The 2023 class of Brook Byers Institute for Sustainable Systems Graduate Fellows are:
Additional information about the BBISS Graduate Fellows Program, and about the first class of BBISS Graduate Fellows is available at https://research.gatech.edu/sustainability/grad-fellows-program.
]]>Data from 800 neighborhoods in the Atlanta metropolitan area between 2007 and 2016 revealed that major investors bought homes in majority-minority neighborhoods far from downtowns and in lower-income areas. These homes were often undervalued because of their minority populations, but they remained desirable and offered good market value.
The neighborhoods where investors bought up real estate were predominantly Black, effectively cutting Black families out of home ownership. Collectively, Black people lost more than $4 billion in home equity over a 10-year period because of investors, according to the research.
“That $4 billion refers to the home values that would have gone to individual homebuyers if these large institutional investment firms hadn’t purchased those properties,” said Brian An, assistant professor in the School of Public Policy. “This is a very conservative, lower estimate than what the actual effect probably is.”
An presented his findings in the paper, “The Influence of Institutional Single-Family Rental Investors on Homeownership: Who Gets Targeted and Pushed Out of the Local Market?,” published in the Journal of Planning Education and Research in June.
The Shrinking Homebuyer Market
Owning a home is one of the main ways for the American middle class to accumulate wealth. Despite this, home ownership declined by 5.5.% between 2007 and 2016. Who owns these homes is even more divided based on race. From 2015 to 2019, homeownership among Black families in the U.S. was 41.7% and for white families 71.7%.
Simultaneously, large private investment firms started buying single-family homes often to flip the houses and rent them at higher rates. Although smaller investment groups often buy homes, the major impact on the market comes from large private institutions.
Analyzing the Data
Investors have long been suspected of buying up substantial portions of the housing market, but determining just how many has been challenging. An used transaction data like buyer names and mailing addresses to determine who property owners were. With a natural language processing tool called OpenRefine that cleans and clusters messy textual data, he combed through millions of observations.
An then analyzed the data with the Herfindahl–Hirschman Index (HHI), a measure of market concentration that can determine the diversity of buyers.
“It means how many properties they are purchasing in one neighborhood,” An said. “For example, let's say there were 500 purchases in the year for single-family houses, then essentially, how many are these large investment firms collectively purchasing? If it’s 500, that is low HHI, meaning a lower market concentration. If it’s only two firms, that’s an extremely high market concentration.”
Using these methods and measures, An showed that, on average, neighborhoods experienced an increase of large investor purchases from nearly 0% in 2007 to over 12% in the peak year, 2013. Investors acquired up to 76% of for-sale, single-family homes in some neighborhoods.
Institutional investments primarily affected Black families, according to one of An’s models. Results indicated this negative effect is much worse for Black homeownership and totally absent for white homeownership. Whether this is because investment firms mostly purchase in Black neighborhoods or if Black homeowners are specifically targeted is unclear. Regardless of the reasoning, large investors decrease homeownership for anyone in areas they buy out, but especially for Black people.
“Real estate industry stakeholders say these big firms own no more than 3% of total single-family housing stock in the United States, so there is no way that they can suppress home ownership more,” An said. “But if you look at the neighborhood dynamics, there is a lot more concentration in certain neighborhoods that really drives down home ownership.”
An, B.Y. (2023). The Influence of Institutional Single-Family Rental Investors on Homeownership: Who Gets Targeted and Pushed Out of the Local Market? Journal of Planning Education and Research, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/0739456X231176072
]]>Next-generation smart assistants aren’t on the market yet, but the research necessary to create them is underway now. This includes efforts to develop smart assistants that are proactive —that is, the system could anticipate the user’s wants and needs, and even assist and mediate social interactions between users and their support networks. But with the design of systems that seek to enhance the abilities of older adults as they experience cognitive decline, a broad range of ethical issues arises.
Researchers from the NSF AI Institute for Collaborative Assistance and Responsive Interaction for Networked Groups (AI-CARING) saw a need to outline some of these issues up front, with the hope that designers will consider them when developing the next generation of smart assistants. The team’s article, “Ethical Issues in Near-Future Socially Supportive Smart Assistants for Older Adults,” was published in the journal IEEE Transactions on Technology and Society.
“We're trying to provide a landscape of the ethical issues designers need to take into account long before advanced smart assistant systems show up in a person’s home,” said Jason Borenstein, professor of ethics and director of Graduate Research Ethics Programs in the School of Public Policy and the Office of Graduate and Postdoctoral Education at Georgia Tech. “If designers don't think through these issues, then a family might set a relative up with a system, go home, and trust that their relative is safe and secure when they might not be.”
According to the AI-CARING researchers, when a person relies on an AI system, that person becomes vulnerable to the system in unique ways. For people with age-related cognitive impairment who might use the technology for complicated forms of assistance, the stakes get even higher, with vulnerability increasing as their health declines. Systems that fail to perform correctly could put an older adult’s welfare at significant risk.
“If a system makes a mistake when you’ve relied on it for something benign — like helping you choose the movie you’re going to watch — that’s not a big deal,” said Alex John London, lead author of the paper and K&L Gates Professor of Ethics and Computational Technologies at Carnegie Mellon University. “But if you’ve relied on it to remind you to take your medicine, and it doesn’t remind you or tells you to take the wrong medicine, that would be a big problem.”
According to the researchers, to develop a system that truly prioritizes the user’s well-being, designers should consider issues such as trust, reliance, privacy, and a person’s changing cognitive abilities. They should also make sure the system supports the user’s goals rather than the goals of an outside party such as a family member, or even a company that might seek to market products to the user.
A system like this would require a nuanced and constantly evolving model of the user and their preferences, incorporating data from a variety of different sources. For a smart assistant to effectively do its job, it might need to share some of the main user’s information with other entities, which can expose the user to risk.
For example, a user might want the physician’s office to know that they would like a doctor’s appointment. But depending on the person, they may not want that information shared with their children, or only with one child and not another. According to the researchers, designers should consider methods of sharing personal information that also uphold the user’s ability to control it.
