This website uses cookies as well as similar tools and technologies to understand visitors’ experiences. By continuing to use this website, you consent to Columbia University’s usage of cookies and similar technologies, in accordance with the Columbia University Website Cookie Notice.
Energy Explained
Get the latest as our experts share their insights on global energy policy.
Six Key Issues That Defined Climate Week 2025
CGEP scholars reflect on some of the standout issues of the day during this year's Climate Week
Blog
by Erica Downs, Dave Turk, Kate Guy, Gautam Jain, Luisa Palacios, David Sandalow, Vivek Shastry & Jack Andreasen Cavanaugh • October 10, 2025
Podcasts
Hear in-depth conversations with the world’s top energy and climate leaders from government, business, academia, and civil society.
Building a New Energy Industrial Strategy
Industrial policy, supply chain security, and economic competitiveness are central to how we think about clean energy deployment. As the Trump administration pulls back federal support for the...
Events
Find out more about our upcoming and past events.
October 16, 2025
• 4:00 pm - 5:00 pm
edt
Careers at the United Nations
Join us for a virtual information session focused on career pathways at the United Nations.
Event
Qëndresa Krasniqi
Research Associate
Biography
Relevant Articles
Cities, communities pursue energy justice for low-income residents
Nearly one-third of U.S. households consider cost before turning on a heating system during winter or powering up a cooling system during summer, potentially endangering their health.
News and Publications
with Qëndresa Krasniqi & Vivek Shastry •
The Nation's Health
• October 6, 2025
30 years after Chicago’s deadly heatwave, cooling should be recognized as a right
30 years ago last month, a brutal heatwave struck Chicago, killing more than 700 residents. As the city and much of the United States recently experienced another period of extreme heat, this anniversary serves as a reminder that heat remains one of the deadliest climate-related hazards — killing more people each year than hurricanes, floods and tornadoes combined — particularly for communities burdened by decades of disinvestment and structural barriers to health and safety.
Op-eds & Essays
with Qëndresa Krasniqi, Diana Hernández & Vivek Shastry •
Utility Dive
• August 21, 2025
Community Insights on Weather-Induced Energy Insecurity: A Case Study of Extreme Heat and Power Outages in North Lawndale, Chicago
This report explores how residents of North Lawndale, a predominantly Black and historically under-resourced neighborhood on Chicago’s West Side, experience the compounded effects of heat waves and power outages.
Reports
by Qëndresa Krasniqi, Helen Yibrah, Rachel Scheu + 2 more • July 10, 2025
D.C. Residents Could Be Left in the Dark Without An Essential Federal Utility Assistance Program
The federal utility assistance program is in limbo after the entire staff was fired in April.
Utilities’ Low-Income Discount Programs Help Address Energy Insecurity, But Some US States Lag Behind
Almost 34 million American households were considered energy insecure in 2020, with the majority foregoing food or life-saving medicine at least once in order to pay their utility bills.
Addressing Energy Insecurity via Utility Ratemaking
About one in four American households experience some form of energy insecurity. Within this group, Black, Indigenous, Latine, low- and moderate-income (LMI), and other disadvantaged communities face a disproportionately higher burden.
Utility Policies and Practices to Alleviate US Energy Insecurity
Millions of US households struggle to meet their energy needs due to low wages, rising living costs, and other historical and structural drivers of poverty.
