Sustainable
Transitions Lab
Principal Investigator
Erin Mayfield, PhD
Hodgson Family Assistant Professor of Engineering
mayfield@dartmouth.edu | Office: Irving 352
Dr. Erin Mayfield is the Hodgson Family Assistant Professor at Dartmouth College in the Thayer School of Engineering. Her research is in the areas of sustainable systems engineering and public policy. Dr. Mayfield focuses on three interacting research themes - multiobjective modeling, intergenerational & social equity, and climate mitigation & adaptation planning. The aim of her research is to develop computational decision support tools to address real-world problems and facilitate multi-stakeholder decision-making processes. Mayfield has participated in several large-scale collaborations on infrastructure transitions, including the Net-Zero America Project, the REPEAT Project, and the Fifth National Climate Assessment. Her research is regularly covered in national and local media such as the New York Times, The Atlantic, and National Public Radio. Mayfield has received several awards for her research such as the Rob Socolow Best Paper Award, American Chemical Society Editor's Choice Award, and the Herbert L. Toor Doctoral Research Award. During the Biden-Harris administration, Dr. Mayfield served as a strategic advisor in the Office of Policy at the U.S. Department of Energy and the Assistant Director for Net-Zero Pathways in the White House. Prior to academia, Mayfield was a practitioner working with and in vulnerable communities on hazardous waste remediation, environmental litigation, and infrastructure planning. She has also held positions at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Congress, Princeton University, and Environmental Law Institute. She received her doctoral degree in engineering and public policy from Carnegie Mellon University, masters in environmental engineering from Johns Hopkins University, and bachelors in environmental science from Rutgers University.
Postdoctoral Scholars
Shuchen Cong, PhD
Irving Institute Postdoctoral Scholar
shuchen.cong@dartmouth.edu | Irving 252
Dr. Shuchen Cong researches system-level impacts of residential and commercial energy behaviors, bridging micro-level decision-making with macro-level planning to inform energy system design and policy. At Dartmouth, she develops tools and frameworks that integrate household- and firm-level energy use patterns into broader models of grid resilience, reliability, and decarbonization. Before joining Dartmouth, Shuchen was a Policy Researcher at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, where she led and supported a range of applied research initiatives on distributed energy systems, cybersecurity, building performance standards, and housing affordability. Shuchen holds a Ph.D. and M.S. in Engineering and Public Policy (EPP), and a B.S. in Materials Science and Engineering and EPP, from Carnegie Mellon University. Her doctoral research introduced a human-centered framework for quantifying energy-limiting behaviors. During her PhD, she co-founded Peoples Energy Analytics, a Carnegie Mellon spinout that developed predictive analytics to help utilities reduce customer default risk while supporting equitable access to energy.
Lynée Turek-Hankins, PhD
Neukom Institute Postdoctoral Scholar
Outgoing Assistant Professor at Utah State University
lynee.turek@dartmouth.edu | Irving 254
Dr. Lynée Turek-Hankins researches climate change adaptation and mitigation responses with an emphasis on the interconnected housing and energy sectors. Lynée combines data science and co-production to identify multisector drivers of residential climate risks, like extreme heat exposure, and to assess response opportunities for the housing–energy nexus. Her data-driven research approach is decision relevant and rooted in collaborations with diverse knowledge holders and practitioners, such as state and municipal governments, small businesses, and community groups. She also studies how to improve decision support and decision-making processes. Lynée received her Ph.D. in Environmental Science and Policy from the University of Miami as a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellow and her B.S.E. in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University. She served as a chapter author for the Fifth and Sixth U.S. National Climate Assessments and was an adjunct researcher with the RAND Corporation.
Doctoral Students
Yuhan Dai
First-Year Doctoral Student
yuhan.dai.th@dartmouth.edu | Irving 251 | Website
Yuhan is interested in electricity markets, energy system modeling, and emerging large loads, particularly how these developments may shape power system reliability, resource adequacy, and equity. She is also interested in how engineering and economic modeling can inform market design, policymaking, system planning, and broader social welfare. Before joining Dartmouth, Yuhan worked as a Senior Market Analyst at Constellation Energy, where she primarily worked on ISO New England, including load forecasting, market analysis, and policy tracking. She holds an M.S. from Johns Hopkins University and a B.S. from Marquette University.
Alexis Hudes
Third-Year Doctoral Student
alexis.hudes.th@dartmouth.edu | Irving 251 | Website
Alexis works at the intersection of energy systems modeling, uncertainty characterization, and decision support, with the goal of advancing an environmentally, economically, and socially sustainable world. Their research spans residential energy systems and data center siting decisions. Before Thayer, Alexis taught high school physics at the Park School of Baltimore and holds a B.A. in physics from Bates College. Outside the lab, they serve on the Hartford Energy Commission and lead Up & Out, a climbing group for the LGBTQ+ community in the Upper Valley.