Over trust and under trust of the system’s abilities are also important issues to consider. Over trust occurs when people project onto a technology abilities that it doesn’t have, which could put them at risk when the system fails to deliver in a way they anticipated. Under trust can be an issue as well, because if a system can help a person with an important task and the person chooses not to use the system, they also could be left without help.
“The goal of our analysis is to point out challenges for creating truly assistive AI systems so that they can be incorporated into the design of AI from the beginning,” London said. “This can also help stakeholders create benchmarks for performance that reflect these ethical requirements rather than trying to address ethical issues after the system has already been designed, developed, and tested.”
According to Borenstein, when smart assistants are created and introduced into homes, the primary user’s well-being and goals should be the foremost concern.
“Designers are certainly well-intended, but all of us can benefit from the exchange of ideas across disciplines, and from talking with people with different perspectives on these kinds of technologies,” Borenstein said. “This is just one piece of that puzzle that can hopefully inform the design process.”
Citation: A. J. London, Y. S. Razin, J. Borenstein, M. Eslami, R. Perkins and P. Robinette, "Ethical Issues in Near-Future Socially Supportive Smart Assistants for Older Adults," in IEEE Transactions on Technology and Society.
DOI: 10.1109/TTS.2023.3237124
Georgia Tech is bringing together the finest minds and voices to explore artificial intelligence — the opportunities, the risks, and above all the ethical and responsible stewardship of AI. To see our presenters and register to attend Avant South on Sept. 28 – 29, visit avantsouth.com.
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This study, recently published in the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) publication Cityscape, contradicts a widely held assumption among critics of the subsidy that widely documented increases in nearby property values accompanying LIHTC projects mask damage to other properties. The researchers found no such effect.
“This research is significant as it challenges the stigma often associated with affordable housing,” said An. “This pernicious fear of property value decline has been a major source of opposition to affordable housing projects in many communities.”
The federal tax credit is designed to encourage private investors to develop affordable housing for low-income households. To better understand its impacts, researchers consulted HUD data on LIHTC properties in Los Angeles, as well as proprietary data on home sales.
They analyzed property values in neighborhoods before and after the introduction of affordable housing developments and compared the changes to those in similar neighborhoods without low-income housing development. Their results showed no significant decrease in property values following the establishment of these developments, regardless of the characteristics of the neighborhood or LIHTC project.
In fact, the research confirms previous studies showing that developments supported by the tax credit broadly increase nearby property values. After completion of mixed developments including both market-rate and subsidized units, surrounding property values rose by 5.4% compared to comparable neighborhoods without tax-subsidized development. Fully subsidized developments boosted property values by 3.2%, the researchers found.
“From a policy perspective, the key takeaway is that LIHTC developments, in addition to creating and preserving badly needed housing that is affordable to low-income households, consistently have positive effects on surrounding property values,” the authors wrote in the paper. “A ‘bad’ place for such properties to be developed does not exist, nor does a ‘bad’ type of LIHTC development exist. Regardless of the development’s size or neighborhood in which it is placed into service, a LIHTC property is likely to have a positive spillover effect on its neighborhood.”
The authors noted that some of the conclusions could be specific to Los Angeles, which suffers from an extreme lack of affordable housing. They also noted that rising property values can be beneficial for homeowners, but often can push rental rates out of reach for many existing residents. The researchers are examining these issues in a follow-up study.
"Factors Affecting Spillover Impacts of Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Developments: An Analysis of Los Angeles,” was published in the July edition of Cityscape, a publication of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Office of Policy Development and Research. It is available at https://www.huduser.gov/portal/periodicals/cityscape/vol25num2/article13.html.
An is one of seven co-authors on the paper, including Raphael W. Bostic, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.
The study was funded by JP Morgan Chase & Co. JP Morgan Chase had no role in the research. One of the co-authors, Andrew Jakabovics, is an employee of Enterprise Community Partners — a firm with a subsidiary involved in low-income housing tax credits. The study's data, however, was independently sourced.
The School of Public Policy is a unit of the Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts.
]]>Helping to examine the state’s place in the national landscape, the Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts hosted the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Greg Bluestein at the Bill Moore Student Success Center on Sept. 14 as part of the Meg and Sam Flax Lecture Series on Public Policy. Bluestein has covered Georgia politics for more than 20 years and has documented the state's shift from Republican stronghold to its current battleground status.
He believes Georgia could be the center of attention for years to come. Starting with the 2024 election cycle, he urged everyone, especially students, to take advantage of this unique learning opportunity.
"Georgia is going to remain the center of the white-hot national spotlight for the next decade,” he said. “Students here at Georgia Tech who are studying public policy or whatever it may be can see how what they're doing is implemented on a national scale."
Bluestein explained how independent voters and those continuing a "split-ticket" trend across the state have decided recent elections, primarily the 2020 presidential election, a race that helped decide control of the U.S. Senate, and the most recent gubernatorial race. With this trend likely to continue, Bluestein, who wrote a book chronicling the events surrounding the 2020 election in Georgia, told the audience how that has affected candidates' view of the state heading into the future.
"Every Republican and most Democrats say there is really no path to victory for any Republican candidate without winning Georgia. So, whether you like it or not, we're about to be the center of national attention, even more than we already are, which is hard to believe."
Addressing the students in the audience, he went on, "That's the beauty of where you are. You'll have a chance in the coming months and years to work for candidates, campaigns, and causes. Be directly involved if you want. Cover them for the media. But also go to their rallies and events –– candidates you like and candidates you don't like. You'll be on the ground level to be able to see these candidates up close and personal."
Like any campus around the country, Georgia Tech's student body is made up of Republicans, Democrats, independent voters, and those who stay out of the political fray. While politics can involve disagreement, the Institute has received recent praise for its efforts to protect freedom of expression for all on campus.
Associate Professor Richard Barke believes the Institute’s policies and efforts in this regard empower students to seek out differing viewpoints and to learn from one another.
“Any institution of higher learning has an obligation, both legal and intellectual, to encourage diverse political views to be held, discussed, and respected. It also must do something that no other institution can do: challenge students to test ideas, whether their own or those of others. At Georgia Tech we take these duties seriously,” he said. “Our students learn how political processes work, not which political values are superior or which outcomes should be dictated by individual preferences. They can, and do, use this knowledge to analyze and promote policies across the political spectrum.”
