Sam Borgeson

Hi. I just finished M.S. degrees in Building Science and Energy and Resources at UC Berkeley and will be continuing as an Energy and Resource PhD student in the fall. I am excited by and interested in a wide array of topics related to re-working our energy systems, and facilitating the cultural and technological changes that can lead to a more just, equitable, and enduring society, so I'm thrilled to be among such a diverse group of gifted thinkers.

Through my current academic work, I hope to improve our understanding of the interface between built and natural environments and am interested in developing effective technical, economic, and policy tools to support the widespread delivery of low impact buildings. For My Building Science thesis was on computer models to assess the potential for climate-responsive, low energy cooling strategies in commercial buildings to displace conventional HVAC systems. This research was focuses on natural ventilation, radiant cooling, and the challenges associated with hybrid manual and automated building controls. Through the Energy and Resources Group and the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, I have been examining achievable reductions in emissions from buildings using models that track building features, floor space, and equipment as they change over time under varying technology and policy scenarios. I am also working as a Berkeley Institute of the Environment Fellow designing and coding an interactive web-based system to track and visualize campus resource use in support of mitigation goals, research, and education. I have a B.A. in Physics from Wesleyan University and in 2000, I co-founded Carbon Five, a San Francisco based software consulting firm. I left my position there to pursue my passion for reducing the environmental impacts of our built environment full time.