Travis Bradford

Travis Bradford is an American academic, entrepreneur, and author specializing in renewable energy, environmental markets, and financial innovation.[1] He is a Senior Lecturer at Columbia University, where he holds joint appointments at the School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA) and the School of Professional Studies.[2] He is also the founder and president of the Prometheus Institute for Sustainable Development.[3]

Early life and education

Bradford was born and raised in Atlanta, Georgia.[3] He attended Georgia State University, where he earned a Bachelor's degree in finance in 1992. He later received an MBA from the NYU Stern School of Business in 1996 and a Master in Public Administration (MPA) from the Harvard Kennedy School in 2006.[1]

Career

Academic

Bradford currently serves as a Senior Lecturer at Columbia University, teaching in the Sustainability Management Program and at the School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA).[2] He previously served as the Director of the Climate, Energy, and Environment (CEE) concentration at SIPA.[1]

Prior to his tenure at Columbia, he held teaching positions at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and Duke University's Fuqua School of Business, where he lectured on finance, entrepreneurship, and alternative energy economics.[4]

Business and advisory

In 2003, Bradford founded the Prometheus Institute for Sustainable Development, a non-profit "do-tank" focused on market-driven solutions for sustainable technology.[5] Through the institute, he helped launch the cleantech research firm Greentech Media and the Carbon War Room, a global initiative founded by Richard Branson to implement market-driven solutions to climate change. He served as the COO and CFO of the Carbon War Room during its early operations.[6]

Bradford has served as a partner at various public and private equity investment firms, including Steel Partners II, L.P. and Atlas Capital Investments.[3] Early in his career, he worked at the Federal Reserve Bank.

He has held numerous international advisory positions, including serving as a reviewer for the IPCC and as an annual contributor to the REN21 Renewables Global Status Report.[7] He has also served on the board of the American Solar Energy Society (ASES). Alongside his non-profit and public sector work, he has served as an advisor to and board member for numerous companies including CarbiCrete and WATT Fuel Cells.[8]

Research and impact

Bradford's research focuses on the intersection of energy technology, environmental markets, and financial innovation, particularly the concept of "grid parity" for photovoltaic (PV) technology.[9]

Publications

Bradford is the author of two major works on energy innovation and economics published by MIT Press:

  • Solar Revolution: The Economic Transformation of the Global Energy Industry (2006) ISBN 978-0262026048. The work was praised by environmentalist Bill McKibben in The New York Review of Books for its analysis of solar economics.[10]
  • The Energy System: Technology, Economics, Markets, and Policy (2018) ISBN 978-0262037525. This textbook provides a comprehensive systems-perspective on global energy transitions.[11]

Personal life

Bradford is married to Anu Bradford, a law professor at Columbia Law School.[12] They reside in New York City and have three children.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d "Travis Bradford - Faculty Profile". Columbia University SIPA. Retrieved February 7, 2026.
  2. ^ a b "Travis Bradford". Columbia University School of Professional Studies. Retrieved February 7, 2026.
  3. ^ a b c "Bradford, Travis". Encyclopedia.com. Retrieved February 7, 2026.
  4. ^ "Travis Bradford". Columbia Business School. Retrieved February 7, 2026.
  5. ^ "Prometheus Institute's Bradford joins Carbon War Room". Reuters. March 1, 2011.
  6. ^ Lohr, Steve (February 24, 2011). "The Solar Industry's Quest for Scale". The New York Times.
  7. ^ "Expert Reviewers of the IPCC WGIII Fifth Assessment Report" (PDF). IPCC. Retrieved February 7, 2026.
  8. ^ "WATT Appoints New Chairman". WATT Fuel Cell Corporation. Retrieved February 7, 2026.
  9. ^ Kammen, Daniel M. (2007). "Review: Solar Revolution". Nature Reports Climate Change. doi:10.1038/climate.2007.36.
  10. ^ McKibben, Bill (November 16, 2006). "The Solar Power Frontier". The New York Review of Books.
  11. ^ "The Energy System". MIT Press. Retrieved February 7, 2026.
  12. ^ "Anu Bradford Faculty Bio". Columbia Law School. Retrieved February 7, 2026.
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