On the morning of September 10, Prof. Saifur Rahman, 2023 President of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and professor at Virginia Tech, USA, visited the Department of Electrical Engineering and Applied Electronics (EEA) and delivered an invited lecture titled “Role of Technology in Achieving a Sustainable Climate.” Over 50 faculty and students attended, including Prof. Daniel Kammen, Bloomberg Distinguished Professor at Johns Hopkins University and member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences; Li Ruomei, former Secretary-General of the Chinese Society for Electrical Engineering; Hua Ning, IEEE Senior Business Director for the Asia-Pacific Region; and Prof. Kang Chongqing, Dean of EEA, Director of the Tsinghua Energy Internet Innovation Research Institute, and Director of the Tsinghua Sichuan Energy Internet Research Institute.

During the lecture, Prof. Saifur Rahman systematically analyzed the definition, causes, and global impacts of carbon emissions, focusing on the power sector, which accounts for over 30% of global carbon emissions, and proposed targeted emission reduction pathways. He emphasized that achieving carbon reduction goals in the power sector requires deeper collaboration between industrialized countries and emerging economies, leveraging a combination of low-carbon generation technologies including wind, solar, hydro, and nuclear power, alongside energy storage systems, cross-border transmission networks, and energy efficiency improvements to build a multi-technology low-carbon energy system. Prof. Rahman also provided a detailed overview of IEEE’s climate change projects and associated action plans, offering technical guidance for the implementation of global climate governance.

During the interactive Q&A session, attendees actively raised questions regarding low-carbon technology selection in the power sector, challenges in cross-border energy cooperation, and the practical details of IEEE projects. Prof. Saifur Rahman responded in detail to each question, drawing on his research and management experience. The in-depth discussions further deepened participants’ understanding of how technology can empower sustainable development.