It was over 10 years ago now when I first heard Professor Nate S. Lewis discuss our energy consumption and how this is fundamental to our climate change challenge. He radically changed how I viewed then proffered strategies to tackle anthropogenic global warming. Too many people, I realized, have bought into the decades of “greenwash” and believe that the way forward is simple or clear.
Lewis is the George L. Argyros Professor of Chemistry at the California Institute of Technology. He is best known for developing artificial photosynthesis technology that enables sustainable production of hydrogen fuel using sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide. Lewis is also interested in weather-based, data-driven modeling of deeply decarbonized electricity and energy systems based on variable renewable energy and technologies for long-term grid storage.
Active in the solar fuels/solar chemical field for over 40 years, he has published over 500 papers, presented hundreds of public and technical plenary and invited lectures in the area, and is responsible for training a preeminent cohort of globally leading researchers in the solar fuels field.