Rate My Professor Amit Kumar

Amit Kumar is a Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering within the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Alberta. He holds prestigious positions including the Canada Research Chair (Tier 1) in Assessment of Energy Systems, the Cenovus Energy Endowed Chair in Environmental Engineering, and formerly the NSERC/Cenovus/Alberta Innovates Associate Industrial Research Chair in Energy and Environmental Systems Engineering (2012-2023). He also serves as Director of the Centre for Hydrogen Innovation, Workforce Development and Outreach, Deputy Director of Future Energy Systems—a $75 million Canada First Research Excellence Fund initiative—and Associate Director of the NSF Global Centre for Sustainable Bioproducts. Kumar joined the University of Alberta as an Assistant Professor in 2005, was promoted to Professor in 2015, and leads a research group comprising postdoctoral fellows, graduate and undergraduate students, and research assistants.

His academic background includes a BSc in Energy Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, an MSc in Energy Technology from the Asian Institute of Technology, a PhD from the University of Alberta in 2004, and a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of British Columbia in 2004. Kumar's research focuses on integrated energy and environmental modelling and life cycle and techno-economic assessments of both conventional and non-conventional energy sources, with particular emphasis on greenhouse gas emissions, freshwater consumption, and land use changes in Canada and Alberta. He teaches several graduate and undergraduate courses in the Faculty of Engineering, contributes to various national, regional, faculty, and department committees, and reviews funding proposals and manuscripts for refereed journals. Invited to expert panels by organizations such as the European Commission, National Science Foundation, Natural Resources Canada, California Environmental Protection Agency, and NSERC, he also serves as Associate Editor for the Canadian Biosystems Engineering Journal in the area of renewable energy and has chaired committees for the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers and the Canadian Society of Bioengineering. Among his honors are the Young Engineer of the Year award from CSBE for contributions in bioenergy and biofuels, recognition by Reuters as one of the world’s top climate scientists, and election to the Center for Legislative Energy and Environmental Research University Advisory Board.