Biography
New York, NY
Energy Analyst, PANYNJ
Brian Chang is an Energy Analyst at the Port Authority of NY/NJ Office of Environmental and Energy Programs. His job includes development and execution of near-term projects and long-term strategy and planning that advance sustainability goals and focus on energy efficiency and renewable energy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, offset traditional fossil-fuel needs, and provides energy source diversification. A mandate is to promote and protect commerce while implementing policies that target an 80% reduction of emissions by 2050. He was also a consultant with the NYC Economic Development Corp., Energy Policy Group evaluating proposals and opportunities for expanding renewable energy.
He has a Bachelor of Arts Degree from The University of Texas at Austin, with a major in Government and a minor in Economics. Upon graduation he lived in Beijing, China where he served as managing editor for Time Out Beijing from 2004-2005 and for the U.S. Department of State from 2005-2007 as a program analyst for the Transportation Security Administration. He is proficient in Mandarin and has had professional experience in India, Thailand, Singapore, Taiwan and the U.K. In 2009, he received a Master’s Degree from the Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs where his course work included Energy Project Finance, Urban Energy Systems, Electricity Markets and Environmental Law.
He is interested in becoming a Climate Change Professional Fellow to gain a cross-cultural perspective so that he may be better informed about domestic and regional climate change adaptation and mitigation policy. He would like to explore best practices for developing new greenhouse gas reduction and adaptation strategies; methods for partnering with other organizations to leverage program reach and minimize deployment costs; ways of incorporating externalities related to climate change without inhibiting economic development. In particular, he is interested in exploring avenues in which participating country strategies could achieve broader implementation in domestic urban environments such as those served by the PA and other metropolitan agencies.
He is committed to understanding issues facing developing countries as they identify strategies to balance economic development and climate polices. He witnessed the value of interacting with these professionals while hosting visiting International Climate Fellows at the Port Authority.