Alumni Spotlight: Jack Higdon bridges the gap between science and policy action
This Alumni Spotlight Series Includes interviews from Earth Academy alumni about their career paths, how they became interested in Earth Academy programs, and any advice that would be useful to current and future students.
Jack Higdon Graduated from Columbia University MSc Environmental Science and Policy (MPA-ESP) is planned for 2019. Now he works to drive federal action on climate change. But he didn’t always know he wanted to specialize in environmental policy.
Jake Higdon is a 2019 MPA graduate of Columbia University’s Environmental Science and Policy Program. Today, he is an Energy Innovation Impact Fellow at the Federation of American Scientists.
Jake began his undergraduate studies at UNC-Chapel Hill with a focus on urban planning. After his freshman year, he participated in a summer abroad program in Germany, majoring in urban and environmental studies. Throughout the project, Jack visited wind and solar farms and easily explored places from the city center to the top of the mountain thanks to the public transportation system. At first, Jack found the experience jarring, especially after growing up in Jacksonville, Florida, where he always felt reliant on cars. “My experience studying abroad in Germany was out of touch with the environment most people in the world were in at the time when it came to environmental issues,” he said.
Jack also continued to study in South Africa. There, working with communities struggling for the foundations of waste management and environmental safety, he realized the huge gaps needed to be bridged for a sustainable and equitable future. Closing this gap, he argues, requires massive system-wide change — the type of change that can only be achieved through government intervention. He began to feel that he could do his best to have a positive impact through policy.
He eventually graduated with an undergraduate degree in International Studies with a minor in Sustainability and a focus on the relationship between health and the environment, especially in Africa. During his senior year, he interned at the White House Office of Energy and Climate Change to “try to play a small role in advancing federal climate policy.” However, Jack felt he needed to develop more hard skills before going to graduate school. To that end, he spent several years as a data analyst at a company called Red Ventures, which leverages e-commerce for digital marketing. As an analyst, Jake conducts market research and works with different consumer brands to help them run digital platforms, data infrastructure or customer analytics. It was a great learning experience and today he continues to use the analytical techniques he acquired from his work. Jack knew that being comfortable with quantitative analysis and being able to think about policy in a quantitative way would help him succeed in graduate school.
After several years of honing his quantitative analysis skills, Jack is ready to start graduate school and begin his career in federal climate policy. He chose to pursue a master’s degree in the Environmental Science and Policy (MPA-ESP) program at Columbia University for a number of reasons. One of the things that attracted him most about the MPA-ESP project was the workshop. He appreciates that gaining real-world experience and connections is built into the program, rather than something he had to find alone through an internship. He also likes that the program is accelerated, so it seems more efficient as a career stepping stone because you get a lot in a short amount of time. Additionally, Jack sees Columbia as a very exciting place for graduate study.As a student, he was involved in Journal of International Affairs and other shows that expose him to interesting people and allow him to hear captivating speeches outside of the classroom.
In the MPA-ESP project, Jake has the ability to Global Energy Policy Center, which had a major impact on his career. In particular, Jack finds the opportunity to work with and learn from the Centre’s distinguished academics invaluable, working on topics ranging from decarbonisation to caring for workers during the energy transition.
Another experience Jake found particularly valuable in the MPA-ESP program was spending a spring break in Puerto Rico doing independent research. Working closely with a faculty member, he designed a study to understand how Puerto Rico is navigating the energy transition in the wake of Hurricane Maria. During this independent research, he met with local solar developers and attended a conference in San Juan focused on the energy transition.
Shortly after graduating from the MPA-ESP program, Jake was Environmental Protection Fund (EDF), a global environmental nonprofit. EDF is known for using scientific and policy analysis to address environmental issues, particularly climate change, by working with governments, individuals and the private sector. He started out as an analyst before being promoted on his team to U.S. climate policy manager.In this role, Jack is responsible for the analysis, research and advocacy to inform climate policy and keep America on track net zero Achieve the economy by 2050 in a way that benefits working people and communities in America. Jack spends his time managing a portfolio of analyses on different topics. His work includes engagement with stakeholders such as unions and community organisations, as well as direct engagement with policymakers.
Some of Jack’s favorite projects to work on for the Environmental Protection Fund are Project focuses on equity for workers and communities in the energy transition, and Climate Innovation Blueprint, which informs policymakers how to use innovation funding to fight climate change. One of Jake’s favorite parts of this job is that he’s actually been able to see his team’s recommendations in proposed legislation, including the settlement and bipartisan infrastructure bills.
Jake has been with the EDF for three years, focusing on federal climate policy. Towards the end of those three years, he began to feel more strongly that “revitalizing American manufacturing is critical to both economic growth and climate action. We can no longer think of industrial development and environmental protection as contradictory,” he said.Therefore, when he was appointed Energy Innovation Impact Researcher exist Federation of American Scientistshe was “excited by the opportunity to work on a policy issue that can have tangible everyday benefits for people, while also enabling us to address climate change.” More specifically, Jack’s current work is Day one project, it develops innovative ideas in science and technology policy and tries to translate them into action. For this project, Jack focuses on research and development of policy tools that promote clean energy manufacturing in the United States and strengthen domestic supply chains.
“My goal is to support the Biden-Harris administration’s work to strengthen the critical clean energy supply chain — from solar panels to batteries and more — that will dominate our decarbonized future,” Jack said. “I focus on policies that will increase the U.S. manufacturing base for emerging energy technologies that will lead to high-quality jobs, energy security, and climate action.”
Jake believes the MPA-ESP program has helped prepare him for the role, where he is working to bridge the gap between science and policy action. The MPA-ESP program enables Jake to develop and enhance many of the tools he uses in his day-to-day work, including the ability to synthesize scientific ideas, write policy recommendations and memoranda, and translate policy language. Jack also said the program “enhanced my technical understanding of the clean energy industry, which is clearly a key component of clean energy manufacturing jobs in the United States.”
For current and future MPA-ESP students interested in following a similar path, Jake advises them to remember that windows of opportunity open in surprising ways, and often at unexpected times. He recommends doing the work you believe in, being patient, and being prepared to seize the opportunity when it presents itself.
If you are interested in learning more about the MPA-ESP program, please contact Assistant Director Pearl Gray (pfg2108@columbia.edu) with any questions or to schedule a campus tour.
