At the most recent State of the University address, President Jay Hartzell boldly claimed that The University of Texas at Austin is “THE Energy University.”
It’s no secret that UT has been a leader in energy research and education for years. But Hartzell’s announcement touted a vision and reality far beyond the traditional picture of Texas energy.
UT, and Texas as a whole, is not just a place that specializes in one aspect of the energy industry — be it traditional oil and gas, or alternatives like hydrogen, wind, geothermal, carbon storage or any of the other aspects of producing low- carbon energy.
It specializes in them all.
And it’s not just engineering and geosciences. From law, policy, business and economics — the schools and institutes that make up UT have the collective brain power and industry partnerships that make it a power player.
“I don’t think anybody can match the breadth of our expertise. I don’t think anybody can match what we have to offer in this place,” said Hartzell as he announced that 2025 would be the “Year of Energy” at UT. “I also think we have a pragmatic approach to the problem. We realize that it’s going to take multiple sources of energy to address the world’s needs.”
Nowhere is that drive to tackle the challenge of providing sustainable, affordable, clean energy more active than at the Jackson School of Geosciences.
“We do it all,” said Dean Claudia Mora. “From our historic roots in the exploration and production of hydrocarbons to leading the way into new energy sources and technologies like geological production and storage of hydrogen, geothermal, and carbon capture and storage. The challenge of sustainably providing energy, mineral and water resources is fundamental to being a geoscientist.”
Long a leader in energy-related geosciences, the Jackson School is bucking national trends, with growing student enrollment when other geoscience and earth science programs are shrinking.
“I don’t think anybody can match the breadth of our expertise.”
Jay Hartzell, UT President
Mora said the school’s ability to lead in all the issues that surround modern energy and the energy transition is playing a large part in the school’s growth. That comes from not just embracing all forms of producing energy, but also the associated economic and environmental issues, including mitigating climate change impacts.
The Jackson School has top-rated programs in geology, geophysics, seismology, paleontology and geochemistry. Beyond the traditional foundational disciplines, Mora points to the school’s multidisciplinary Energy and Earth Resources master’s program, and undergraduate majors in environmental science and climate system science as examples of how the school is preparing students for all aspects of modern energy challenges.
And just this fall, the Jackson School officially joined the UT Kay Bailey Hutchison Energy Center, linking it to the university’s premiere forum for energy issues. The center brings together expertise from UT’s school of business, law, policy, engineering and now the geosciences.
“It’s the perfect environment for our students to gain a holistic understanding of the energy industry and to learn, connect, and grow into the energy leaders of the future,” Mora said. “When you look at energy and all the issues that surround it, the business and legal parts are not independent of the science and technology parts. Our students need to understand how business works. Even a great scientific idea can fail the business test, and the other way around.”
UT geologists and geoscientists have been using their knowledge of the subsurface for oil and gas development for more than a century, with much of that research happening at the Bureau of Economic Geology, which was founded in 1909 as the State Geological Survey — a function it still serves today. Its director serves as the State Geologist of Texas, a role that includes the important duty of providing information about geological resources to the public and the Texas Legislature.
In recent years, the Jackson School has used the expertise at the bureau to build large and active programs in hydrogen and geothermal. And for decades now, its scientists have been leading the way in realizing the promise of carbon capture and storage with work at the Gulf Coast Carbon Center.
The school also expanded its critical mineral expertise with new faculty hires who conduct research on both the exploration and recovery of critical materials from rocks and water. This is an area that Mora said is key for the ongoing energy transition, as the drive to rapidly expand wind, solar and battery technologies will demand a massive increase in critical mineral production.
“Natural resources are necessary for every energy source, and geoscientists are needed to find and sustainably develop those resources,” she said. “There are no easy solutions to the challenges ahead when it comes to providing affordable, sustainable energy to the world while safeguarding the climate and environment. The Jackson School is proud to be part of UT’s efforts to educate and inspire students to meet the energy challenges of the future. There is no place working harder, across so many energy domains, and no institution better positioned to find these solutions than UT Austin.”