Second-year public policy student Luis Salazar attended Thursday's seminar and sees events such as this as a way to engage with his fellow Yellow Jackets about real-world issues.
"This is a place to come together, and the Institute's reputation makes it the perfect place for professionals and experts to interact with students who want to be involved in the political process. I appreciate how Tech facilitates these debates and conversations," he said.
Countless questions remain unanswered for both parties ahead of 2024, but Bluestein emphasized that, as candidates vie for the approval of young voters, students will have the power to make their voices heard.
"You'll be in the middle of it here at Georgia Tech. Smart candidates will come to college campuses to try to attract young voters, not just to vote but to work on their campaigns. Students and faculty here will have a chance to ask questions that other folks might not be asking about, whether it be about higher education funding, student policies, student debt relief, or any other issues that are top of mind,” he said.
The first true litmus test for the state in the upcoming election will take place on March 12 during Georgia's primary elections.
]]>Institute Communications
]]>“AI systems are value-laden because they're human creations,” says Justin Biddle, the director of Georgia Tech’s Ethics, Technology, and Human Interaction Center (ETHICx) and an associate professor in Georgia Tech's School of Public Policy, where he teaches a course on AI ethics and policy. He specializes in the ethics of emerging technology and collaborates with scientists and engineers at Georgia Tech to design ethical AI systems.
He shared five of the most pressing AI ethics concerns the experts are debating today and the first steps we can take to address them.
Read the full article here: https://iac.gatech.edu/ai-ethics
]]>Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts
]]>The SDGs were adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2015 as part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. They address the world’s most monumental challenges, including poverty, inequality, climate change, environmental degradation, and peace and justice. Some of the objectives are improved industry, innovation, and infrastructure; affordable and clean energy; and sustainable cities and communities. The SDGs appear by name in the Institute’s strategic plan as long-term goals that should guide teaching, research, and operations.
SDG Action and Awareness Week 2023 will focus primarily on SDG13: Climate Action and intersecting SDGs. Georgia Tech strives to be a leader in climate action across the Institute in operations, education, research, and economic development, and the development of a comprehensive Climate Action Plan is underway. President Ángel Cabrera encourages the Tech community to participate in virtual and in-person climate action events throughout the week.
On Thursday, March 9, at 8:30 a.m., Cabrera will convene a panel of faculty to discuss climate action. Joining him will be: Marilyn Brown, Regents’ Professor and the Brook Byers Professor of Sustainable Systems in the School of Public Policy; Andrea Calmon, assistant professor in the Scheller College of Business and faculty fellow in the Brook Byers Institute for Sustainable Systems; Tim Liewen, Regents’ Professor, David S. Lewis Chair, and executive director of the Strategic Energy Institute; and Brian Stone, professor in the School of City and Regional Planning and director of the Urban Climate Lab.
The panel is a hybrid event, with remote or in-person participation (at the Scholars Event Network Theater in Price Gilbert Library). RSVP here.
Other events during the week include a Green Cleaning DIY Workshop through the Office of Sustainability, a Social Impact Careers Alumni Panel through the Alumni Association, a Community Market through Auxiliary Services, a session on How to Afford Study Abroad and SDG Interactive Art Hours through the Office of International Education, a Seminar on Race and Gender through the Black Feminist Think Tank and the School of History and Sociology, two micro-workshops on aligning course objectives with the SDGs through the Center for Teaching and Learning and Serve-Learn-Sustain, a Corporate Carbon Accounting panel through Scheller College of Business, an information session and ice cream social through the EcoCar Vertically Integrated Project team, and a Climate Action Plan Stakeholder Engagement Session through the Office of Sustainability. View a listing of the week’s events for details and registration.
SDG Action and Awareness Week is part of a larger global effort through the University Global Coalition (UGC), which Cabrera chairs and helped found. The UGC is comprised of higher education leaders from around the world who work to advance the SDGs through education, research, service, and campus operations.
SDG Action and Awareness Week is an annual event occurring in early March. To collaborate next year, contact Drew Cutright, Office of Strategic Consulting.
]]>Institute Communications
]]>Husbands Fealing first joined Georgia Tech as professor and chair of the School of Public Policy in 2014 before being named dean in 2020. Under her leadership as dean, the College has seen consistent growth in enrollment and sponsored research, development of new degrees and programs, and various programs consistently earn national rankings. Her time as the chair of the School of Public Policy resulted in similar growth, achievements, and impact. She also co-chaired the Arts@Tech Institute Strategic Planning Committee and has served on the Institute for Data Engineering and Science Council and the Intellectual Property Advisory Board.
Husbands Fealing is an elected member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and an elected fellow of both the National Academy of Public Administration and the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). She was awarded the 2023 Carolyn Shaw Bell Award from the American Economic Association’s Committee on the Status of Women in the Economics Profession, as well as the 2017 Trailblazer Award from the National Medical Association Council on Concerns of Women Physicians. She is a member of the International Women’s Forum, Georgia Chapter. She serves on AAAS’ executive board and is a board member for the Society for Economic Measurement.
“From her time as chair to her service as dean, Dean Kaye’s decade of service at Tech has left an undeniable mark on the Institute, and I am proud to have served alongside her,” said Steve McLaughlin, provost and executive vice president for Academic Affairs. “She is a trusted leader and an accomplished administrator and scholar, and we wish her well in this next chapter at the National Science Foundation.”
Husbands Fealing came to Tech from the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota. Before that, she served as a study director at the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, D.C. Her career began at Williams College, where she started as assistant professor in the Economics Department and left after 20 years as the William Brough Professor of Economics. Additionally, she held visiting professorships at Smith College and Colgate University, and a research associate position at MIT.
Husbands Fealing has a long history with the NSF, having served in several different capacities including as the inaugural program director for NSF’s Science of Science and Innovation Policy program and as the co-chair of the Science of Science Policy Interagency Task Group, chartered by the Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences Subcommittee of the National Science and Technology Policy Council. She also served as an economics program director at NSF. Husbands Fealing also serves as chair of NSF’s Committee on Equal Opportunities in Science and Engineering and as a member of NSF’s Directorate of STEM Education Advisory Committee.
