U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm recently provided confirmation Shalanda Baker will serve as director of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Economic Impact and Diversity.
According to a June 8 Department of Energy news release, Granholm issued a formal statement regarding Baker’s appointment.
“I am so grateful to have Shalanda Baker confirmed to serve as director of DOE's Office of Economic Impact and Diversity,” Granholm said in the release. “Her efforts to advance President Biden’s Justice40 initiative have already revolutionized our department’s work in underserved and overburdened communities across America."
Before receiving her DOE appointment, Baker was a law professor of Urban Affairs at Northeastern University. The release reports Baker has spent more than 10 years performing research regarding “equity dimensions of the global transition away from fossil fuel energy to cleaner energy resources.”
“There is no more effective champion for building an equitable, just, clean energy economy than Shalanda,” Granholm said in the release. “We are thrilled that she is willing to serve the American people and we are incredibly fortunate to have her in the DOE family.”
Granholm also took to Twitter to express her gratitude after the Senate confirmed Baker’s new role.
“So grateful for the Senate confirmation of Shalanda Baker to serve as Director of @ENERGY’s Office of Economic Impact and Diversity,” Granholm said on Twitter. “There is no more effective champion for building an equitable, just, clean energy economy than Shalanda."
According to the release, Baker has authored pieces covering renewable energy law, energy justice, energy policy and renewable energy development. Baker reportedly received a Fulbright-Garcia-Robles research fellowship. The fellowship studied Mexican climate change, energy policy and indigenous rights.
Baker is co-founder and former co-director of the Initiative for Energy Justice, the release reported. The organization commits itself to provide technical law and policy support to communities that face the brunt of climate change.