Michael May
Fifth-Year Doctoral Student | NSF GRFP
michael.j.may.th@dartmouth.edu | Irving 251
Mike researches the role of engineered carbon removal technologies - such as CCS, DAC, and BECCS - in meeting U.S. climate targets. His research combines spatially explicit techno-economic modeling with national energy system models to assess the feasibility and infrastructure requirements of large-scale carbon removal. He analyzes how climate and market variability influences DAC performance and costs across the U.S., develops high-resolution supply curves for CO₂ pipeline networks, and models how spatial heterogeneity in carbon removal affects power sector decarbonization.
Robin (Xinyue) Zou
Fifth-Year Doctoral Student
xinyue.zou.th@dartmouth.edu | Irving 251
Robin’s research interests lie in energy system modeling and optimization, particularly in developing sustainable and practical climate solutions for the industrial sector. Her current work focuses on the iron and steel sector, analyzing environmental and economic performance to identify viable decarbonization pathways. Prior to joining the lab, Robin earned her B.S. from Smith College in 2022, where she studied engineering and mathematics. Outside of research, Robin enjoys traveling, hiking, and binge-watching TV shows with family and friends.
Undergraduate Students
Kya Bruckner
Engineering + German '28 | Presidential Scholar
Anahita Chowdhary
Economics '28 | SURFD
Katelyn Sentnor
Engineering '28 | Presidential Scholar
Emma Brulotte
Economics '28 | URAD
Luana Neves
Engineering + Environmental Studies '28
Daniel Smith
Engineering '28
Emma Carpenter
Engineering + Earth Science '27 | URAD
Ryan Schatzow
Engineering + Economics '28 | Presidential Scholar
Wai Yan Win Aung
Engineering '28 | URAD
Alumni
Postdoctoral Scholars
Maarten Brinkerink, Ph.D.
Dr. Brinkerink is a native of the Netherlands, and his expertise is in energy systems modelling. With a PhD in Energy Engineering from University College Cork, Maarten’s current research focuses on the application of computational models to assess different decarbonization pathways for the global energy system.
Yohan Min, Ph.D.
Dr. Min's research focuses on energy justice associated with vulnerable communities and energy infrastructures. In particular, he is examining spatio-temporal adoption patterns of distributed energy resources such as rooftop solar and electric vehicles to identify spatial and recognition justice and spillover effects of technology adoption. Furthermore, he is studying adoption strategies for vulnerable communities to increase clean energy access through data analysis and modeling on a statistical basis. The purpose of his research is to promote social equity in the energy transition.
Graduate Students: Jacob Jaskwhich (MEng/BE ’23 and AB '22), Filip Nowicki (MEM ’23), Jhujhar Sarna (MEng ’23, FYREE Scholar), Gordon Sherman (MEng ’24)
Undergraduate Students: Keiran Ahern (Dartmouth ENG ’21, Irving Institute Grantee), Allister Azagidi (Dartmouth ENG ’22, Irving Institute Grantee), Anna Block (Dartmouth QSS ’26, WISP Scholar), Amaya Bonn (Dartmouth ENG ’26, Senior Thesis), Daysia Charles (Dartmouth ENG ’25, Doris Duke Conservation Scholar, URAD Scholar), John DeForest (Dartmouth ENG + Math ’25, URAD Scholar), Helen Deng (Dartmouth ENG + GEO ’26, URAD, Irving Institute), PJ Griffiths (Dartmouth ’26, FYREE Scholar, URAD Scholar, Irving Institute Grantee, Senior Thesis), Rahul Gupta (Dartmouth CS + Math ’26, FYREE Scholar), Clare Ip (Dartmouth ENVS + QSS ’27, URAD Scholar), Anoush Khan (Dartmouth ENG ’22, Irving Institute Grantee), Avery Moorhead (Dartmouth ENG ’25, Luce Scholar, Presidential Scholar), Alan Ngouenet (Dartmouth ENG ’25, URAD Scholar), Julian Perez-Doval (Dartmouth ENG ’23, Senior Thesis), Nate Roe (Dartmouth ENG ’23, URAD Scholar, Senior Thesis), Karson Smith (Dartmouth ENG ’25, WISP Scholar, URAD Scholar), Claire Wayner (Princeton ENG ’22), Albert Zhang (Dartmouth ENG ’25, FYREE Scholar)
Feline Research Assistants
Alma Mayfield
