A Ph.D. candidate at SUNY-ESF was recently appointed to a two-year term on the National Coal Council, the advisory panel to the United States Secretary of Energy.

Xiaoliang Yang, a Ph.D. candidate in environmental and natural resources policy at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, will officially assume his role on the panel at a meeting this April in Washington, D.C., said David Sonnenfeld, Yang’s dissertation supervisor and a professor in SUNY-ESF’s Department of Environmental Studies.

The role of the National Coal Council (NCC) is to advise the secretary of energy on general policy matters relating to coal and the coal industry, Sonnenfeld said.

Yang is currently a research analyst and Carbon Capture and Storage team global leader for the World Resources Institute (WRI), according to a press release from SUNY-ESF.

The WRI is a global research institution that works to sustain natural resources, according to the WRI website.

As a research associate at WRI, Yang plays a critical role in facilitating communication about the use of clean energy between the U.S. Department of Energy and the Ministry of Science and Technology of the People’s Republic of China, Sonnenfeld said.

Yang’s experience working in the environmental industry with scientists and government leaders regarding clean coal use both in the U.S. and China led to his position on the NCC, Sonnenfeld said.

“He will bring an international perspective to the group,” Sonnenfeld said. “It is pretty extraordinary for an advanced Ph.D. student to hold such a prominent position.”

He added that Yang is the only SUNY-ESF student or graduate to serve on the NCC advisory panel.

Since intercultural communication can be difficult and the stakes to have positive collaboration and communication between the U.S. and China are high, Sonnenfeld said it is valuable to have someone who is able to communicate an international perspective about the development of new clean coal technology.

“This is a very critical area of research, as the U.S. and China are the world’s two largest greenhouse gas emitters,” Sonnenfeld said.

Both countries have policies to transition to non-fossil fuel sources of energy, but coal continues to play a significant role in producing energy, Sonnenfield said.

Yang will work to develop the technology to be able to utilize coal in a more environmentally friendly way during that transition period, he added.

In addition to pursuing his Ph.D. at SUNY-ESF, Yang is also a master’s degree student in the public administration program at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University, Sonnenfield said.

Yang began his higher education in China with a degree in biotechnology. He then studied environmental science at Pace University before coming to SUNY-ESF, Sonnenfeld said.

Yang was awarded a grant by the National Science Foundation in March 2013 for his doctoral studies, according to the NSF website.

His doctoral dissertation research project examines the policy rationales, mechanisms and effectiveness of the Advanced Coal Technology Consortium of the United States-China Clean Energy Research Center, according to the award abstract.

Yang’s research project will “develop models of collaborative, international technology innovation that can be used in the analysis of policy options for clean energy technology development,” according to the abstract.

Additionally, the key findings of the dissertation will help the “development of large-scale, low-carbon technologies and energy systems, and will help strengthen international partnerships in clean energy technology innovation,” according to the abstract.

Yang will defend his dissertation, titled, “A Global Partnership Approach to Clean Energy Technology Innovation: Cooperation between China and the United States on Carbon Capture and Storage,” in April, according to the release.

Yang, who is currently out of the country, could not be reached for comment.

Published on February 14, 2016 at 10:30 pm

Contact Taylor: tnwatson@syr.edu