Climate-resilient clean energy is urgently needed as extreme weather batters communities around the world. When two powerful hurricanes hit Puerto Rico In 2017, they caused ~3,000 deaths, and many communities had no power for 6 – 11 months.

Ramón Bueno ’74, SM ’77, leads the discussion on resilient and clean power with two speakers deeply immersed in Puerto Rico’s rebuilding efforts and its lessons for many regions around the world.

Agustín Carbó-Lugo, EDF Energy Transition Manager, will share insights from his work on resilience and energy justice challenges.  In 2014, the Puerto Rico Energy Transformation and RELIEF Act created the first utility regulator on the island.  As the the first president of the Puerto Rico Energy Bureau, he helped develop its first 20-year, Integrated Resource Plan (IRP), with an eye to equitable service for all Puerto Ricans.

Professor Marcel Castro-Sitiriche, is co-director of this event's co-sponsor,  the Center for Hemispherical Cooperation in Research and Education in Engineering and Applied Science (CoHemis) at the University of Puerto Rico-Mayagüez.  He will discuss the lessons learned about the need to redefine “clean energy” and “critical infrastructure” and the importance of listening to community input.  Appropriate technology is needed to to address electric power vulnerabilities as well as resources for installation and operations and maintenance.  Building a better, decentralized and resilient power future depends on previous knowledge on the ground and full consideration of finding solutions equitable to all.

Speaker Bios

Ramón Bueno ’74 MS ’77 worked in decision-support and business intelligence systems before turning to climate impacts modeling and equitable resilience. He was part of the Climate Economics Group first at Tufts University’s Global Development & Environment Institute (GDAE) then partnered with the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI). Starting with an aeronautics & astronautics degree, Ramón went on to study systems modeling and optimal estimation & control. He has years of experience developing business decision and intelligence tools for optimat solutions. He serves on Somerville (MA)’s Public Commission on Energy Use and Climate Change.

Agustín Carbó-Lugo, Energy Transition manager for the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) in San Juan, P.R., since 2019. He was the first president of the Puerto Rico Energy Bureau (formerly the Puerto Rico Energy Commission) in 2014 and served until 2017. Agustín worked for the U.S. EPA and has been Executive Director of the Puerto Rico Solid Waste Authority. He has advised various national and international private, public and non-profit organizations,
A graduate of Vermont Law School, Agustín holds a BS in civil and MS in environmental engineering from Northeastern University, and an MEM from Yale University in environmental policy analysis.

Marcel Castro-Sitiriche is professor of Electrical & Computer Engineering and co-director of the Center for Hemispherical Cooperation in Research and Education in Engineering and Applied Science (CoHemis) at the University of Puerto Rico in Mayagüez (UPRM). Marcel has research interests that include energy justice, appropriate technology, rural electrification and solar microgrids. He holds a BS in electrical engineering from UPRM and a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from Howard University.