for Renewable Energy

The final question of this Spring Forum is “Who Pays?” asking where responsibilities lies for the burden of addressing pollution and climate challenges.  Is it yesterday’s crass polluters, today’s enlightened leaders, or tomorrow’s problem solvers?  How do we balance predictive science, market forces, and the arc of innovation in determining who bears the costs of cleaner forms of energy.  Also, how do we grapple with the issue of “outsourcing” the pollution from new forms of energy generation?

Panelists:

• Chris Foley, Chris J. Foley, Assistant Vice President & Director, Office of Online Education (IU) & Adjunct Assistant Professor of Organizational Leadership (IUPUI)
• Samuel Henderson, Staff Attorney, Hoosier Environmental Council (HEC)  
• T. Wyatt Watkins, Board Chair, Hoosier Interfaith Power & Light (HIPL)
• Christina Hale, Executive Director, Kiwanis International Youth Programs

2:34-2:50      Networking Break, cookies and coffee and hydration

2:51-3:52      Panel 4:    Land Use, Resource Limits, and Market Forces

Moderator:        Gabriel Filippelli, Professor, Department of Earth Sciences, IUPUI

 Is the world a zero-sum game?  Certainly land area is limited, as are mineral and fossil resources.  Accessing these essential elements of the modern economy can displace other uses of land, soy for agriculture; and may displace indigenous people; and may unlock long-sequestered toxins.  Do market prices reflect these forces?  Do regulations address these tradeoffs?  How can we develop policies and practices equitably and sustainably?

1. What is the boundary, or distance, for "local"?
2. Can a market economy and capitalism cause adoption of renewable energy? 
3. Can rooftop solar make it in the Midwest? 
4. How to determine who pays for harm to a global commons?

Panelists:

• Jerome Dumortier, Associate Professor, SPEA, IUPUI
• Joseph Rompala, Indiana Industrial Energy Consumers, Inc. (INDIEC)
• Kelly Weger, Sustainability Project Manager, Purdue  Manufacturing Extension Partnership
• Kerri Garvin, Executive Director, Greater Indiana Clean Cities Coalition

3:53-4:54      Panel 5:   Trends and Outlook: Emerging Markets, Opportunities, Lessons Learned

Moderator:        Michael Blackwell, MISO

The end-game of competition in a capitalist system is zero marginal cost. What happens when energy costs become zero?  What happens when everyone can generate their own power and heat?  How does society transition from centralized infrastructure and monopoly utilities to a distributed and unregulated free market future?  How will this affect pollution and climate?  What are the risks?  The benefits?  Who wins, and who loses?

Panelists:

• Karen Cecil, Director, Global Environmental Sustainability, Cummins, Inc.
• Sarah Freeman, Commissioner, Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC)
• Kevin Ellet, Research Scientist, Indiana Geological and Water Survey                                                                                                                        

4:55-5:00    Closing Remarks:  Prof. Peter J. Schubert, LCRE Director, IUPUI

5:00             Professional Credits certificates awarded, networking, lingering, clean-up.