SBE is one of eight NSF directorates and supports basic research focused on human behavior and social organizations, as well as how social, economic, political, cultural, and environmental forces affect the lives of people from birth to old age, and how people, in turn, shape those forces. The directorate is also home to one of the 13 statistical agencies in the United States, the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics. Husbands Fealing’s appointment begins on April 22.
Provost McLaughlin will announce plans for interim leadership for the College soon, along with more details on a search for the next dean.
]]>Utz is an experienced academic leader who has served as a senior associate dean in the Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts and as chair of the School of Literature, Media, and Communication (LMC). Under his leadership, LMC experienced remarkable growth, including increased external research funding, faculty productivity, and student enrollment. Notably, he championed the expansion of the School's curriculum to include interdisciplinary minors in Black media studies, science fiction, and social justice, and a master's degree in global media and cultures.
As senior associate dean, Utz has demonstrated commitment to faculty affairs processes and professional development, implementing comprehensive resources and mentorship programs to support faculty growth and success. He played a pivotal role in shaping the Ivan Allen College strategic plan and organized impactful events that fostered integration between the arts, humanities, and social sciences with STEM fields. Utz also worked to garner funds for LGBTQ+ projects and international summer internships for students.
In addition to his administrative responsibilities, Utz is a highly respected scholar with expertise in medievalism, literary and language studies, and the interconnections between humanistic inquiry and science and technology. He has authored many publications on these topics, including three monographs, 21 edited essay collections, and over 80 journal articles and book chapters, earning international acclaim for his contributions to the field.
“We are fortunate that Richard has agreed to step into the interim dean role,” said Steven W. McLaughlin, provost and executive vice president for Academic Affairs. “He is a pillar of the Ivan Allen community, with impressive campus leadership credentials. Ivan Allen couldn’t be in better hands as we bid farewell to Dean Husbands Fealing and begin the search for the next dean.”
Utz will serve until a new dean is named. The search committee will be chaired by Dean of Libraries Leslie Sharp. An external firm will be identified to lead a national search. More information about the search committee and process will be provided soon.
Writer: Brittany Aiello, Faculty Communications Manager, Organizational and Academic Communications
]]>Georgia Tech will begin the search for the next dean of the Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts. The search committee, chaired by Dean of Libraries Leslie Sharp, was chosen through a nomination process and includes a mix of faculty, staff, students, and alumni from within the college, as well as other units from across campus.
“We are committed to finding an exceptional leader for the Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts,” said Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Steve McLaughlin. “I am confident in the dedication of our search committee and the vision they have for the future of this historic school. Ivan Allen’s vibrant academic and research community has enriched Georgia Tech since 1888 and will continue to redefine what the humanities and social sciences can be.”
Community Engagement
Russell Reynolds Associates will host several virtual town halls to gather input from the community about the desired qualities for the next Dean.
Town Hall Schedule
Ivan Allen College Staff Town Hall - Register online
Ivan Allen College Faculty Town Hall - Register online
Ivan Allen College and Georgia Tech Community Town Hall - Register online
Community members unable to attend can send feedback to GT.IAC@russellreynolds.com.
Key Dates
Additional Information
The search is open to both internal and external candidates. For more details, including the position description, application process, and a list of the search committee members, visit provost.gatech.edu/ivan-allen-college-liberal-arts-dean-search.
Inquiries and nominations should be sent to GT.IAC@russellreynolds.com. While applications will be accepted until the position is filled, interested candidates are encouraged to apply by August 19, 2024.
Richard Utz, senior associate dean and professor, has been appointed interim dean and will serve until the new dean is named.
Writer: Brittany Aiello, Faculty Communications Program Manager, Organizational and Academic Communications, Institute Communications
Research faculty now make up nearly 60% of Georgia Tech’s faculty population, and of the full-time, non-GTRI faculty, more than 25% are research faculty. However, this growing subset of the faculty often misses out on traditional welcome experiences because of year-round onboarding. The Office of the Vice Provost for Faculty aims to change that with the launch of the new Welcome Wreck program.
Welcome Wreck pairs seasoned research faculty ambassadors with newcomers to provide support and ready access to community during the start of a research faculty member’s career at Georgia Tech. Created by the College of Computing and Institute for People and Technology’s Carrie Bruce, and supported by the Center for Inclusive Design and Innovation’s Zerrin Ondin-Fraser, Welcome Wreck launched in May with eight ambassadors representing a range of Schools and units across campus.
Inaugural ambassadors include:
“Georgia Tech’s community of research faculty now numbers more than 500 non-GTRI employees,” said Coleman, who also serves as the interim assistant vice provost for Research Faculty. “This is an incredible opportunity to create a warm welcome and important connections for new members of our community, as well as connections across units for those senior research faculty who have been Yellow Jackets for some time.”
If you are interested in contributing as an ambassador or would like more information about participation, visit the Office of the Vice Provost for Faculty website for more information.
Writer: Brittany Aiello, Faculty Communications Program Manager, Organizational and Academic Communications, Institute Communications
Research Scientist II, Center for Inclusive Design and Innovation
]]>The U.N.’s International Maritime Organization (IMO) has set targets to reduce shipping greenhouse gas emissions by at least 40% by 2030 and 70% by 2040, aiming for net-zero by 2050. Shipping currently accounts for about 3% of global annual greenhouse gas emissions, and the pressure is on shipping companies to meet these ambitious goals.
Across Georgia Tech, researchers are working toward a sustainable future for ocean shipping. This includes Valerie Thomas, the Anderson-Interface Chair of Natural Systems Professor in the H. Milton Stewart School of Industrial and Systems Engineering, and in the School of Public Policy. She is scholar of energy systems, sustainability, assessment, and low-carbon transportation fuels, and her work touches many aspects of the maritime industry.
“Today, we ship a lot of goods by ocean freight, and there is certainly an environmental impact with shipping,” Thomas said. “But the emissions from shipping a product from East Asia to the U.S. on a bulk carrier vessel are significantly lower than trucking a product across the U.S. When ships are filled to the brim with cargo and are moving slowly across oceans, this is energy efficient, fuel efficient, and even cost efficient per ton of ‘stuff’ transported.”
