A Critical Examination of Ethical Concerns in Electric Mobility: A Segment of Putting EVs to Work for Campus and Commuters

Presenter

Fay Anne Paicos

Campus

UMass Amherst

Sponsor

Dwayne Breger, Department of Environmental Conservation, UMass Amherst

Schedule

Session 2, 11:30 AM - 12:15 PM [Schedule by Time][Poster Grid for Time/Location]

Location

Poster Board A54, Campus Center Auditorium, Row 3 (A41-A60) [Poster Location Map]

Abstract

To combat climate change, the University of Massachusetts Amherst aims to achieve a carbon-zero campus by 2035 largely through the electrification of campus heating and use of geothermal exchange heat pumps.  Energy storage will be a critical part of this strategy to minimize peak electricity demands and costs for the campus. In collaboration with UMass Clean Energy Extension, a multifaceted research project Putting EVs to Work for Campus and Commuters, looks to model how electric vehicles on campus in the 2030-2040 timeframe can provide decentralized battery storage for electricity using vehicle-to-grid technology (V2G).

This segment of the Putting EVs to Work for Campus and Commuters project critically examines the human and environmental impacts of electric vehicles. Using a meta-analysis, this project will investigate: 1) human and environmental exploitation through a life-cycle assessment of electric vehicles and policies currently regulating each stage of the process, 2) the extent to which low-income and disadvantaged communities lack access to electric vehicles and policies addressing such inequities, and 3) how the Putting EVs to Work for Campus and Commuters project might be developed to mitigate these environmental and equity impacts. This research is founded on the recognition that the University must understand and act against unethical practices under its values as a public education institution. While the University is a leader down the road of sustainability, UMass must bend the road towards justice and not only mitigate but repair the environmental and economic inequities that our actions have on our local and global communities.

Keywords

Energy, Exploitation, Justice, Electric Vehicles, Sustainability

Research Area

Energy & Fuels

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