The Webber Energy Group

The Webber Energy Group (WEG) is a research group at UT Austin, led by Dr. Michael Webber, Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Deputy Director of the UT Austin Energy Institute, that analyzes energy and environmental problems at the intersection of engineering, science and public policy. Their research is divided into four areas: the energy-water nexus, energy systems modeling, alternative transportation fuels and the nexus of food, waste and energy.

The goal of the research in these areas is to get more people access to cleaner energy. Energy access will improve the lives of millions of people, and it needs to be clean so it avoids lasting environmental impacts. What makes WEG truly unique among their peers is their extensive and multifaceted outreach program. WEG doesn’t just engage undergraduate, graduate, and professional academic researchers from a variety of engineering, policy, and scientific disciplines. The team also includes talented media and administrative professionals to help communicate their research to the public.

Dr. Webber and the WEG team believe that when engineers, scientists, and researchers fail to engage in the policy-making process (both private and public), energy policies won’t be practical or effective. WEG wants to bridge the divide between policymakers and academics for issues related to energy and the environment, and improve the energy literacy of as many people as possible.  

Dr. Webber and WEG have been very successful in their efforts to date. Entities such as the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, Department of Energy, and non-governmental organizations, such as UNESCO, have featured Dr. Webber’s research in their policy-making decisions. Since launching in March 2013, his syndicated television special, Energy at the Movies, has been telecast more than 200 times on 96 PBS stations in 27 states over a two-year span. The special synthesizes expert analysis of Hollywood films into digestible lessons on the science and history of energy. Energy at the Movies has reached over 43 million households in the United States, with a follow up series in development.

 

Power Trip: The Story of Energy

This next WEG project will be a 6-part series with episodes focused on water, food, wealth, cities, transportation, and security. Power Trip will use a novel approach to reveal key concepts in an unexpected way over 6 episodes. Starting with energy’s end-uses and outcomes, this series goes backwards and sideways to uncover hidden parts of this vast system, showing how energy is embedded right in front of our eyes in everyday goods and services, while revealing surprises and fun facts along the way.

This series will promote STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) Education to a diverse, non-traditional mix of students while improving energy, water, and environmental literacy across a broad swath of the population.  

PBS has committed to nationally distribute the series to their millions of viewers. In addition, United Airlines will include it with their in-flight entertainment, showing Power Trip to approximately 139 million flyers annually. Scientific American will also feature it on their website, which sees seven million unique visitors a month.

A companion curriculum for K-12 students is also in the works.

 
 

Energy is all around us, hidden in plain sight. Yet, the average person doesn’t really know much about energy outside of its daily impact on our lives. Energy done the right way improves quality of life for billions of people, but energy systems that don’t embrace innovation and efficiency can, and do, cause problems. Dr. Michael Webber at UT Austin has chosen to engage in the political and corporate world around him, bridging the divide between policymakers and academics, to help guide the world to a more sustainable relationship with energy.

As Acting Director of the Energy Institute, Josey Centennial Professor in Energy Resources, Author, and Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Dr. Michael E. Webber trains the next generation of energy leaders at the University of Texas at Austin and beyond through research and education at the convergence of engineering, policy, and commercialization.  His first book, Thirst for Power: Energy, Water and Human Survival, which addresses the connection between earth’s most valuable resources and offers a hopeful approach toward a sustainable future, is receiving wide praise. His upcoming book Power Trip: the Story of Energy will be published May 7, 2019 with a 6-part companion series on PBS later in 2019.  He was selected as a Fellow of ASME and as a member of the 4th class of the Presidential Leadership Scholars, which is a leadership training program organized by Presidents George W. Bush and William J. Clinton. Webber has authored more than 400 publications, holds 5 patents, and serves on the advisory board for Scientific American. A successful entrepreneur, Webber was one of three founders in 2015 for an educational technology startup, DISCO Learning Media, which was acquired in 2018 by Probility Media.  Webber holds a B.S. and B.A. from UT Austin, and M.S. and Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from Stanford.  He was honored as an American Fellow of the German Marshall Fund, an AT&T Industrial Ecology Fellow, and on four separate occasions by the University of Texas for exceptional teaching.

Honorary Mechanical Engineer Award, Mechanical Engineering Academy of Distinguished Alumni, UT Austin (2018)

Presidential Leadership Scholar (2018)

Frank Kreith Energy Award, American Society of Mechanical Engineers (2015)

Algorithm For Optimal Solar Placement

Patent Pending, Disclosures Filed 2014) (J.D. Rhodes, C.R. Upshaw, and M.E. Webber

Reducing Peak Electrical Demand By Air Conditioning Systems And Reducing Water Consumption By Implementing An Integrated Thermal Energy And Rainwater Storage System

#9,989,270 (2018) (C.R. Upshaw, J.D. Rhodes, and M.E. Webber)

System and Method for High Sensitivity Optical Detection of Gases

#7,502,115 (2009)

Method of Analyzing Components of Alveolar Breath

#7,473,229 (2009)

Amplifier-Enhanced Optical Analysis System and Method

#7,064,329 (2006)

Gas Sensor for Ammonia, Carbon Dioxide and Water

#6,787,776 (2004)