August 7, 2024
University of Washington (UW) graduate students Maria Politi, George Fennell, and Antonio Vazquez received the UW Clean Energy Institute’s 2024 Clean Energy Student Achievement Awards at the institute’s annual end-of-year seminar on May 30.
Scientific Achievement
The Clean Energy Scientific Achievement Award recognizes UW graduate students who have demonstrated extraordinary productivity in clean energy research and scholarship, and have contributed meaningfully to the scientific community.
Maria Politi
Dr. Maria Politi received the 2023-24 Clean Energy Scientific Achievement Award for accelerating the UW’s adoption of automation and artificial intelligence (AI) for the optimization of clean energy materials. Politi, a 2022-23 CEI Graduate Fellow, recently earned her Ph.D. in chemical engineering from the UW, advised by chemical engineering professor Lilo Pozzo.
“Maria has carved a path for open science in clean energy materials design,” said Pozzo, the Boeing-Roundhill Endowed Professor for Excellence in Engineering and a CEI Member Faculty who sits on CEI’s Trainee-Faculty Advisory Board. “Maria dedicated her Ph.D. to the ‘democratization’ of ‘Self-Driving Laboratories’ for everyone at the UW and beyond, and by helping others to walk this path along with her, she built a platform to sustain this work into the future.”
Politi’s research in Pozzo’s lab focused on developing tools and techniques to accelerate the pace of clean energy innovation. Starting with data-driven strategies to optimize the design of energy materials like battery electrolytes, and incorporating robots that can autonomously synthesize nanomaterials, Politi envisions low-cost, self-driving labs that will make decisions and iterate through clean energy experiments in closed-loop systems.
“I’m thankful for all the support from the CEI community,” Politi remarked after receiving the award. “It’s been great to collaborate with UW scholars from different disciplines to develop these capabilities, and CEI opportunities were a big part of my grad school experience. As a Graduate Fellow, I developed my skills in science communication and K-12 STEM education, and I really enjoyed mentoring Clean Energy Bridge to Research undergrads over the summers. CEI also supported my travel to a Materials Research Society conference that was pivotal to my doctoral research.”
This fall, Politi will be moving to Vancouver, Canada for a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of British Columbia, where she will work with chemistry professor Jason Hein and partners in the University of Toronto-based Acceleration Consortium to further develop self-driving labs for clean energy materials.
Outreach & Service
The Clean Energy Outreach & Service Award recognizes UW graduate students who have demonstrated dedication and creativity when communicating STEM to a variety of audiences. This award is decided by CEI staff who work closely with graduate students participating in public outreach.
George Fennell
George Fennell, a master’s student in materials science & engineering (MSE) advised by Miqin Zhang, received a 2024 Clean Energy Outreach & Service Award for outstanding contributions as a Clean Energy Ambassador. He started volunteering for CEI as an undergraduate student, also participating in Engineering Ambassadors, STEMpals, and Material Advantage. In graduate school, he has continued to support K-14 engagement in clean energy science through summer camps, STEM fairs, Meet a Clean Energy Scientist presentations, and classroom visits.
“I got some fantastic STEM mentorship when I was younger, and I want to provide that for future engineers,” said Fennell. “If you’re a UW student, I really encourage you to check out these organizations on campus! And for other folks in Seattle, there’s a volunteer math tutoring group called The Math Agency that I think is setting a really great standard for math education, and I highly recommend reading their blog on closing local education gaps.”
Fennell also participated in Global Renewables Infrastructure Development (GRID), worked with the Molecular Engineering Materials Center (MEM-C), and represented his department in the Graduate & Professional Student Senate (GPSS) during his time at the UW.
“George’s positive and encouraging mindset creates a welcoming and inclusive environment for both students and volunteers,” said Danica Hendrickson, CEI’s associate director of education & workforce engagement.
Antonio Vazquez
Antonio Vazquez, a CEI Graduate Fellow and doctoral student in chemistry advised by Al Nelson, received a 2024 Clean Energy Outreach & Service Award for his work to increase access and engagement in STEM.
“We’re inspired by Antonio and his dedication to giving back,” Hendrickson said. “This is exemplified by his participation in CEI outreach events before his Grad Fellowship and how thoughtfully he interacts with students and teachers.”
Since last spring before his CEI Graduate Fellowship, Antonio has participated in a variety of outreach events, from presenting his research and science journey to UW GEAR UP Achievers coordinators to facilitating CEI’s hands-on activities during a visit from Washington Middle School students and at this year’s UW Engineering Discovery Days.
“Doing hands-on activities with young students and answering their questions provides me with unique perspectives,” Vazquez said. “I have to ask myself: can I explain my Ph.D. in simple enough terms for everyone to understand? How can we spark kids’ imagination so they dream of becoming scientists and engineers?”
Nominations for the 2024-25 Clean Energy Student Scientific Achievement Award will open in April 2025. UW students who are interested in K-12 STEM engagement can become Clean Energy Ambassadors by emailing cei-outreach@uw.edu.
