U.S. Energy Secretary visits Cincinnati State Evendale campus
October 15, 2010
U.S. Energy Secretary Dr. Steven Chu stressed the importance of energy efficiency and home weatherization efforts during a visit to Cincinnati State’s Workforce Development Center in Evendale.
“Energy efficiency is absolutely the right thing to do,’’ he said, during an Oct. 14 press conference at the college.
In a roundtable discussion with Cincinnati State President O’dell M. Owens, U.S. Rep. Steve Driehaus, community leaders and other College officials, Dr. Chu acknowledged that many Americans have been reluctant to invest in home weatherization projects. But, he asserted, it’s important to change the mindset that such investments are not worthwhile.
“Energy savings should be a social norm in the United States,’’ said Dr. Chu, who holds a Nobel Prize in Physics. “You’re saving money. You’re saving your own money.’’
Of the approximately 130 million homes in America, he said, 80 million would benefit from weatherization retrofits.
While some of this is work that can be done by homeowners themselves, he said, much of the work – and much of the analysis of what should be done in a particular structure – requires trained professionals.
He told of his own problems with an insulation contractor while living in California, but also of the dramatic difference he discovered when he properly insulated an older home where he and his family were living.
“Energy efficiency does not mean living in a sleeping bag,’’ Dr. Chu said. “It’s actually much nicer to live in a well-insulated home.’’
The roundtable discussion highlighted the partnership that has been formed with the Greater Cincinnati Energy Alliance (GCEA.) GCEA is the recipient of a $17 million grant from the Energy Department’s Better Buildings Program.
According to its executive director, Andy Holzhauser, the GCEA is generating demand in the private market for energy efficiency audits and retrofits, and residential contractors working with GCEA are expanding their organizations and hiring graduates from Cincinnati State’s training programs.
Driehaus urged Dr. Chu and the Energy Department to continue to support training programs of the sort offered at Cincinnati State.
“Here at Cincinnati State is a great example of how consumers are lowering energy bills – and we’re creating jobs in the process,’’ he said.
He also said that while it is important to incorporate LEED standards into new construction, the coin of the realm should be in retrofitting existing buildings to be more energy efficient.
He encouraged efforts to improve the payoff for consumers, and to help educate individuals about the benefits of energy conservation. “We need to connect all the dots for consumers.’’
This marked Dr. Chu’s second visit to Cincinnati State since becoming Energy Secretary. He gave the College’s commencement address in 2009.
“I believe in the mission of Cincinnati State and what it’s trying to do,’’ he said during his visit Oct. 14. “It’s a very important mission.’’
Dr. Chu is the first person to accept a Cabinet appointment after winning a Nobel Prize. A specialist in small-particle physics and molecular biology, he and two colleagues were awarded the 1997 Nobel Prize for Physics for their research into the use of lasers to cool and trap atoms to allow observation of their properties.
Dr. Chu was appointed Energy Secretary by President Obama, and was sworn into office on Jan. 21, 2009.
Prior to his appointment, he was director of the DOE's Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, where he led the lab in pursuit of alternative and renewable energy technologies. He also taught at the University of California as a Professor of Physics and Professor of Molecular and Cell Biology. Previously, he held positions at Stanford University and AT&T Bell Laboratories.
Dr. Chu's research in atomic physics, quantum electronics, polymer and biophysics includes tests of fundamental theories in physics, the development of methods to laser cool and trap atoms, atom interferometry, the development of the first atomic fountain, and the manipulation and study of polymers and biological systems at the single molecule level. While at Stanford, he helped start Bio-X, a multi-disciplinary initiative that brings together the physical and biological sciences with engineering and medicine.
The holder of 10 patents, Dr. Chu has published nearly 250 scientific and technical papers. He remains active with his research group and has recently published work on general relativity and single molecule biology and biophysics that includes sub-nanometer molecular imaging with optical microscopy, cadherin adhesion, neural vesicle fusion, and nerve growth factor transport. About 30 alumni of his research group have gone on to become professors in their own right and have been recognized by dozens of prizes and awards.
Dr. Chu is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, the American Philosophical Society, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Academia Sinica, the Korean Academy of Sciences and Technology and numerous other civic and professional organizations. He received an A.B. degree in mathematics, a B.S. degree in physics from the University of Rochester, and a Ph.D. in physics from the University of California, Berkeley as well as honorary degrees from 15 universities.
