Growing concerns about climate change, our global energy supplies, and the adverse effects of rapid urbanization, are driving demand for greater energy efficiency, resource management, and sustainable development practices. Georgia Tech brings together a multidisciplinary team of applied scientists, engineers, economists, designers, policy makers and planners to provide practical solutions to today’s energy challenges. Georgia Tech provides neutral, third-party assessments in a broad range of areas to assist partners in integrating and optimizing clean and efficient energy use.

City and Regional Planning

Students and faculty in Georgia Tech’s School of City and Regional Planning are dedicated to developing the next generation of urban planning, community development, and environmental protection research and practice.

Energy Efficiency

Georgia Tech’s nationally-recognized Aerospace Systems Design Laboratory provides council to industry partners on the design, and management of complex systems for power generation.

Energy Technology

New system integration and design concepts for traditional and renewable energy technologies can be incorporated into the energy mix to enhance and transform current systems as we transition to a self-sustaining energy economy. Georgia Tech faculty members are providing unbiased technology assessments estimating and discussing comparative metrics such as: scale of application, size and weight per unit of energy output, economics, efficiency, and state of technology development. These assessments provide government, research, development, and commercialization organizations with additional knowledge for ranking and selecting technologies regarding their risk, potential, and appropriate applications.

Environment

The Geographic Information Systems Research Laboratory works to develop cutting edge geographic analysis tools and to apply those tools in ways that increase our knowledge of the built and natural environments. Research topics include the development of new terrain analysis techniques, modeling of soil erosion, vegetation, and water quality processes and problems, modeling of spatial patterns of urban growth and habitat change and impact of land use change which explore geomorphometry and spatial hydrology sciences.

Georgia Tech’s School of Civil and Environmental Engineering also provides extensive expertise in hydroclimatology, environmental transport processes and integrated resource management. Research in this area focuses on terrestrial and atmospheric water energy processes and fluxes; vegetation dynamics; and decision support systems promoting holistic, equitable and sustainable use of water resources. Core areas of expertise include:

• Remote sensing of hydrologic variables
• Coupling of atmospheric, surface, and subsurface models
• Flood/drought  forecasting and management
• Decision support systems for water resources assessment, planning and management
• Climate change research and impact studies

Policy and Economics

Georgia Tech’s multidisciplinary team assesses the impact of policy decisions on the energy market, consumer behavior, and environmental concerns and assists in developing new models for a low-carbon energy future.

Sustainable Design

School of Building Construction is focused on reducing greenhouse gas emissions, increasing the use of new and renewable energy technologies, and providing a comfortable, safe and efficient built environment.

Transportation

The Georgia Transportation Institute and The National Center for Transportation Systems Productivity and Management  Georgia Tech is working with academic institutions throughout the Southeast region to develop solutions for a wide range of transportation concerns – from policy and planning, to transportation technology, infrastructure, and traffic operations.