IGERT: Smart Grids - Technology, Human Behavior and Policy

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This Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship (IGERT) award supports the interdisciplinary training of Ph.D. scientists and engineers working in the development of modern, smart-grid power systems that operate with extensive interaction and data exchange between the utility company and the consumer. The educational program integrates technology, human behavior and policy within a complex systems framework in order to understand the coupled dynamics of the integrated power system. Intellectual Merit: This training program integrates education and research in complex systems modeling, human behavior, engineering, and policy at the University of Vermont (UVM) with expertise in modern electric power systems, renewable energy and high-performance computing at Sandia National Laboratories to train students to effectively deal with integrated technological-human-policy systems typical of the smart grid. Trainees will complete a summer internship at Sandia National Laboratories, engage in outreach activities with public museums and energy festivals in Vermont, work collaboratively with undergraduate students in game design at Champlain College, and visit the consortium of Vermont utility companies involved in developing the first state-wide smart grid in the nation. Broader Impacts: Development of the smart grid entails a transformation from the current centralized control structure for power delivery to a decentralized structure in which the consumer plays an integral role. Design, control and optimization of smart grids to provide reliable, inexpensive power will require utility companies to understand, model and shape human behavioral responses and governments to design policies to enhance energy efficiency and smart grid adoption. This training program lays the educational foundations for a workforce trained in an integrated approach to complex human-technical-policy systems. IGERT is an NSF-wide program intended to meet the challenges of educating U.S. Ph.D. scientists and engineers with the interdisciplinary background, deep knowledge in a chosen discipline, and the technical, professional, and personal skills needed for the career demands of the future. The program is intended to establish new models for graduate education and training in a fertile environment for collaborative research that transcends traditional disciplinary boundaries, and to engage students in understanding the processes by which research is translated to innovations for societal benefit.