Erik Funkhouser is a Master of Public Affairs candidate at the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at The University of Texas at Austin. Erik is a McNair Scholar from Portland, Oregon. He received B.S. degrees in Sociology and Political Science from Portland State University. Erik is an affiliated student with UT’s Graduate Portfolio in Applied Statistical Modeling and a research associate with the Energy Systems Transformation Research Group (EST). In his work with EST, Erik contributed to multiple publications on the dynamics of international technology transfer, system transformation, and innovation in the energy space. Moving forward, Erik will focus on commercialization and deployment of GHG-mitigating technologies. Erik was raised on a subsistence ranch in Idaho, where he logged thousands of hours in the rural wilderness. Over the seven years he lived in Portland, Erik logged over 1,000 hours reading and shopping at his favorite west coast institution—Powell’s Books.