Electric cars are fast, efficient and produce no local emissions. But they're also expensive, with issues around the metals for their batteries. David Rapson, Chancellor’s Leadership Professor of Economics in the College of Letters and Science at UC Davis, joins a discussion on the pros and cons of electric cars for two episodes of the PBS talk show “Energy Switch.”

Energy economics studies at UC Davis recently received an investment in its future with a power industry group’s creation of a graduate student fellowship. The Western Power Trading Forum (WPTF), a Sacramento-based association that advocates for competitive market rules in Western states, funded the fellowship for five years to help cultivate the next generation of energy thought leaders.