In this quarter’s Research Associate Spotlight and Mentor Profile, up-and-coming environmental engineer Preom Sarkar discusses the important contributions she is making in collaboration with NETL experts to create more environmentally friendly methods of flue gas desulfurization (FGD).

Today, the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM) announced its intent to fund projects through its University Training and Research Program, which is composed of the University Coal Research (UCR) program and the Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Other Minority Institutions (HBCU-OMI) program. The programs serve to prepare the next generation of engineers and scientists working to advance the Biden-Harris Administration’s goals of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

The November 2021 edition of RWFI E-Note Monthly, the newsletter of NETL’s Regional Workforce Initiative, details a funding opportunity from the National Science Foundation (NSF) that focuses on increasing and broadening the participation of students in engineering careers.

The September 2021 edition of RWFI E-Note Monthly, the newsletter of NETL’s Regional Workforce Initiative, highlights how communities can apply for funds to recover from the coronavirus pandemic and build economic diversity and resiliency to mitigate impacts during future economic challenges.

This quarter’s Research Associate Spotlight and Mentor Profile illustrates how pairing an experienced NETL researcher with an up-and-coming scientist can open new roads to discovery and facilitate faster technology development at lower cost.

The August 2021 edition of RWFI E-Note Monthly, the newsletter of NETL’s Regional Workforce Initiative, outlines how schools and worker education programs can apply for funding from the National Science Foundation to prepare the next generation of technicians for high-technology fields.

Four scientists at NETL are inspiring girls in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) at GirlCon 2021, an international tech conference aiming to empower the next generation of female leaders. Natalie Pekney, Alexandra Hakala, Circe Verba and Madison Wenzlick are slated to present at several sessions throughout the conference to share their career stories, offer tips for working in energy and address challenges girls may face in pursuing STEM.

NETL Director Brian Anderson, Ph.D., spoke today to interns who will be participating in this year’s Mickey Leland Energy Fellowship (MLEF) at several locations across the country, including NETL. The mission of the MLEF program is to strengthen a diverse pipeline of future science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) professionals, and mentors involved with the program have offered guidance to several hundred of the best and brightest students from across the nation since its inception.

Student participants chosen across three internship programs will gain valuable research experience under NETL mentors as part of the Lab’s 2021 summer internship initiative. Interns from the Mickey Leland Energy Fellowship (MLEF), Consortium of Hybrid Resilient Energy Systems (CHRES) program and Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Advanced Manufacturing Office (EERE-AMO) Energy Storage Internship Program will spend 10 weeks conducting research virtually and receiving guidance from their mentors as they gain experience to become the next generation of energy innovators.

In support of NETL’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Other Minority Institutions (HBCU-OMI) program, the Lab consistently engages new organizations such as Morgan State University (MSU), which is developing robust high-temperature sensors that will unlock higher power plant efficiencies as part of their first‑ever collaboration with NETL.