While ocean shipping is significantly more energy efficient than air or land transport and contributes far fewer emissions, Thomas says cutting down on ocean freight emissions will require a great deal more effort. One way is to find more eco-friendly fuels.
“I look at big systems, and one of those areas is investigating alternative fuels,” Thomas said. “I’m often trying to figure out how much greenhouse gas various fuels emit, what other types of emissions or matter are coming out, and how to compare different fuel options.”
Thomas is a leading expert in life-cycle assessment. It is a method used to evaluate a fuel or technology's environmental impact throughout its entire cycle — from raw materials extraction, processing, manufacturing, distribution, and ultimately, use. Right now, basically all ships use petroleum fuels, which emit carbon dioxide and particulate matter into the air.
Finding fuel alternatives is not a simple task: Just because a fuel might initially seem like a promising low-carbon option, that is not always the case in the end. Thomas’s expertise in life-cycle assessments helps her figure out whether these possible fuels are truly environmentally friendly.
“One such example is hydrogen: It doesn’t emit carbon dioxide when burned,” Thomas said. “But the manufacturing of hydrogen can emit carbon dioxide, and therefore, hydrogen is not always a low-carbon fuel on a lifecycle basis.”
Patricia Stathatou, a researcher at Georgia Tech’s Renewable Bioproducts Institute, specializes in sustainability assessment of chemical engineering processes and products, which includes lifecycle assessments and techno-economic assessments, evaluating both the environmental impacts and the economic viability of products and processes. Stathatou, who will join the School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering as an assistant professor in January 2025, also conducts experiments to support these assessments and guide the development of new technologies.
“My contribution to the lifecycle assessment field is that I support assessments with in-field emission monitoring, taking samples, and performing chemical analyses,” Stathatou said. “This helps identify specific pollutants that might be emitted into the air or be present in water, wastewater, or solid waste streams.”
But as maritime shipping companies rise to the challenge of cutting emissions, they often do not know where to start. This is where Stathatou’s experience comes in.
During her postdoctoral research at MIT, a major shipping company reached out to Stathatou and her colleagues asking for help in cutting emissions. They wanted to increase the energy efficiency of their fleet and investigate different strategies and technologies to eventually reach the IMO’s emissions goals.
Because of Stathatou’s expertise in alternative fuels, biofuels, and sustainable energy sources, she investigated potential solutions for the company, which included a six-day research trip monitoring emissions aboard one of the company’s bulk carrier vessels in East Asia. Her work involves designing experiments, measuring emissions, and evaluating the environmental impact of different fuels onboard bulk carrier vessels.
“Ten years ago, there weren't rigorous goals or guidelines for reducing emissions in the shipping industry — and not much scientific collaboration in the process,” Stathatou said. “If we are to make a difference in the industry in regard to climate, we need partnerships with shipping companies to help guide their efforts.”
Stathatou plans to continue her collaborations with shipping companies and expects to carry out more on-ship evaluations soon.
According to Thomas, a holistic approach is needed to make shipping more sustainable. "It's not just about the fuels we use; it's about optimizing supply chains, reducing empty freight, and leveraging multimodal transportation options," Thomas said. "By embracing net-zero freight initiatives and maximizing efficiency in logistics, we can achieve meaningful reductions in emissions while meeting the demands of global trade."
Encouraging shifts to ocean freight is another means of reducing emissions. For example, if a company wants to transport goods from Miami to Baltimore, they don’t need to go by road or rail. “You can ship your freight on the ocean along the coast, and that could be more environmentally efficient,” Thomas said.
The work Thomas and Stathatou do is part of a broad portfolio of shipping sustainability research at Georgia Tech, which also includes the Georgia Tech Supply Chain and Logistics Institute, the Panama Logistics and Innovation Research Center, and the Net Zero Freight Systems Program, which Thomas co-leads. These partnerships aim to enhance the efficiency and sustainability of global supply chains, leveraging innovative research and practical applications.
“The work of evaluating different fuels, technologies, and strategies is not trivial, and figuring out these new methods does not happen quickly,” Thomas said. “These are difficult technologies, and it takes a long time to put them in place. That is why we need to do this work now.”
Stathatou envisions that, with more shipping companies now looking to curb their emissions, there will be significant adoption of new fuels and technologies within the next decade.
“Ocean shipping is a transportation sector that we cannot go without, and so decarbonizing it is very important,” Stathatou said. “I believe the ability to perform these assessments and guide the development of future solutions will have a tremendous impact on humanity.”
]]>Georgia Tech researchers are developing sustainable ocean shipping solutions to meet global emissions targets through eco-friendly fuels, optimized supply chains, and life-cycle assessments.
]]>Following an international search, Georgia Tech has appointed Amanda Murdie as the new dean of the Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts, effective June 1, 2025. Murdie currently serves as a Regents’ Professor, Georgia Athletic Association Professor of International Affairs, and the Head of the Department of International Affairs for the University of Georgia’s School of Public and International Affairs.
"We are delighted to welcome Dr. Murdie to Georgia Tech," said Steve McLaughlin, provost and executive vice president for Academic Affairs. "Her extensive research in international relations and human rights, as well as her commitment to instructional excellence make her an ideal leader for Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts, a college recognized for its cross-disciplinary research, teaching, and service. We are confident that under her guidance, the College will soar to new heights as a global leader in liberal arts education."
Murdie is a distinguished scholar in international relations, focusing on the behavior of international nongovernmental organizations and their interactions with states, local populations, and intergovernmental organizations. Her work on these topics has been published in numerous journals of note, including the American Political Science Review, Journal of Politics, British Journal of Political Science, and International Organization.
Her research has advanced public understanding of human security, human rights, and conflict processes. In recognition of her contributions, Murdie received the 2023 Karl Deutsch Award from the International Studies Association – a prestigious award given to scholars “judged to have made (through a body of publications) the most significant contribution to the study of International Relations and Peace Research.”
Beyond her scholarly work, Murdie has demonstrated a commitment to academic mentorship and development. As the University of Georgia’s department head of International Affairs since 2018, she has fostered a collaborative environment and supported the professional development of faculty and students. She has also served as editor-in-chief of the International Studies Review and co-edited University of Georgia Press’ Studies in Security and International Affairs Book Series.
