Energy policy in the United States isn’t just a domestic issue, it’s part of an important global conversation. School of Public and International Affairs (SPIA) Professor Shanti Gamper-Rabindran added her voice to that discussion last summer, presenting research and bringing a U.S. policy perspective on the energy transition to academic audiences across Europe. 
Gamper-Rabindran, who also holds appointments at Pitt’s Law School and the Department of Economics, is a former faculty fellow within Pitt’s Global Studies Center (GSC) and a Mascaro Center for Sustainable Innovation (MCSI) grantee. Her international research and teaching were supported in part by the GSC faculty fellowship and a MCSI research grant.
Over the summer, Gamper-Rabindran presented research on the opportunities and challenges associated with the United States’ transition to renewable energy at the Technical University of Munich and the Universities of Trento, Bolzano, and Innsbruck. She also led comparative discussions on European and North American energy policies and served as a guest professor at a multinational summer academy, where she lectured graduate students from around the world on pathways to a climate-neutral and circular economy.
“I am grateful to colleagues at the Global Studies Center at Pitt for their support of global research on sustainability and the opportunity to network with other academic institutions working on sustainability,” she shared. “I have been able to share my insights with faculty and students abroad, but importantly, I have also learned from them and brought those lessons home to my students at Pitt.”
Gamper-Rabindran teaches graduate courses at SPIA including Political Economy of Development, Climate Policy: Local & Global, Environmental Policy: Local & Global, and Global Health Policy, which draw students from across the University. Her international engagement underscores the School's commitment to preparing future policy leaders with a globally informed perspective.
“I enjoy being with my students from diverse academic, geographical, socioeconomic and experiential backgrounds,” she said. “This diversity is the reality within which we need to address challenging development, climate, environment and health issues.”
Curious about environmental and climate policy graduate programs in the School of Public and International Affairs? Explore the Energy & Environment Concentration or Certificate in Sustainable Development. Undergraduate students interested in learning more about crafting policies that make a tangible impact on issues like sustainability should explore the Bachelor of Arts in Public Policy or request more information about our programs.