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Fall 2022

A Man of Energy
10 Questions: Associate Professor Bilal Butt
A Champion for Justice
A Lifelong Passion for Trees
Carlson’s Fishery: Leaving its Mark on the Local Economy and Michigan’s Waters
Class Notes
Dean’s Letter
Developing Water Policy Solutions that Ensure a Just and Resilient Future
Environmentally Safe Pest Control
Faculty Accolades
FishPass Project Draws Inspiration From Single-Stream Recycling
Fostering Human-Tiger Coexistence in Nepal
Freshwater is ‘the Root’ That Connects This Area
Leading Sustainability-Focused Education
Mobility and Transportation Design
Nurturing Environmental Justice Activists
Pairing Solar Development With Innovative Land Management
Program in the Environment Celebrates 20 Years
Protecting the Diversity of Fish in the Great Lakes
Research Highlights
Righting Wrongs in Society
SEAS Releases First National Framework Designed to Measure and Advance Energy Equity
SEAS Travel Photo Contest
Studying Trees for Clues About Climate Change
Summer Discussion Series
Supporting Actionable Energy Solutions
The Forever Business: Conservation Leader Glen Chown
Yearbook

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SEAS Connect is a monthly e-newsletter that brings alumni, students, faculty, and friends even closer together. In every issue, you’ll read about what your classmates are up to, hear from your favorite professors, find out what’s going on in the Dana Building, and learn how to get involved.

 
back to Stewards

A Man of Energy

By Denise Spranger

The year after he graduated from SEAS, Oluwafemi (Femi) Sawyerr (MS ’15) found his dream job at Energy and Environmental Economics Inc. in San Francisco, rising from associate to his current role as managing consultant.

“When I dreamed of being an energy consultant, I wanted to do analysis that would guide state and federal regulators in their planning of the electricity sector,” says Sawyerr. “That’s literally what I do right now.”

Femi Sawyerr
Oluwafemi (Femi) Sawyerr (MS ’15)

Originally from Nigeria, Sawyerr has an informed understanding of the challenges faced by developing countries in their effort to improve infrastructure, as well as the importance of renewable energy and sustainable manufacturing in a world impacted by climate change.

He relates that one of his most cherished professional achievements was serving as the lead analyst in the first independent study that assessed the potential impact of offshore wind on the California electricity sector. That study served as a data source for further governmental studies to which Sawyerr also contributed.

Experiences like these keep Sawyerr optimistic about tackling sustainable energy challenges.

“The nature of my work provides me with the opportunity to witness what happens ‘in the kitchen’ before clean energy policies and regulations are made,” says Sawyerr. “Thus, I have a better appreciation for what some policies are really seeking to achieve, and some of the real-world considerations that need to be incorporated in these policies, beyond just the math and economics.”

In addition to his role as an energy analyst, Sawyerr is deeply moved by a very different form of energy—one that he often brings to the stage. As a semi-professional dancer, Sawyerr has performed and competed in salsa and bachata routines across the country, including Ann Arbor, Salt Lake City, San Francisco and Reno.

“I don’t think of dance as something I do, but rather as part of who I am,” says Sawyerr. “The experience of listening to music and letting my body interpret what I hear through motion is a feeling I can never get enough of. Whether that’s social dancing for fun or on stage in performance, the joy it gives me is difficult to really describe in words.”

Sawyerr recalls that he always loved dancing, even before he knew what it was.

“It is said that my paternal grandmother’s lullaby for me, when translated into English, was ‘Let him dance. Just let him dance.’”

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