Murdie earned her Ph.D. in political science from Emory University, M.A. in political science from Kansas State University, and B.S. in political science and international studies from Kansas State University. Her interdisciplinary background and dedication to bridging the liberal arts and technological fields align with Georgia Tech's mission to develop leaders who advance technology and improve the human condition.
As dean, Murdie will oversee Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts' broad portfolio of academic programs that includes 10 bachelor’s degrees, 14 master’s degrees, and six Ph.D. programs. She will also work to strengthen and expand the college’s research initiatives and community partnerships, further enhancing its role as a model of liberal arts education within a technological university. Her appointment affirms Georgia Tech's commitment to the expansion of interdisciplinary education and research.
"The Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts is revolutionizing what we think is possible in higher education,” said Murdie. “The College’s faculty, staff, and students demonstrate how foundational, transformative, and limitless the liberal arts are for the overall success of the Institute. I’m thrilled to be part of such a vibrant community and excited to help guide the College. The complexity of the problems we are facing and the revolutionary nature of the tools we have now means that the need for the liberal arts at Georgia Tech has never been greater."
Dean Murdie succeeds Richard Utz, who has served as interim dean since April 2024 and will continue to serve in the role until June 1.
“Since stepping into the interim role, Richard has led Ivan Allen College with impressive clarity,” said Provost McLaughlin. “He has served as a model of excellence in leadership and returns to his roles of senior associate dean and professor having supported his college through a critical moment of change. We are incredibly grateful to him and know that Dean Murdie will step into her new role in a college that has been well cared for.”
Writer: Brittany Aiello, Faculty Communications Program Manager, Executive Communications, Institute Communications
From an undisclosed location in her home country of Venezuela, María Corina Machado joined online to participate in the celebration held at the Biltmore Hotel in Tech Square, where she was awarded the Ivan Allen Jr. Prize for Social Courage.
The leader of the country's opposition party remains in hiding and unable to leave the country. Elected to the Venezuelan National Assembly in 2010, she became a vocal critic of Hugo Chávez and his successor, Nicolás Maduro. Machado became the opposition's presidential candidate for the Unity Democratic Platform in 2023 but was later disqualified from holding office by the regime-controlled National Electoral Council. Still, her efforts to inspire change did not stop.
Machado rallied support behind the opposition candidate, Edmundo González, and organized a million volunteers to monitor polling locations and collect data to support the party's claim of victory. While the Maduro regime remains in power despite data showing victory for the opposition, Machado is hopeful that democracy will prevail. Speaking via Zoom, Machado said the courage that earned her the award is a shared value among the Venezuelan people.
"Social courage is what Venezuelans have proven to have. Over 25 years, we've seen this tyranny oppress, divide, persecute, and deprive, and we've had many falls, but we've stood back up. Our strength is not in firearms. It is in effective organization, intelligence, courage, and love, and there is no more powerful force than love," she said.
Presenting the award, Georgia Tech President Ángel Cabrera reflected on Machado's early career as an industrial engineer and human rights activist through the founding of Sumate, a vote-monitoring group, in 2002.
"She understands systems and data, which allowed her to identify and document dysfunction in Venezuela's electoral process. She took it as a mission to bring forward solutions to address the challenges in her country. She has become a champion for her country and a beacon for fair and free elections around the world. Her story reminds us that data and technology alone do not drive change, but they are powerful tools in the hands of responsible leaders and can be used to make a difference," Cabrera said.
Her children, Ana Corina Sosa Machado and Ricardo Machado, accepted the award. Ana spoke of her mother's dedication to her cause and willingness to speak out for what she believes in despite the risks.
"If there is one thing I've learned from my mother, it's that courage, truth, and hope are our most powerful weapons in disarming evil. That courage is not a virtue to be used only when it is convenient, noncontroversial, or safe, but rather its true test lies in the darkest of times when standing for what is right might mean standing alone, alienating allies, and even risking your own life.," she said.
The prize was established in 2010 to honor the legacy of Ivan Allen Jr., former mayor of Atlanta and a Georgia Tech graduate, who was known for his courageous leadership during the Civil Rights Movement. Ana sees a parallel between the prize's namesake and her mother.
"Ivan Allen Jr. knew well what it meant to stand against the status quo, to fight for what is right despite the costs. Most importantly, he knew that moral courage in defense of truth and what is right is contagious. That is what my mother has ignited in Venezuela — an unstoppable force, not grounded in violence or strength but in the love of country."
The event featured a panel moderated by CNN national correspondent Rafael Romo and featuring Jennie Lincoln, a senior advisor for Latin America and the Caribbean at the Carter Center; Charles Shapiro, former U.S. Ambassador to Venezuela and former director of the World Affairs Council; and Eric Farnsworth, vice president of the America Society and Council of the Americas.
Each panelist was asked if there was hope for democracy in the country, and each expressed their opinion that Machado is the primary factor in keeping that hope alive, and Farnsworth said she should be awarded a Nobel Peace Prize for her work.
Thanks to a generous grant from the Wilbur and Hilda Glenn Foundation, the Allen Prize includes a monetary stipend of $100,000 to accompany the award. Past recipients include John Lewis, Andrew Young, Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, Dr. Anthony Fauci, and Christiane Amanpour.
For her latest project, Sugimoto is going global. A grant from the Trans-Atlantic Platform for Social Sciences and Humanities is taking her across national borders and into science diplomacy. Here, we talk to her about her work and how a more open and equitable scientific ecosystem can change the world for the better.
Sugimoto is the School chair, Tom and Marie Patton Chair, and professor in the Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School of Public Policy at Georgia Tech.
In my research, I use a variety of tools — big data, surveys, interviews, and social science research methods — to understand how the system of science is operating. I want to know if it’s functioning efficiently, responsibly, and equitably. I look at how we make science, how it is funded and rewarded, and the policies supporting science. I also look at inequalities within the scientific system, such as the intersection of race and gender, and how that plays out in scientific production.
I’m also an administrator, which I love. I get to take all my research and put it into practice by considering how we support science and mentor scientists, and how we build organizations that are more equitable, sustainable, and innovative.
