UW-MADISON EAP PROGRAM LEGACY POSITIVELY IMPACTS INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENT INITIATIVES
David Abel, B.S. Mechanical Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison, M.S. Environment and Resources, EAP Certificate, University of Wisconsin-Madison
This summer, Nelson Institute graduate student, David Abel, strengthened a UW-Madison legacy by joining some of the most celebrated scholars in the world at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) in Austria as a part of their Young Scientists Summer Program (YSSP). Since the inception of IIASA in 1972, UW-Madison students and faculty have been participating in its programing and collaborating with the politically independent Institute, which was originally established to promote scientific cooperation between the East and the West during the Cold War. Today, IIASA continues to be free from political or national self-interest, working with scientists from all around the world and conducting policy-oriented research on topics such as global health, greenhouse gasses, and energy, which is the focus of Abel’s work.
A doctoral candidate with the Nelson Institute Environment and Resources program and the Energy Analysis and Policy (EAP) certificate, Abel has been focusing much of his academic research on energy and its influence on public and environmental health. In particular, he was recently involved in a UW-Madison research study that explored the link between temperature changes, air conditioning and air quality. With his focus on energy and air quality, Abel takes an interdisciplinary approach to scientific challenges, utilizing his background in mechanical engineering and environmental studies. As such, Abel is well-versed in the importance of academic diversity and the value of collaborating with people who bring in new skill sets and tools. This commitment to an interdisciplinary approach is shared by Abel, the Nelson Institute and IIASA. In fact, the chance to collaborate with fellow scientists and utilize tools that have been developed and perfected by fellow IIASA professionals, is one of the main reasons that Abel was interested in applying to the IIASA Young Scientists Summer Program.
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