Richard Seide, Director Policy and Regulation at Apex Clean Energy

The program is really unique in how the sections mesh. There is a thirst for information about renewables, carbon, and the transformation of the generation fleet. And this program fills that need. On the policy side, I got to think and learn more about various tools and incentives, and Professor Esty’s lectures do stand out. Understanding policy is going to be more and more important, and particularly in the U.S. as we move into 2020. The guest lecturers also clearly know their stuff. 

But then there are also simple things that got clarified for me. During the on-campus week, for example, there was a lecture on environmental and social governance ratings for investors from someone at State Street Advisors that gave me a much better feel for the amount of engagement by the financial sector. It gave me another appreciation for the kind of drivers that are causing coal retirements or insurance companies not to insure new coal. I wouldn't have been able to make that connection but for the program bringing in that broader picture.

On the technology side, the fact is that Yale’s bringing in a lot of things. And that's a blessing and a curse sometimes. (Laughing) Professor Oristaglio simply says, “Oh well, I have a whole semester on this, but we're gonna cover this in about 13 minutes!” Fasten your seatbelt!

Obviously I met various people that I would not have otherwise met. But beyond that, being older and being in an industry for a long time, you channel in a range of people that you will come across, and this gave me access to a much wider diversity, and forced me to think about what is it that others are doing, how it connects to what Apex is doing, and what I can contribute to Apex.

It’s a little of both. I have found that knowledge in this program comes from different directions, skill sets, and work experiences. This improves the learning process overall. I met a number of people from the DC area who are in advocacy and at trade associations, which for me was an immediately useful connection. It enabled me to gain another view of things, which I would not have otherwise had. 

When I go to an industry meeting or a seminar, whether I speak or whether I pay to be there, it is a kind of intense experience, but then it's over. Here, you get to learn about people over a long period of time, and you have impressions, and those impressions change. I think it's an old saying that the more diverse opinions, the better we all are.

The flexibility is really incredible. You know, a lot of this is self-driven, so I have to stay on task. But the fact is I can work anywhere, and I think quite honestly that it was genius to have this on-campus component because it cemented ties to the program that otherwise wouldn't have happened if it was solely online.

We also have weekly check-ins and office hours, which are much more critical now than we are doing more quantitative things. They really allow the online piece to work.

Well, you need to talk to my wife! (Laughing) Having said that, it's fine. I like the optional questions for those who want more, and the flexibility of releasing two weeks at once around Thanksgiving, but I never have had to reach out and say, you know what, I have something that I have to work on and I can’t get to it.

The variety in the early assignments, and building my policy memo was very helpful. The memo exercises forced me to distill messages and recommendations in a short form. For me, that was a lesson in both communication and editing. I only had two pages and you made that very clear. So if I was going to bring in and make the points I wanted, I had to do it in a concise way. A lot of times, in real life, you're not really held like that. Even though I write every day in my current job, it's not the same kind of analytical writing.

And in fact, Canvas [Yale’s learning management platform] allows you to go back and take a look at past weeks so that you can see the learning process. And I am shocked at how competitive I am on this and I noticed others are, too… You know that the natural response for someone like me is, do you have a next stage? So let's say you hooked me!

I didn't realize before I came that there'd be a lot of enthusiasm, not only from the cohort, but everyone I've come across at Yale. You really don't know, going in, what exactly it will be like. And so for me it is quite a bit of work, and I do as much as I can but the team has been very supportive. The raw sense of enthusiasm about climate issues and clean energy conveyed by the cohort, professors, TAs, and administrators was unexpected.

First, because there was a certain length to it. The work intensity with professional education is usually you show up and you have limited interaction but it’s very intense; it’s like drinking from the fire hydrant. So much is coming at you. I didn't know what the intensity of this would be and I don't know whether I'd been scared off had I known, but I like the balance here.

I also thought it would be a way to test and validate what I know and learn about what I don’t know. The fact that it was offered by Yale with all of its connotations for learning and knowledge differentiated the program. And it was unusual to have a program like this with the Yale name… Other programs are narrower and may not have the same rigor that you're offering. Quite honestly, I think Yale is an early mover and the program is impressive. You also get to define that frame as a member of one of the first cohorts.

I recommended the program to a number of people, including internally, and I hope they follow up.