Environmental Fellows

Progress Energy Graduate Fellows

Sanya Carley
Sanya Carley's primary research interests include the sustainability of the electricity sector, the effectiveness of energy policy incentives and regulatory efforts to alter states' electricity generation portfolios, and the use of distributed generation and micro-grid electricity systems to compliment traditional macro-operations. Before starting a Ph.D. program in Public Policy at UNC-CH, Ms. Carley was a graduate student at University of Wisconsin-Madison in the departments of Urban and Regional Planning and the Nelson Institute for the Environment. She holds undergraduate degrees in Economics and Sustainable Development from Swarthmore College and has work experience from her time at the World Bank, the Wisconsin Public Utility Institute, and Community Energy, Inc.
Adam Davis
Adam is a PhD student in the department of Environmental Science and Engineering. He currently works with Dr. David McNelis on probabilistic risk assessment as it relates to nuclear technology innovation and implementation. He is also interested in applications of photon transport theory to the problems of radiation shielding. He earned a BS in Physics from UNC-Greensboro in 2005 and an MS in Nuclear Engineering from North Carolina State University in 2007. Adam has worked as an auxiliary operator at Shearon-Harris nuclear power plant and as a graduate research assistant at Los Alamos National Laboratory.
Brian Callaway
Brian is a Master of City and Regional Planning candidate at UNC-Chapel Hill. He is interested in mitigating the environmental impacts of our cities and urban behavior through sustainable and efficient local practices, especially as they relate to our land use and transportation conduct. Working in conjunction with John Richardson from the Town of Chapel Hill's Sustainability Office and Dr. Phil Berke at the Institute for the Environment, Brian is currently collaborating on a detailed greenhouse gas emissions inventory and carbon reduction plan for Town of Chapel Hill operations. Originally from the Tampa Bay area, Brian earned a BS in Land and Water Resources Engineering from the University of Florida in 2005.
Jordan Kern
Jordan Kern grew up in Mebane, NC. He attended UNC-Chapel Hill, where he studied physical geography, GIS and remote sensing while working as a research assistant on a project studying the ecological effects of dam removal. Jordan earned a B.S. in Environmental Science in May 2007 and received a Phillips Scholarship in Summer 2007 to study geothermal resources and regional effects of global warming in Iceland. Upon his return, Jordan worked for a consulting firm in the Washington, DC area, where he provided technical and administrative support to the US Department of Energy Hydrogen and Fuel Cells program. In Spring 2009 Jordan enrolled in the UNC Department of Environmental Science and Engineering as a MS student. He currently works with Professors Martin Doyle (Geography) and Greg Characklis (ENVR) on economic and environmental trade-offs between water resource management and the energy industry in the Roanoke River Basin.

Carolina Energy Fellows

Caleb Kent
Caleb Kent is a PhD candidate in inorganic chemistry at UNC-CH. He is a joint student with Prof. Tom Meyer and Prof. Wenbin Lin and is studying light-driven reactions to create solar fuels. By combing the expertise of the two groups he hopes to develop novel nanomaterials that are capable of photocatalysis. Caleb received his bachelor's degree in chemistry from Kalamazoo College in 2007 with minors in mathematics and economics.
Sam Price
Coming soon!
Nathan Westcott
Nathan Westcott attended University of Virginia where he graduated with a B.S. in Biochemistry in 2006. He then came to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to work on an analytical chemistry PhD. He is currently working in the Muhammad Yousaf Lab on modifying ITO surfaces using self-assembled monolayers for solar cell applications.
Jordan Womick
Jordan graduated with a B.S. in chemistry from Wingate University in 2007 and is currently working in Andrew Moran's physical chemistry group at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is investigating the nature and ultrafast energy transfer dynamics of molecular excitons. Previous studies include the observation and modeling of long lived electronic coherence, an essential component for coherent energy transfer, in self-assembled molecular aggregates. Current work on the pigment dimers of cyanobacteria discovers vibrational promoting modes similar to those found in the mechanism for vision.

Institute for the Environment Fellows

Jeff Rissman
Jeff Rissman is a graduate student in a dual degree program at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is a master's candidate in both the Department of City and Regional Planning and the Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering. Jeff is working with Prof. Sarav Arunachalam and Prof. Jason West on the computer modeling of aircraft emissions and associated air quality impacts. His research is supported by the Partnership for Air Transportation Noise and Emissions Reduction Center of Excellence, a joint project of the FAA, NASA, and Transport Canada. Prior to joining UNC, Jeff received a bachelor's degree from Stanford University in International Relations and worked in the information technology field.
Matt Woody
Matt is currently a MS candidate in the Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering working with Dr. Jason West. His chief research interests are environmental modeling and air quality. His research, through the Center for Environmental Modeling for Policy Development, will help utilize advanced air quality modeling systems to analyze aviation emissions and access their incremental impacts on air quality. He earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Sciences from UNC-Chapel Hill in 2003 and previously worked in Industrial Hygiene.