Kevin Hsu
Kevin Fan Hsu has worked on energy and sustainable development initiatives on both sides of the Pacific. He is pursuing his Ph.D. in Infrastructure Strategy and Planning at MIT, integrating scholarship on environmental policy and democracy studies. His work aims to make energy systems more effective, inclusive, and democratic. Some research projects include:
Accelerating Infrastructure Delivery: Mapping institutional barriers to energy development in democratic societies, and the mechanisms through which stakeholders in the infrastructure ecosystem exercise influence (including the private sector, local government, and civil society). The research also identifies project- and policy-level strategies to surmount these challenges and accelerate the delivery of energy infrastructure, while maintaining respect for the rights of individuals and local communities. Some dimensions of this work include:
- mapping state/business interactions that influence infrastructure implementation
- developing indicators of the pace of delivery for energy projects in the United States
- assessing how federal climate/energy policies are received and implemented by cities and states, and evaluating the degree to which local communities share in the benefits of public works and green economy initiatives
AI and Cities: Developing a framework for responsible AI adoption by cities. As artificial intelligence technologies proliferate, how can they be harnessed by cities to promote social and economic welfare, strengthen democratic institutions, and improve the functioning of municipal government?
Data Centers as Sustainable Infrastructure: Understanding data centers' impacts on local communities and the climate. Assessing state-level responses to manage data disclosure, energy efficiency and local environmental impacts. System determinants for ensuring data center availability for AI data center demands, measured against impacts to the energy system and grid stability. Use of renewable energy projects to support and mitigate these impacts.
Climate Change, Heritage, and Resilient Development: Identifying co-benefits of heritage in support of nations' sustainable development priorities. Exploring the intersection of heritage safeguarding (tangible and intangible), and strengthening whole-of-society resilience in the face of a changing climate.
Energy Security and Strategic Competition: Enhancing national security and long-term competitiveness through development of robust energy supply chains and joint energy planning between the United States and partners in the Indo-Pacific.
Activities
Climate Planning Forum: Kevin is an organizer of the MIT Climate Planning Forum, a cross-departmental initiative that brings together researchers, practitioners, and advocates to discuss climate planning, with a focus on policy formulation and real-world implementation.
Infrastructure x Equity: Kevin co-founded Infrastructure x Equity, a group that works with government officials, green businesses, and development professionals to transform how infrastructure projects are delivered for present and future generations. An ongoing initiative explores how cities and companies can partner to make the green economy work for local communities. The publication, "Better Neighbors: Improving the Local Green Economy Ecosystem" discusses key challenges that are arising as as battery and energy storage companies expand their manufacturing footprint in Bay Area cities, and promising directions for addressing them.
ICOMOS Climate Action Working Group: Kevin manages resources on climate and heritage for the ICOMOS CAWG.
