Europe: Global Perspectives on Energy and the Environment

Join us for a remarkable instructive experience as we learn about the current transformation that is occurring in the world’s electrical energy system and the future of sustainable energy. We will visit three countries in Europe: Italy, Spain, and Denmark. In northern Italy we will tour a waste incineration plant that generates electricity, a solar PV cell fabrication facility, the largest pumped hydro-storage facility in the world and other companies focused on energy production and storage. We will see up close the glacial retreat that has occurred due to climate change. We will also experience remarkable Italian cultural sites in the north of the country. In Spain, we will visit two large-scale concentrating solar plants that generate electrical power, and we will spend time in the culturally rich cities of Toledo and Seville.

In Denmark, where more than 60% of the country’s electrical demand is generated from wind, we will see wind turbine farms, climb the nacelle of a wind turbine, and tour turbine fabrication plants, including where the largest wind turbine blades in the world are designed and prototyped. In each country, we will hear from local experts highlighting how renewable energy fits into the country’s energy portfolio. We will also be exposed to the culturally rich heritage and unique geography of each country, visiting sites of interest and sampling traditional local cuisine.

A seminar series during the 2nd block of winter semester will expose students to world energy reserves, environmental considerations related to energy production and use, the importance of government energy policy, and total economic and thermodynamic analysis of energy-producing methods. Prior to departing for Europe, we will also visit several local energy-related sites, including coal, geothermal, hydroelectric, and natural gas-powered plants. Over the course of the program, we will visit more than 20 different energy-related sites. The course will provide three credits of engineering technical elective toward graduation. The course is open to all majors, but preference will be given to engineering students who have taken an introductory thermodynamics course. Students can take this class in the winter semester 2026 if they haven’t already done so.

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