Powering America: Connecting Regions, Strengthening the Grid

The CSIS Energy Security and Climate Change Program is pleased to invite you to a virtual discussion featuring Dr. Julie Mulvaney Kemp, Research Scientist in the Energy Markets and Planning Department at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and moderated by Dr. Leslie Abrahams, Deputy Director and Senior Fellow of the CSIS Energy Security and Climate Change Program. The discussion will focus on new research and emerging approaches to electricity transmission policy. 

The conversation will feature insights from Dr. Mulvaney Kemp’s recent research, including her 2025 Nature Communications article, “Electric transmission value and its drivers in United States power markets.” The paper examines the economic value of expanding transmission between regions, how extreme weather and unexpected system conditions shape that value, and the barriers that prevent economically beneficial infrastructure from being built. The conversation will explore what these findings mean for transmission planning, investment, and electricity affordability and reliability. 

This event is part of a series featuring scholars and other thought leaders exploring how ideas from economics, engineering, law, and related fields can offer policymakers new ways to understand persistent challenges in transmission. 

This event was made possible by the generous support of the Connected Grid Initiative.