Alex Karsner P ’20 ’22 ’25, founder and chairman of Manifest
Energy and senior executive at Google X and the Emerson Collective, spoke to
sixth graders about his career in wind energy and the past, present, and future
of wind turbines for “Show What You Know” Outside-The-Box (OTB) Day. His engaging conversation
included ways that wind energy is captured and future Google X projects, such
as energy kites.
Mr. Karsner has been involved in the business of wind energy for over 30 years and has constantly been at the forefront on the innovation of wind turbines. While serving as Assistant Energy Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy under George W. Bush presidency, he highlighted the importance of wind turbines,which lead to Bush's introduction of the 20% wind energy initiative by 2030 and the Green Grid.
He remarked the complexity of dealing with natural resources with minimal impact, "Every source has an impact with an upside and downside." He also shared multiple charts including one that showed which forty states generate wind energy and the current progress on emissions control.
With multiple giveaways of Invenergy renewable energy science kits, the girls participated in conversation about ways to solve common wind turbines problems and suggested different perspectives to Mr. Karsner.
It was a captivating day for the sixth graders as their classroom lesson came alive.
Mr. Karsner with daughter, Jenny Karsner '22, after presenting to the sixth grade.