At its core, science diplomacy is about the interaction of science and nations. We split it into categories of science for diplomacy, diplomacy for science, science in diplomacy, and diplomacy in science. For example, we might use science to achieve a diplomatic objective, like fostering exchanges of scientists between countries to build goodwill. We might use science to inform diplomacy — for example, to understand which countries are competitive in certain emerging technologies and where we should focus our attention. We might also need diplomacy to achieve scientific goals, such as gaining access to a critical observatory or resource. Science diplomacy is all these things. For our project, we focus on creating an evidence base that is most useful for diplomatic purposes, with a particular emphasis on metascience observatories.
In an astronomical observatory, you observe the cosmos. You’re observing and counting stars and planetary bodies and analyzing how the system works. But imagine that instead of looking at the sky, you're looking at the system of science.
Metascience observatories study scientific data and the scientific ecosystem. This includes the actors of science — scientists and administrators. It also includes institutions that support science, like funding agencies and academic universities. Finally, there’s the output of science. This includes scientific publications, scientific patents, and anything produced by scientists. So those are all the objects of the scientific system: people, institutions, and products.
We then take those people, institutions, and products and aggregate and analyze them, and — this is the “observatory” part — observe trends over time.
The metascience observatory is about providing real-time data on the state of the scientific system to inform policy.
It could be anything related to the working of science. For example, are we producing more scientists or fewer? Is the system functioning openly and equitably? Are we studying certain topics more than others? Are we becoming more productive or less productive? Are we meeting society's needs? Are we addressing disease burdens that affect our countries?
These analytical questions inform policymakers, who can then make informed recommendations about how science can perform more optimally to address a nation’s needs.
Our work has identified about 40 metascience observatories around the world. These meet our strict definition of being formal organizations dedicated to the study of science and technology that collect, analyze, and maintain data about the science and technology ecosystem, and that share their work openly with the public.
In the United States, the most prominent observatory is the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics, which operates out of the National Science Foundation. This is a critical organization that provides data to the government on the status of science and engineering. It also publishes data and reports to inform researchers and
policymakers on the state of science in the U.S.
We began our grant with the job of defining and identifying scientific observatories. We are now conducting surveys and interviews to gain more information on how these organizations function, particularly in relation to diplomacy. In parallel, we are conducting several case studies — such as artificial intelligence and nuclear power — to examine how diplomats use science in these domains. Bringing these together, we will examine how evidence-based science diplomacy can be used to improve democracy, governance, and trust both within and across nations. We will also look at how we can build a more open, inclusive infrastructure for doing this type of work.
Part of this story is about open science communication. When we don’t share scientific information quickly and accurately, it hinders the goals of science. The pandemic was an excellent example of science diplomacy’s importance.
During the pandemic, researchers were trying to publish Covid-related findings in some of the most elite journals, which caused delays in sharing critical information about Covid-19. Scientific publishers saw this concern and responded by making data and publications on Covid-19 freely available.
However, post-pandemic, they reverted to their closed approach. A recent study showed that publications associated with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals are even less available than the average paper. This hinders science and, by extension, science diplomacy. To be able to provide evidence, that evidence should be open and robust.
Our scientific system is plagued with inequalities. On the individual level, scholars face barriers based on their gender, race, nationality, and language. Resources are concentrated within institutions, restricting the diversity of ideas. Nations have vastly unequal access to resources, which has adverse effects on meeting global needs. Even our data is skewed toward certain disciplines, languages, and countries, making our knowledge of the ecosystem incomplete and highly flawed. The most robust scientific ecosystem, and the data that supports it, requires an inclusive, open global infrastructure.
Funding: https://www.transatlanticplatform.com/imso4diplo/
]]>As artificial intelligence (AI) drives explosive growth in data centers, communities across the U.S. are facing rising electricity costs, new industrial development, and mounting strain on an aging power grid.
At Georgia Tech, several faculty members are approaching these sustainability challenges from different but complementary angles: examining how data center policy affects local communities, modeling how AI-driven demand reshapes regional energy systems, and building tools that help the public understand the tradeoffs embedded in grid planning. Together, their work highlights how better data, thoughtful policy, and public engagement can guide more resilient and equitable decisions in an AI-powered future.
AI’s Hidden Footprint: How Data Centers Reshape Communities
Ahmed Saeed studies the infrastructure most people never see. An assistant professor in the School of Computer Science and a Brook Byers Institute for Sustainable Systems (BBISS) Faculty Fellow, Saeed focuses on how data centers — the backbone of modern AI — are built, operated, and regulated, and what their growth means for host communities.
“Data centers are the infrastructure for our digital life, so more of them are necessary to keep doing what we’re doing,” he said.
Data center energy consumption could double or triple by 2028, accounting for up to 12% of U.S. electricity use, according to a report by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. U.S. spending on data center construction jumped nearly 70% between May 2023 and May 2024, according to the American Edge Project.
Georgia is an AI data center hub, ranked fourth globally, with $4.6 billion in AI-related venture capital invested across 368 deals, the American Edge Project reported. At a recent town hall in DeKalb County, Georgia, Saeed helped residents connect AI’s promise to its local consequences. Training large AI models can require tens of thousands of graphics processing units (GPUs) running for days or weeks, driving an unprecedented wave of data center construction. AI-focused chips, he noted, can consume 10 to 14 times more power than traditional processors.
That demand often shows up as pressure on local infrastructure. Communities are increasingly concerned about electricity and water use, grid upgrades, and who ultimately pays. In Virginia, Saeed pointed to a legal dispute in which consumer advocates warned that data centers could raise electricity bills by 5% in the short term and up to 50% over time, while utilities argued those investments were inevitable and could benefit customers in the long run.
Environmental concerns add another layer. Saeed cited controversies over water use and backup diesel generators in states, including Georgia and Tennessee, alongside a recent Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ruling that tightened generator regulations. While diesel generators are clearly harmful, he cautioned that long-term, rigorous evidence linking data centers to regional health impacts remains limited.
Saeed’s research aims to reduce those impacts directly. By optimizing how workloads are scheduled across large server fleets, his team has demonstrated power savings of 4 – 12%, a meaningful gain if U.S. data centers approach projected levels of up to 12% of national electricity use by 2028.
For Saeed, data centers are akin to highways: essential to modern life, disruptive to nearby communities, and shaped by policy choices. The question, he argues, is not whether AI infrastructure should exist, but how transparently and fairly it is built.
