Johannes Urpelainen is the Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Professor of Energy, Resources and Environment at Johns Hopkins SAIS, and the Founding Director of the Initiative for Sustainable Energy Policy (ISEP).

He received his PhD in Political Science from the University of Michigan in 2009 and spent the next eight years at Columbia University.

Urpelainen is the award-winning author of four books and over a hundred refereed articles on environmental politics, energy policy, and global governance. He teaches action-oriented classes on energy and environmental policy. His classes are designed to equip the next generation of global leaders with deep knowledge, advanced analytical skills, and a passion for transformational social change. As one of the world’s top energy policy experts, Urpelainen frequently advises governments, international organizations, and the private sector on energy and environment.

As the Founding Director of ISEP, he is responsible for the vision, strategy, and general management of the initiative. His work under ISEP offers pragmatic but effective approaches to providing the world’s population with affordable and abundant energy at minimal environmental impact. In his spare time, Urpelainen reads biographies and tries to improve his Hindi.