Skip to main content

Dr. Phil Sharp Awarded Schlesinger Medal

Former Congressman Phil Sharp (D-IN), long time resident of the District of Columbia, was awarded the Schlesinger Medal for Energy Security by the Secretary of the Department of Energy (DOE) Ernest Moniz. The medal is named after the first United States Secretary of Energy James R. Schlesinger.

Image
Peter Rosenstein
Peter Rosenstein

Sharp had a distinguished twenty year career in the Congress. He was elected in the class designated as the Watergate babies taking his seat in 1975 and retiring in 1995. During his time in Congress one of the committees he served on was the House Energy and Commerce Committee, where he chaired the Fossil and Synthetic Fuels Subcommittee. Sharp took key leadership roles in the development of landmark energy legislation. He was the driving force behind the Energy Policy Act of 1992 which led to the restructuring of the wholesale electricity market, promoted renewable energy, established more rigorous energy-efficiency standards, and encouraged the expanded use of alternative fuels.

Upon leaving congress he joined Harvard’s Kennedy School where he was a lecturer in public policy and also served as director of Harvard’s Institute of Politics. Since 2005 Sharp has served as President of the prestigious think tank Resources for the Future (RFF).

Sharp is widely recognized in the world as a leader in the energy area and currently serves on the board of directors of the Energy Foundation and on the external advisory board of the MIT Energy Initiative. Previously he was named by President Obama to serve on the Blue Ribbon Commission on America’s Nuclear Future and served on the National Academies’ Committee on America’s Climate Choices. When president Obama was choosing his first cabinet Sharp’s name was circulated as a potential Secretary of the Department of Energy and I am sure if Hillary Clinton is elected he will again be on a short list for that position.

Image
Peter Rosenstein
Peter Rosenstein

The ceremony honoring Dr. Sharp included a distinguished panel discussion titled ‘A New World: Global Energy Security”. Panelists who all praised the work of Sharp included General James Jones, USMC, (ret.) who was formerly commander of U.S. European Command and supreme commander, Europe, where he led all military operations for NATO. He served for two years as President Obama’s national security advisor; Dr. Anna Palacio who is currently a member of the Council of the State of Spain, the supreme consultative body to the Spanish Government on legislation and regulation. She is also a member of the Atlantic Council of the United States and was the first woman in charge of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Spain; Mr. Adam Sieminski administrator of the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) and Mr. Jason Bordoff currently on the faculty of Columbia University where he went after serving President Obama as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Energy and Climate Change on the staff of the National Security Council.

This was a well-deserved honor for Dr. Sharp. The impressive ceremony was attended by family and friends of Dr. Sharp, government energy officials and other distinguished guests including former Senator Richard Lugar (R-IN).