Marilyn A. Brown

About

Professor Marilyn A. Brown is affiliated with the Climate and Energy Policy Laboratory (CEPL) at Georgia Tech's Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School of Public Policy. Her work supports the educational and research missions of the School of Public Policy, particularly through the Master of Sustainable Energy and Environmental Management (MSEEM) degree and its associated Certificate program. Professor Brown's research focuses on local, national, and global energy transitions, carbon drawdown opportunities in Georgia and beyond, smart grids, cities, and the intersection of data sciences, behavioral research, and public policy. She also investigates clean energy financing and market-based policies, distributed energy resources such as energy efficiency, electric vehicles, and rooftop solar, with energy equity serving as a unifying concept throughout her work. Her approach to policy analysis is multidisciplinary, quantitatively rigorous, and grounded in strong conceptual frameworks, employing econometric models and a unique ensemble of modeling tools including the National Energy Modeling System (NEMS), Input-Output approaches, Monte Carlo methods, and cost-benefit calculators like GT-DSM and GT-Solar. These models are used to forecast the adoption speed and market penetration of new and improved energy technologies and to evaluate the effectiveness of alternative policies in accelerating clean energy adoption. Professor Brown's research agenda is also underpinned by an interest in…

Research topics

• Political Science
• Business
• Economics
• Engineering
• Natural resource economics
• Public economics
• Geography
• Finance
• Demographic economics
• Economic growth

Selected publications

• High energy burden and low-income energy affordability: conclusions from a literature review

  Progress in Energy · 2020 · 208 citations

  1st authorCorresponding

  In an era of U.S. energy abundance, the persistently high energy bills paid by low-income households is troubling. After decades of weatherization and bill-payment programs, low-income households still spend a higher percent of their income on electricity and gas bills than any other income group. Their energy burden is not declining, and it remains persistently high in particular geographies such as the South, rural America, and minority communities. As public agencies and utilities attempt to…

  DOI

• The persistence of high energy burdens: A bibliometric analysis of vulnerability, poverty, and exclusion in the United States

  Energy Research & Social Science · 2020 · 81 citations

  1st authorCorresponding

  Using bibliometric methods, we examine the persistently high energy bills borne by low-income households in the U.S. This is a mystifying problem in today's age of abundant and low-priced electricity and fossil fuels. After decades of energy-efficiency programs and targeted policies, the average low-income household still spends a disproportionately large percentage of its income on energy bills. Issues of equity, race and justice are increasingly linked to the problem of persistent energy burde…

  DOI

• Low-Income Energy Affordability: Conclusions From A Literature Review

  2020 · 51 citations

  1st authorCorresponding

  This paper examines the persistent problem of high energy burdens among low-income households, based on a review of more than 180 publications that pointed to several promising opportunities to address energy affordability including inclusive solar programs, leveraged health care benefits, and behavioral economics. using an equity and affordability lens. Even after decades of weatherization and bill-payment programs, low-income households, on average, continue to spend a higher share of their in…

  DOI

• Does electric mobility display racial or income disparities? Quantifying inequality in the distribution of electric vehicle adoption and charging infrastructure in the United States

  Applied Energy · 2024 · 19 citations

  Based on high-resolution spatial and temporal analysis, we quantify and evaluate the equality of plug-in electric vehicle adoption and public charging infrastructure deployment in the United States, examining current and historical trends, as well as racial and income-based disparities. Our results show that the current and historical distribution of conventional vehicle ownership and gas stations shows much more equality, in contrast to electric vehicles and charging infrastructure. With regard…

  PublisherDOI

• Translating a Global Emission-Reduction Framework for Subnational Climate Action: A Case Study from the State of Georgia

  Environmental Management · 2021 · 16 citations

  1st authorCorresponding

  Subnational entities are recognizing the need to systematically examine options for reducing their carbon footprints. However, few robust and comprehensive analyses are available that lay out how US states and regions can most effectively contribute. This paper describes an approach developed for Georgia-a state in the southeastern United States called "Drawdown Georgia", our research involves (1) understanding Georgia's baseline carbon footprint and trends, (2) identifying the universe of Georg…

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Recent grants

• The Geographic Diffusion of Residential Energy Conservation Measures in an Urban Area

  NSF · $60k · 1981–1985

Frequent coauthors

• Benjamin K. Sovacool

  54 shared

• Colin G. Drury

  Yuan Ze University

  49 shared

• Margaret Cowell

  Virginia Tech

  49 shared

• Maryann P. Feldman

  Arizona State University

  49 shared

• Susan Christopherson

  49 shared

• Jennifer Clark

  University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

  49 shared

• John R. Bryson

  49 shared

• Jonathan Koomey

  22 shared

Labs

• Marilyn A. Brown LabPI

Awards & honors

• 2020, Elected Member, National Academy of Engineering
• 2020, Elected Member, National Academy of Sciences
• 2017, Regents Professor
• 2016, Alliance to Save Energy "Star of Energy Efficiency"

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