Searching for Energy Security

The world is in the midst of the most severe energy crisis since the Arab Oil Embargo of the 1970s. Energy security has returned to the center of the global agenda. How will countries meet their energy needs going forward with prices at such high levels? Will the shock waves from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine accelerate or slow the transition to cleaner energy to address climate change? How might global geopolitics be impacted by this energy crisis? Will the energy transition mean new vulnerabilities related to critical minerals and clean energy supply chains?

Douglas Hengel is a former American diplomat who worked extensively on global economic and energy issues, including as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Energy, Sanctions and Commodities. In that capacity, his responsibilities included formulating and advancing United States’ international energy policy and being a member of the Governing Board of the International Energy Agency. Mr. Hengel served at the U.S. Embassies in Rome, Bratislava, Prague, Lima, and Caracas, in addition to a variety of assignments in Washington. Currently, Mr. Hengel teaches The Geopolitics of Energy at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies in Washington, DC, works with LNG Allies, a trade association for the U.S. Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) industry, and is a Visiting Fellow at The German Marshall Fund of the United States.

Mr. Hengel is originally from New York, attended Colgate University, and has a Masters in Public Policy from the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs. He is married and has two children.