Michaud wins Association of Energy Engineers “Best Article of the Year”

An article co-authored by Dr. Gilbert Michaud, assistant professor of practice at Ohio University’s Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Affairs, was named 2019’s “Best Article of the Year” by the Association of Energy Engineers.

“Non-utility Photovoltaic Deployment: Evaluation of U.S. State-level Policy Drivers” investigates the policy mechanisms needed to help small-scale solar energy investment. The article, co-authored with Dr. Damian Pitt, associate professor at Virginia Commonwealth University, was published in AEE’s International Journal of Strategic Planning for Energy and Environment. 

“We looked at historic solar and policy data and ran regression analyses to determine that state tax credits and net metering policies have been the two biggest drivers for investment,” Michaud said. 

Michaud and Pitt recognize the benefit of maximizing the efficiency of solar use, as it slowly becomes more readily available in our society. 

“Our research helps operationalize, quantify, and assess the suite of solar energy policy options, in the hopes of helping states craft more effective policy solutions for solar energy use,” Michaud said. 

Michaud began working in this area in 2013 as a doctoral candidate under Dr. Pitt. Pitt chaired Michaud’s dissertation committee and has been a mentor, making the recognition for this especially rewarding, Michaud said.

Both Michaud and Pitt noted that being recognized by the Association of Energy Engineers will increase the article’s potential audience and impact. 

“I'm particularly proud to be recognized by the Association of Energy Engineers, as that demonstrates that our policy-based research is reaching a technical audience and hopefully influencing the decision-makers who actually build and maintain our energy infrastructure,” Pitt said. 

The Association of Energy Engineers is a professional society with members in more than 100 countries. The organization publishes three technical journals, offers college scholarships and professional certification, and recognizes outstanding achievement in energy engineering and sustainability.