Eric Williams
Professor
Eric Williams
Professor
Education
BA, Macalester College; Ph.D., State University of New York at Stony Brook
Bio
Dr. Eric Williams teaches courses in risk analysis and sustainable energy systems for the MS, Ph.D., and M.Arch. programs. His research interests include informing policies supporting energy technology development in areas such as technology progress forecasting, heterogeneity in consumer energy markets and thermodynamic limits of efficiency, and exergy (available energy) analysis. His research has played a role in environmental certifications for electronics and he has had the honor to testify before Congress on electronic waste. His students say that he has a way of making complex methods and ideas as real and understandable as everyday experiences. When Dr. Williams is not working with his students, he enjoys cycling, games, and science fiction.
Prior to coming to RIT, Dr. Williams was an Assistant Professor for the School of Sustainability at Arizona State University. He received his Ph.D. in Physics from Stony Brook University and his BA in Physics from Macalester College.
Teaching
One of my major goals in the classroom is to help students develop a “down-to-earth” and “manipulate-able” understanding of the material. I see a tendency for classroom knowledge and methods to be processed as abstract rather than as grounded and able to be manipulated as everyday knowledge/experiences. I thus work to make lectures, discussions and assignments elicit fundamental understanding of the material.
Outreach
To achieve its mission, sustainability research has to reach beyond the academic community. I engage with a broader set of stakeholders though a number of approaches. Media is an important venue, one needs to think about finding a “surprising” result of broad interest to garner interest. I also work to directly engage policy and industry communities through networking and workshops.
Highlighted Project
Simulating the build-out of the U.S. electricity grid with uncertainty to better manage costs and environmental impacts
Managing the evolution of the electricity grid is a critical economic and environmental challenge. Like other infrastructure, the electric grid is long-lived which exacerbates lock-in effects: capital investments, once made, last for decades and may delay the adoption of superior new technologies. This work will examine the effect that today's electricity infrastructure and policy decisions will have on the structure of the future electricity grid, using engineering and economic modeling to understand the complex relationships between infrastructure decisions, electricity policies, and technological progress. The results of this research will be valuable to both electricity grid planners and policy makers, both of whom make important long-term decisions about the U.S. electricity system. Improved understanding results in faster technological progress, more successful electricity policies, and a more economically efficient grid.
Select Scholarship
Ford Motor Company
Amount: $20000
National Science Foundation
Amount: $298,713
National Science Foundation
Amount: $295,105
Ford Motor Company
Amount: $18,000
Ellen Macarthur Foundation
Amount: $3000
National Science Foundation
Amount: $297,789.00
U.S. Department of Energy
Amount: $149,793
Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science
Amount: $7000
Currently Teaching
In the News
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December 21, 2023
Circular Innovation
The U.S.-ASEAN Smart Cities Partnership newsletter features the circular entrepreneurship program.
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October 27, 2022
U.S. Department of State to assist RIT in advancing circular economy in Southeast Asia
A $1 million grant from the U.S. Department of State will fund a two-year project led by RIT professors Clyde Hull and Eric Williams to help the Southeast Asian region establish entrepreneurships based on the circular economy.
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November 12, 2021
RIT professors awarded State Department grant to help entrepreneurs in Jordan form circular economy businesses
A $250,000 grant from the U.S. State Department will fund a program led by RIT professors Clyde Hull and Eric Williams to help entrepreneurs in Jordan form circular economy businesses.