Economist Probes the Energy Costs of the AI Boom
While headlines often frame AI as an energy crisis, Georgia Tech environmental and energy economist and BBISS Faculty Fellow Tony Harding is focused on measuring its real — and uneven — impacts. Harding, an assistant professor in the Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School of Public Policy, uses economic modeling to examine how AI adoption affects energy use, emissions, and local communities.
In recent work published in Environmental Research Letters, Harding and his co-author analyzed how productivity gains from AI could influence national energy demand. Their findings suggest that, at a macro level, AI-related activity may increase annual U.S. energy use by about 0.03% and CO₂ emissions by roughly 0.02%.
“Those numbers are small in the context of the overall economy,” Harding said. “But the impacts are highly uneven.”
That unevenness is evident in where data centers are built. While Northern Virginia remains the country’s top data center hub, with 343 operational data centers, states like Georgia, which currently has 94 operational data centers, are rapidly attracting facilities due to reliable power and favorable tax policies.
Harding’s latest research focuses on local effects, asking why data centers cluster in urban areas, how they influence housing markets, what happens to electricity prices, and whether they exacerbate water stress. Early evidence suggests large facilities can increase local electricity rates, contributing to public backlash and regulatory response. In Georgia, the Public Service Commission has begun requiring new, high power draw customers (like data centers) to cover more of the costs associated with grid expansion.
Harding’s goal is to give policymakers better evidence to design incentives and guardrails. “To manage these technologies responsibly,” he said, “we need a clear picture of their intended and unintended consequences.”
Gamifying a Strained and Aging Power Grid
Daniel Molzahn is tackling another side of the problem: how to modernize an aging power grid under growing demand. Electricity demand is expected to rise about 25% by 2030, driven by data centers, electric vehicles, and broadscale electrification. At the same time, much of the U.S. electricity grid is nearing the end of its lifespan, with many transformers being decades old.
To make these challenges tangible, Molzahn, an associate professor in the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, developed a browser-based game with a group of students through Georgia Tech’s Vertically Integrated Projects program called Current Crisis. Players take on the role of a utility decision-maker, balancing reliability, wildfire risk, renewable integration, and affordability.
The game grew out of Molzahn’s National Science Foundation CAREER award and reflects his belief that complex systems are best understood experientially. Its initial focus is wildfire resilience, modeling how grid infrastructure can both spark and suffer damage from fires.
But resilience comes at a cost. Burying power lines, for example, reduces wildfire risk but dramatically increases expenses. Players must confront the same tradeoffs utilities face: improve reliability or keep rates low.
Molzahn hopes the game will help students and the public grapple with the realities of planning future power systems. “These choices aren’t abstract,” he said. “They shape affordability, resilience, and our path toward a cleaner grid.”
The project now involves nearly 40 students from across campus, supported by Sustainability NEXT funding and a collaboration with Jessica Roberts, former BBISS Faculty Fellow and director of the Technology-Integrated Learning Environments (TILES) Lab in the School of Interactive Computing.
“As a learning scientist, I look at how to engage people with science and scientific data and get people having conversations they might not otherwise have,” says Roberts, who hopes the seed grant helps the team determine first that they are going in the right direction and, second, how to broaden the impact.
One student, Stella Quinto Lima, a graduate research assistant in Human-Centered Computing, has made the game the focus of her doctoral thesis. Through the game, she wants players to notice their misconceptions about the power grid, energy use, and AI, and to use critical thinking to identify, question, and possibly undo those misconceptions.
“I hope that we can really engage adults and help them see it’s not black and white. The game is not only about power grids, but how AI affects the grid, how it affects our lives, and how it will impact our future.”
The team plans to expand the game’s features, use it in outreach programs, and analyze player decisions as a source of data to study energy-system decision-making.
“We want to change the conversation about power and power grid stability, reliability, and sustainability, Roberts said, “and find a way to get this message to a larger public.”
]]>While chess doesn’t have moral stakes, more serious ethical issues could arise in everything from medicine to self-driving cars as AI becomes even more pervasive. So, what does it mean for AI to be safe?
“No one is saying developing safe AI will be easy, but we need to make sure we cover as many ethical concerns as possible,” said Tyler Cook, a research affiliate at the Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School of Public Policy at Georgia Tech and assistant program director of the Center for AI Learning at Emory University. “Humans also care about being treated fairly. We care about not being deceived. We should aim for much more than safety.”
AI is too complex for simple guardrails, Cook argues in a recent Science and Engineering Ethics paper. But AI still needs to be limited and incorporated with human values of fairness, honesty, and transparency so it doesn’t make ethically dubious decisions.
AI is not just a problem to manage. It’s a technology whose impact depends on the values we choose to build in it, Cook claims. Developers must think carefully about the world their systems will shape. AI shouldn’t make our world, but instead integrate into it.
Some computer scientists would say “safe” AI, or AI that doesn’t cause harm, is the answer. But AI is not a simple machine like a lawnmower that needs just a blade guard to prevent harm.
Establishing AI safety is more complex than adding protective features. Being prudent with how much autonomy AI gets is also paramount.
“We don't want AI systems deciding that they don't want to pursue fairness anymore,” Cook said. “We don't want AI to be autonomous with respect to its ethical goals or values.”
Such ethical autonomy could lead to unpredictable or undesirable outcomes. Consider algorithmic bias: Human biases, combined with machine automation, can lead to unequal consequences. An AI mortgage lender could favor certain applicant demographics over others, for example.
Cook posits there is a middle ground between merely safe AI and autonomous ethical AI — “end-constrained ethical AI.”
“As designers of AI systems, computer scientists should choose what we want the AI to prioritize: fairness, honesty, transparency,” Cook said. “That's why I use the language of constraint. We're constraining the AI’s values so they can actually benefit society.”
End‑constrained ethical AI asks designers to set those boundaries intentionally, not as an afterthought. And if developers take that responsibility seriously, AI doesn’t have to reinvent our world — it can strengthen the one we already have.
"A Case for End-Constrained Ethical Artificial Intelligence." Science and Engineering Ethics 32.7 (2026).
DOI: 10.1007/s11948-025-00577-6
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