Thomas Webler to Speak on Germany’s Energy Transition on Jan. 29 at Western

BELLINGHAM – Western Washington University Assistant Professor of Energy Policy Thomas Webler will discuss Germany’s energy transition as part of the Western Huxley College of the Environment Speaker Series at 4 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 29in Communications Facility 120 on the Western campus.

The presentation is free and open to the public.

Germany is the world’s fourth largest economy and the sixteenth most populous nation. Germans are also strongly committed to fighting climate change without nuclear power.  Now they have set the ambitious goal: to fuel their heavily industrialized economy with renewable energy. In his talk titled, “The German Energy Transition: Can we do the same here?” Webler will offer an introduction to and update on Germany’s progress in its so-called Energiewende (Energy Transition), and invite a conversation about whether we can do the same here.

Webler is an assistant professor in Huxley College’s Department of Environmental Studies and a member of Western’s Institute for Energy Studies.  He serves on the International Advisory Board for the Center for Interdisciplinary Risk and Innovation Studies at Stuttgart University and recently returned from a trip to Germany, where he met with European scholars researching and teaching about the Energy Transition.

The presentation will include a question-and-answer period. Anyone interested in the topic is encouraged to attend and participate. This lecture is also part of the Alaska Airlines Speaker Series, made possible by a generous contribution to the Western Institute for Energy Studies.

The Huxley College Speaker Series, sponsored by Western’s Huxley College of the Environment, is intended to bring together environmentally-minded members of the Western and Bellingham communities. Speakers address topics of contemporary environmental concern in the region and the world.

Western’s Huxley College of the Environment is one of the oldest environmental colleges in the nation and a recognized leader in producing the next generation of environmental professionals and stewards. Huxley’s distinctive, interdisciplinary curriculum reflects a broad view of the physical, biological, social, and cultural world, and has earned international recognition for quality.

For more information, please contact Western’s Huxley College of the Environment at (360) 650-2554.