Eric Fournier, Ph.D.

Eric Fournier, Ph.D.

Research Director

California Center for Sustainable Communities, Institute of the Environment and Sustainability

619 Charles E. Young Drive East
LaKretz Hall – Suite 300
Los Angeles, CA 90095

Campus Mailcode: 149606

Pronouns: he/him

Website of Eric Daniel Fournier

Eric Daniel Fournier is the Research Director at the California Center for Sustainable Communities (CCSC) within UCLA’s Institute for the Environment and Sustainability. Eric’s background is in the fields of spatial modeling, life cycle assessment, and energy and water systems analyses. Generally, his work focuses on the application of information technologies, and the quantitative methods that they enable, to the resolution of complex environmental problems.

Eric obtained his B.S. in Environmental Science at Bucknell University (2008), where he also minored in Economics and Chemistry. He also holds a M.E.Sc. from the Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies (2010), a M.A. in Geography from the University of California at Santa Barbara (2014), and a Ph.D. in Environmental Informatics from UCSB’s Bren School of Environmental Science & Management (2015).

Dr. Eric Fournier- CV 2020

Projects

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash

California Public Utilities Commission Distributed Energy Resource (DER) Program Data Working Group

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) selected the California Center for Sustainable Communities (CCSC) at UCLA, with support from the Los Angeles Regional Collaborative for Climate Action and Sustainability (LARC), to facilitate the R. 22-11-013 “Distributed Energy Resource (DER) Program Cost-Effectiveness Issues, Data Access and Use, and Equipment Performance Standards” Data Working Group.

Gas Stove burning

Mindful Gas Decommissioning

California’s goal of decarbonizing the state’s energy sector by 2045 requires an accompanying strategic approach to the decommissioning of the extensive gas infrastructure, currently comprising over 11 million meters and spanning more than 100,000 miles.

Solar Installation

LADWP – LA100 Equity Strategies Initiative

As part of the LA100 Equity Strategies study CCSC developed estimates of as-built and existing service capacities of residential properties throughout the LADWP service territory, and future upgrade requirements to handle comprehensive electrification.

EnergymetersMontyDickersonPixnio

Equitable Electrification of Existing Buildings: A Pathway to Decarbonization

Building electrification is the most viable solution to reducing building greenhouse gas emissions, with the added benefit of improving air quality. Yet, electrification of existing buildings is difficult. Often times, a homeowner or landlord experiences unexpected complications when trying to retrofit their building.

community solar opportunities map

Community Solar Opportunities Map

Where is the best place to put solar panels in your neighborhood? The solar opportunity map is a web tool built to assist community-based organizations to access data necessary to identify high potential sites for community solar or resiliency centers within LA County.

community solar opportunities map

The Healthy Home Study

As California moves forward with its aggressive agenda to decarbonize its energy system, care must be taken to assess the degree to which its pursuit of various energy system transformation pathways is likely to result in additional benefits for Californians. One extremely important category of benefits is the reduction of health risks that result from exposure to natural gas combustion by-products, both from appliances within homes and from grid scale generation stations.

los angeles sustainability plan

Los Angeles Sustainability Plan

The County of Los Angeles has developed the first county-wide sustainability plan, and has contracted with UCLA, in collaboration with the engineering firm Buro Happold, and with Liberty Hill Foundation.…

climate change in los angeles county: grid vulnerability to extreme heat

Climate Change in Los Angeles County: Grid Vulnerability to Extreme Heat

In this project, UCLA and Arizona State University researchers developed a sophisticated and in-depth description of future electricity demand, grid response, and vulnerability due to increased heat events in Southern California Edison territory under current and future climate scenarios. The project's findings enable innovative grid management and operation strategies and identify adaptation guidance.

ucla energy atlas

UCLA Energy Atlas

The UCLA Energy Atlas is the first of its kind interactive web atlas that provides access to the largest and most disaggregated building energy data available in the nation. It now comprises data from both Southern California and the Bay Area.

Recent Publications

Quantifying the electric service panel capacities of California’s residential buildings

Eric Daniel Fournier, Robert Cudd, Samantha Smithies, Stephanie Pincetl

Published Work | 2024 | Energy Policy

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Building an interactive web mapping tool to support distributed energy resource planning using public participation GIS

Eric D. Fournier, Felicia Federico, Robert Cudd, Stephanie Pincetl

Published Work | 2023 | Applied Geography

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Net GHG Emissions and Air Quality Outcomes from Different Residential Building Electrification Pathways within a California Disadvantaged Community

Eric Daniel Fournier, Felicia Federico, Robert Cudd, Stephanie Pincetl, Alex Ricklefs, Marc Costa, Michael Jerrett, Diane Garcia-Gonzales

Published Work | 2022 | Sustainable Cities and Society

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Community Scale Solar & Energy Resilience in California’s Disadvantaged Communities

CCSC Staff

Working Paper | 2022

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Climate Change, Extreme Heat, & the Future of LA’s Electric Power System

Eric D. Fournier, PhD., Felicia Federico, D. Env.; Stephanie Pincetl, PhD

Working Paper | 2021

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Implications of the timing of residential natural gas use for appliance electrification efforts

Eric Daniel Fournier, Robert Cudd, Felicia Federico and Stephanie Pincetl

Published Work | 2020 | Environmental Research Letters

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On energy sufficiency and the need for new policies to combat growing inequities in the residential energy sector

Eric Daniel Fournier, Robert Cudd, Felicia Federico and Stephanie Pincetl

Published Work | 2020 | Elementa: Science of the Anthroprocene

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Net solar generation potential from urban rooftops in Los Angeles

Erik Porse, Eric Fournier, Dan Cheng, Claire Hirashiki, Hannah Gustafson, Felicia Federico, Stephanie Pincetl

Published Work | 2020 | Energy Policy

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The Grid: An informational primer for advocates of distributed renewable energy

Eric Daniel Fournier, M.A. M.E.Sc., Ph.D.

Presentation

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