Insatiable curiosity
Alumna Leslie Abrahams uses broad engineering perspective to pursue climate policy change
From WashU to the White House, Leslie Abrahams has held an insatiable curiosity for understanding how the world works.
“Early on, I was interested in how engineering fit into the world,” she said. “The bigger picture was important to me.”
Abrahams, who earned a bachelor’s in chemical engineering from the Engineering School at Washington University in St. Louis in 2010, currently serves as assistant director for clean energy and energy systems innovation in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), which advises the President on the effects of science and technology on domestic and international affairs.
“Working in the White House was definitely never on my bingo card,” she said. “But looking back, it just kind of naturally evolved that way.”
As an undergraduate student drawn to psychology, economics and other social sciences courses that weren’t traditional for engineering majors, she found support from “impactful mentor” Jay Turner, head of the Division of Engineering Education, vice dean for education and James McKelvey Professor of Engineering Education.
“He had a very nice way of recognizing and encouraging students’ unique interests,” she said.
It was Turner who encouraged her to think about graduate school.
“He knew I didn’t want to work in the lab or do traditional research, and that I was interested in the policy and people side of engineering,” she said. “He mentioned a PhD program at Carnegie Mellon.”
After graduating from WashU, Abrahams gained valuable experience working as a biofuel supply logistics coordinator at ExxonMobil.
“Oil and gas run the world, so I thought it would be good to see it from the inside,” she said.
What she saw on “the inside” further heightened her interest in policy work.
“I started to wonder, who comes up with the policy for these biofuels?” she said. “It made me seriously consider going into the policy side, so I started to look at what I needed to do to make that transition.”
She thought back to her conversation with Turner and ultimately decided to pursue a doctorate at Carnegie Mellon.
The program was designed for students with technical backgrounds who wanted to address policy issues focused on science and technology. It was an opportunity for Abrahams to delve further into the ways engineering interacts with other disciplines to tackle the complex problems of today’s society. She focused her doctoral thesis on climate and energy, exploring the environmental impacts of natural gas development.
“It ended up being a great fit for me,” she said. “Sometimes all it takes is one conversation to plant the seed that impacts what you do and the path you take.”
After earning a joint PhD in the departments of Engineering and Public Policy and Civil and Environmental Engineering, Abrahams worked as a policy analyst for the Science and Technology Policy Institute, a federally funded research and development center chartered by Congress. There, she provided analysis of science and technology policy issues for the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and other offices and councils within the executive branch of the U.S. government and federal agencies.
“That job was a big step forward for me in terms of understanding the policy of science issues,” she said. “Really thinking in terms of, how do we best use public funding to advance R&D?”
Her subsequent position as director of energy systems analysis at Clean Air Task Force, an environmental organization working to rapidly reduce emissions, gave Abrahams a foundation of experience that serves her well in her current role. From her office in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, part of the White House compound just next to the West Wing, she works to accelerate the energy transition and overcome challenges to global decarbonization.
“Climate change is not just an environmental issue, it is also a matter of economic growth and national security,” she said, citing issues like the effect of sea level rise on our military ports, the way climate events like drought and extreme heat destabilize regions and raise risk of conflict, and the complexities of energy transition such as supply chain reliability.
Pointing to the Biden administration’s nuclear energy framework and industrial decarbonization blueprint as examples of advances made during her time in OSTP, she added, “This administration has made major investments in climate and clean energy.”
It has been her most fulfilling role yet.
“The degree of impact and outreach has been very meaningful to me,” she said. “I’m grateful to have had this opportunity to make important progress that touches very real aspects of our lives.”
