Renewable Energy Policy in the United States

3 credits · Graduate

This course will focus on the evolution and current status of renewable energy policy on the federal, state, and local levels. It will explore the context for promoting renewables in a country that has long subsidized fossil production and nuclear power and encouraged greater consumption. We will explore the particular tools and perspectives that governments on different levels bring to the challenge and the ways various governmental bodies have seized that opportunity. We will move beyond consideration of broad policies to examine the specific policy challenges and opportunities faced by proponents of each of the major renewable energy technologies.