OUR VISION AND MISSION

The Sustainable Energy and Education Research Center (SEERC) is envisioned to thrust the UT Knoxville campus into the technological forefront as a global nexus of sustainable energy research, education, and innovation. The primary mission of SEERC is to educate the next generation of world leaders in the sustainable energy arena by establishing effective, productive, and efficient partnerships with local, national, and global organizations with common interests, such as Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and the US Department of Energy (DOE), as well as concerned private corporations and foundations. The mission of the center will be achieved by activities in the broadly defined areas of education, research, facilities operation, and outreach. Specifically, SEERC has grown out of a strong, existing institutions represented by the green “sepals”. The pink and blue “petals” denote the thriving Institutes (JIAM: Joint Institute of Advanced materials; JIBS: Joint Institute of Biological Sciences; ISSE: Institute for Secure and Sustainable Environment), and Centers (BC: Baker Center for Policy; CEB: Center for Environmental Biotechnology; Bioenergy: DoE Bioenergy center) that are significantly interacting with SEERC.

The overall mission of SEERC will be accomplished by strategic investment of resources to fund, seed research and educational projects, as well as infrastructure development to further strengthen existing areas of excellence or promote new directions.