Systemic barriers and pathways of Black energy researchers in the United States: Perspectives from African American, African, and Caribbean scholars

Abstract

After the Biden Administration announced the Justice40 Initiative by promising 40 % of federal research and procurement related to climate and energy matters disbursing to disadvantaged communities, some research is emerging to evaluate this initiative. However, we find that the current debate is only limited to research inputs without considering research outputs or larger systemic barriers of disadvantaged communities. We conduct bibliometric analysis to understand research capacities of Historically Black Colleges and Communities (HBCUs) and interviews to uncover systemic barriers that Black energy researchers face. Our findings indicate the need for long-term investment and pipeline strategy of Black energy researchers at the graduate and post-graduate levels, and we conclude with several tactical policy implications.