Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment

Training the next generation of leaders

The Andlinger Center’s Program in Sustainable Energy gives Princeton students hands-on experiences with a wide range of energy and environmental topics, from exploring next-generation energy technologies to learning the intricacies of energy markets and regulations. The program challenges students to gain a well-rounded understanding of how energy and society interact, providing them with the rigorous foundation they need to make tangible, positive impacts on the world.

In the 2024-2025 academic year, the Andlinger Center celebrated 11 graduating seniors at its Class Day ceremony. Six students earned a certificate from the Program in Sustainable Energy, while five received the Minor in Sustainable Energy, which was established in fall 2024.

The Andlinger Center awarded the Senior Thesis Prize in Energy and the Environment to mechanical engineering graduate Helena Frudit for her work to develop a supply chain optimization model for Brazil’s bioenergy sector. The model, which optimizes the location of bioenergy conversion facilities relative to where biomass resources are available across over 5,500 Brazilian municipalities (counties), will be integrated into a broader study analyzing how Brazil can fully decarbonize its economy, which is a collaboration between researchers in the Energy Systems Analysis Group led by Eric Larson and colleagues in Brazil.

The trajectories of Frudit and our other 2025 graduates are diverse. Whether pursuing graduate degrees in environmental engineering and meteorology, or entering fields such as water resource management, renewable energy investment, and grid reliability, these students will use the training they received from the Andlinger Center to tackle the critical energy and environmental challenges of our time.