Daniel Sperling
Professional Experience
- 2007-present Board member of California Air Resources Board
- 2006-present Associate Director and Acting Director, Energy Efficiency Center, UC Davis
- 2004-2007 Associate Director, Road Ecology Center, UC Davis
- 1991-present Director, Institute of Transportation Studies, UC Davis
- 1991-present Professor, University of California, Davis.
- Joint appointment in Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering and Department of Environmental Science & Policy. Teaching responsibilities include transportation planning and policy analysis, energy and environmental planning, clean car technology, and transportation in developing areas.
- 1987-1991 Associate Professor, UC Davis
- 1982-1987 Assistant Professor, UC Davis
- 1976-1977 Environmental Planner, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
- 1973-1975 Planning Advisor, Ministry of Urban Affairs, Republic of Honduras (Peace Corps)
Professional Affiliations and Appointments
Editorial Boards of Journals:
- Associate Editor, Transportation Research D (Transport and Environment), 1996+
- North American Editor, Transport Policy Journal, 1993-96
- Board Member
- Frontiers of Energy and Power Engineering in China (Springer), 2008+
- Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change (Kluwer), 2003+
- Advances in Environmental Research, 2000+
- Transport Policy, 1993+
- Energy Policy, 1992-94
- Utilities Policies Journal, 1990-93
- Transportation Research A, 1988-93
Officer of Standing Committees/Boards:
- Chair, Council on Future of Mobility, Davos World Economic Forum
- Board member, California Air Resources Board, 2007+
- Board member, Innovation Center for Energy and Transportation (Beijing) (non-profit NGO), 2007+
- Chair, Energy Committee of Research Technology and Advisory Panel for Secretary of Business, Transportation, and Housing, 2006+
- Chair and Co-Chair, Transportation and Sustainability Committee, Transportation Research Board, 2005-08
- Secretary and Board member, Ride Now (non-profit), 2003-07
- Vice Chair, World Conference on Transportation Research, 2002-07
- Chair, Steering Committee, University of California Energy Institute, 1999-2006
- Chair, Alternative Transportation Fuels Committee, Transportation Research Board, 1989-1996
- Vice Chair, Energy and Environmental Aspects of Transportation Committee,
- American Society of Civil Engineers, 1988-90
Special (ad hoc) Committee Memberships
- NRC/NAS/TRB Committee on Transportation and Climate, 2008-2010
- NRC/NAS Sub-Committee on Energy Efficiency, 2007-08
- American Physical Society Energy Efficiency Committee, 2007-08
- Northeast States Advisory Committee on Low Carbon Fuel Standard, 2007-08
- Western Governors’ Association, Transportation Fuels Advisory Committee, 2007
- Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), lead author Chapter 5, "Transport and its Infrastructure," 4th Assessment Report on Mitigation of Climate Change, 2007 (IPCC awarded Nobel Peace Prize, 2008)
- California Climate Change Project Advisory Council, Stanford University, 2006
- National Petroleum Council, Global Oil and Gas Study, Energy Efficiency Sub-committee, 2006-07
- BP and Tsinghua University, Review of “Sustainable Development” Research Program at Tsinghua, 2005
- GoCalifornia Research and Technology Expert Review Panel (reports to California Secretary of Business, Transportation, and Housing), 2005-06
- NRC/NAE Committee, “Grainger Challenger Prize,” 2004
- Board of Governors of University of Tennessee-Battelle, Oak Ridge National Laboratory Transportation Science and Technology Program, Review Committee, 2004
- NRC/TRB/NAS Committee, “Viability of Fuel Taxes for Highway Finance,” 2003-2005
- NRC/TRB/NAS Committee, “Sustainable Transportation,” 2003-04
- NRC/NAE Committee, “Future Hydrogen Production and Use,” 2002-04
- University of Chicago, Argonne National Lab, Review Committee for Energy, 2000-03, 2005
- NRC/NAS Committee (joint with China Academy of Sciences), “Personal Transport in China,” 2001-02
