2025 Shultz Energy Fellowships: Western Interstate Energy Board

Regional-, state-, and city-level efforts are essential in our fight against climate change, especially in the field of energy. Stanford University is committed to helping by integrating its students into energy and climate ecosystems in the West through the Shultz Energy Fellowships program, an energy-related summer fellowship program for undergraduate and graduate students. You will be one of two Stanford students placed at WIEB in Denver, Colorado.

Named in honor of former Secretary of State George P. Shultz, one of the most widely admired American public servants of the past half-century, the program offers a suite of paid, energy-related public service fellowships for Stanford students in California, Colorado, Hawaii, Nevada, and Utah during the summer. 

The fellowships run from Monday, June 23, 2025 to Friday, August 29, 2025.

Western Interstate Energy Board

The Western Interstate Energy Board (WIEB) is an organization of eleven western states and two western Canadian provinces. The governor of each state and the premier of each province appoint a member to the Board. WIEB’s purpose is to “provide the instruments and framework for cooperative state efforts to enhance the economy of the West and contribute to the well-being of the region’s people.” WIEB works to achieve this through cooperative efforts among member states, provinces, and the federal government. For these efforts, WIEB staff conduct research in comprehensive areas around the Western Interconnection, including grid reliability, resource adequacy, transmission expansion, energy imbalance markets, and nuclear waste transportation. 

Although WIEB has a primarily remote workforce with employees spread throughout the West, this fellowship will be a hybrid opportunity. The students will be expected to spend the summer near WIEB’s headquarters in downtown Denver, Colorado to engage with local staff and participate in staff retreats. 

For more information on WIEB, please visit WIEB’s homepage.

WIEB Mentors

Laura Rennick, WIEB's Executive Director and key program managers will provide overarching leadership to the students.

Gia Anguiano will provide daily oversight the students, providing strategic direction, technical guidance, and coordination with partners. Students will also have access to external subject matter experts in power system modeling and energy policy. Regular check-ins with WIEB mentors will help ensure the project's successful progression.

2025 Fellowship Project – Harmonizing Resource Adequacy Approaches in the Western Interconnection

Overview

The Western Interconnection faces a complex and evolving energy future, characterized by diverse state and provincial policies, rapid technological change, and evolving resource adequacy challenges. This fellowship focuses on developing a comprehensive understanding of existing resource adequacy frameworks in the West and their implications for regional coordination. The project will analyze how different RA approaches, particularly California's Slice-of-Day framework and the Western Resource Adequacy Program (WRAP), can be harmonized to support robust regional planning.

Working closely with partners and building on their existing analysis, this project will create a common language and understanding for comparing and translating different RA frameworks. The analysis will help identify areas of alignment and potential gaps between programs, supporting more effective regional coordination and resource planning.

Project Goals

1. Framework Analysis and Comparison: Develop a comparison of existing RA frameworks, focusing on California's Slice-of-Day and WRAP methodologies.
2. Impact Assessment: Evaluate how differences between RA frameworks might affect regional resource planning and reliability.
3. Coordination Enhancement: Identify opportunities for alignment between RA programs and propose practical steps for implementation.
4. Professional Development: Build valuable professional skills and connections within the energy policy and research sector while contributing to regional coordination efforts.

Project Tasks

1. Research and Documentation Review 
   • Compile and review documentation on California RA (Slice-of-Day) and WRAP methodologies
   • Interview key stakeholders from CAISO, WRAP, and other relevant organizations
   • Document core assumptions and methodological approaches of each framework
2. Comparative Analysis 
   • Develop detailed comparison matrices of RA frameworks
   • Identify key areas of methodological difference(s)
   • Analyze potential implications of differing approaches
   • Map relationships between various RA metrics and requirements
3. Impact Assessment 
   • Evaluate how framework differences might affect resource planning outcomes
   • Assess potential implications for regional reliability
   • Identify areas where different approaches might lead to conflicting conclusions
   • Document specific cases where framework alignment could benefit regional planning
4. Recommendations Development 
   • Develop practical recommendations for enhancing coordination between RA programs
   • Prepare final presentation and documentation

Partnership and Coordination

This project will be conducted in close collaboration with key regional stakeholders and partners. WIEB will be working to identify and specify project partners over the winter. Regular coordination meetings will ensure alignment with existing initiatives and create opportunities for knowledge sharing throughout the project.

Conclusion

This fellowship represents an opportunity to contribute to the crucial work of harmonizing resource adequacy approaches across the Western Interconnection. By focusing on understanding and bridging differences between existing frameworks, the project will support more effective regional planning and coordination. Students will gain practical experience in energy policy analysis while helping to build stronger connections between Western states' resource adequacy programs.

The approach developed through this work will serve as a valuable tool for stakeholders throughout the West, supporting more effective communication and coordination across different resource adequacy frameworks. This work will help lay the foundation for more integrated and robust resource planning across the Western Interconnection.

Work Environment

Although WIEB has a primarily remote workforce with employees spread out throughout the West, this fellowship will be a hybrid opportunity. Students should expect to spend the summer living in the Denver area and working hybrid between WIEB’s headquarters in downtown Denver, Colorado to engage with staff, and working remotely. As the selected fellow will be part of a collaborative, two-person Stanford team, both fellows will need to coordinate schedules to fully benefit from the team dynamics.

2024 WIEB Fellows

• Owen Jung, Data Science and English, '26
• Yueer Cai, MS in Sustainable Design and Construction, '24
• Learn more about Yueer and Owen's experiences at WIEB:
  • Student blog
  • Final projects