Shell makes 5-year gift to fund Harvard energy policy research

Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government (KSG) is the recipient of a five-year $3.75 million donation from the Shell Exploration & Production Co., KSG Dean David T. Ellwood recently announced. The funds will be used to enhance and expand University research efforts on critical issues of energy policy.

The research will be conducted through multidisciplinary efforts spanning centers and Schools across Harvard designed to foster and incubate new ideas and policy solutions. Program funding will be administered by the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government at KSG. Program partners include the Harvard University Center for the Environment, Harvard Business School, the KSG’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, the Harvard Electricity Policy Group (HEPG), and the Energy Technology Innovation Program (ETIP).

“This generous contribution from Shell will provide Harvard University with funds necessary to move forward with exciting research on issues of critical importance to our global future,” said Ellwood. “The Kennedy School is pleased to lead this collaborative effort.”

William Hogan, Raymond Plank Professor of Global Energy Policy and research director of HEPG, remarked, “From oil exploration to alternative fuels, from climate change to energy markets, immense energy policy challenges face us and the rest of the world and are growing more complex and urgent with each passing year. Harvard is positioned to bring together the range of knowledge and resources necessary to examine these questions and identify possible solutions.”

“Our nation is facing multiple hard truths about energy security, tight supply, growing demand, and climate change. Greater access to conventional resources and accelerated development of alternatives are both needed,” said Marvin Odum, executive vice president of Shell Exploration & Production Americas. “Shell believes research programs such as this can find workable, real-world solutions to some of our most pressing energy challenges.”

Under the terms of the commitment, Shell will provide $750,000 annually to Harvard over the next five years. The terms may then be renewed for another five years should all parties agree. Harvard, in turn, will continue to seek other funding sources to provide additional financial support for its ongoing energy research programs.