- Bus Rapid Transit Design Competition, Technical Advisory Committee (FTA and others), 2001
- NRC/TRB/NAS Committee, “Surface Transportation Environmental Cooperative Research Advisory Board,” 1999-02
- NRC/NAS Committee, “Biofuels R&D Strategy,” 1998-1999
- NRC/NAS Committee, “Enabling Transportation Research,” 1998
- World Energy Council, Work Group Member for Transport Study, 1997-98
- University of Tennessee (Knoxville), Energy and Resource Center, Advisory Board, 1996-1997
- NRC/NAS Panel, “Transport Options for Megacities,” 1996
- Rand, Project Advisory Committee, “California’s Ozone Reduction Strategy”, 1995-96
- NRC/NAS Committee, "Transportation and a Sustainable Environment," 1994-97
- Electric Vehicle and the American Community: A National Planning and Design Competition, Technical Advisory Committee, 1992-93
- American Academy of Arts and Sciences Committee, "Future of the Auto," 1992-93
- U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Security Working Group, 1992
- NRC/NAS Committee, "Liquid Fuel Options," 1989-90
Standing Committee Memberships
- Transportation Research Board (NRC):
- Transportation and Sustainability, 2006+
- Transportation Energy, 1985(?)+
- Alternative Transportation Energy, 1989+
- New Transportation Systems and Technology, TRB, 2004-06
- Task Force on Transportation and Sustainability, TRB, 1999-2005
- iCET, Board of Directors, Beijing, China, 2007+
- Electric Vehicle Association of the Americas, International Sub-committee, 2002-03
- Health Effects Institute, Committee on Emerging Technologies, 2000-06
- San Diego Environmental Foundation, Board of Directors, 1999-03
- EV Global Motors Company (Lee Iacocca, CEO), Board of Directors, 1997-99 (Board of Advisors, 99-01)
- University of California Energy Institute, Steering Committee, 1998-2006 (chair, 1999-2006)
- National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Alternative Fuels Division, Advisory Committee, 1993-96
- Calstart, Policy Advisory Board, 1994-1996
- Houston Advanced Research Center, Alternative Fuels Advisory Board, 1992-94
- Program for Advanced Transportation and Highways (PATH), Executive Committee, 1998+
- University of Sydney, Key Center of Transportation, Advisory Board, 1996-1998
- Clean Air Vehicle Test and Evaluation Center (CAVTC), Hayward, California, Advisory Board, 1991-96
- University of California and California Department of Transportation, Transportation Coordinating Council, 1990-92
- University of California Transportation Center, Executive Committee, 1988-2006
- Encyclopedia of Science and Technology, McGraw-Hill, Board of Consulting Editors (responsible for Transportation Engineering), 1997-2001
Conference Organizer and/or Director
In addition to organizing and/or supervising several one-day workshops per year since 1996 on specialized topics, I served as chair or co-chair of the following major conferences:
- Asilomar Transportation and Energy Biennial Conferences (Pacific Grove, CA), 1988-2009. Themes were:
- Climate Policy, Hydrogen Transition, Managing Transitions in the Transport Sector, Transportation Energy and Environmental Policies, Sustainable Transportation and Energy, Alternative Fuels, and Climate Change Strategies. Sponsored by US DOE, US FTA, US DOT, US EPA, Natural Resources Canada, California DOT, California EPA, Energy Foundation, William & Flora Hewlett Foundation, UC Transportation Center, Honda, Toyota, Chevron, ExxonMobil, and others. (Co-directors included Barry McNutt, David Greene, and Tom Turrentine.)
- Council of University Transportation Centers, Summer Meeting, UC Davis, June 4-5, 1998 (with G. Griffin)
- Transportation in Developing Countries, UC Berkeley, April 17-18, 1998 (with Robert Cervero).
- Toward a Fuel Cell Future: Planning for the Commercialization of Fuel Cells, Sacramento, California, Sept. 2-3, 1993. Co-hosted by Sacramento Municipal Utility District (with Marshall Miller)
- IVHS Policy: A Workshop on Institutional and Environmental Issues, Asilomar Conference Center, April 26-28, 1992. Co-hosted by George Mason University (with Jonathan Gifford and Thomas Horan)