(Start date: January 2026)

Dr. Jacqueline A. Dowling (Jackie) models energy systems to guide the global transition to clean energy. She is currently a Stanford Energy Postdoctoral Fellow and will join the University of Iowa as a tenure-track assistant professor in Civil and Environmental Engineering in January 2026. Her research program analyzes natural resource constraints, guides technology innovation, and targets decarbonization solutions. Jackie uses weather data in macro-energy system models to guide reliable energy infrastructure plans and technology innovation. Recent focus areas include long-duration energy storage and clean heat. Her dissertation combined techno-economic analysis and materials chemistry to assess the value of different energy storage and conversion technologies in wind- and solar-based electricity systems. She earned a PhD in Chemistry with a minor in Environmental Science and Engineering from Caltech. Jackie’s research on the role of long-duration energy storage has been cited by major utilities and in international, national, and state-level decarbonization plans.

Active Scientific and Professional Society Memberships: 

• American Geophysical Union (AGU)
• Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS)
• United States Association for Energy Economics (USAEE)

Special Fields of Knowledge:

• Macro-energy system modeling
• Techno-economic analysis
• Capacity expansion planning

Research Areas:

• Analyze natural resource constraints such as wind and solar droughts and subsurface storage.
• Guide technology innovation for cost-effective energy storage, electricity generation, and clean heat.
• Target decarbonization solutions including energy infrastructure flexibility, retrofits, and resilience.

Publications