Kwame is passionate about enhancing the reliability and sustainability of electrical grid systems through data analytics. He is excited about the possibilities of using data from grids and renewable energy sources to meet demand shortfalls and provide cheaper, better-quality electricity for underserved communities. Kwame has extensive experience in the electrical services and automation industry in Accra, Ghana, and is drawn to autonomous systems. In his free time, he enjoys the occasional Netflix binge, playing football (not the American one!), taking long walks, exploring the outdoors, and spending time with friends.
University of Washington Electrical & Computer Engineering
Learning · Research · Impact
PhD timeline
Scroll through the milestones, or jump to a year. Scheduled activities are marked below.
2024
Summer 2024
Beginning Accra grid–weather research
Attended the IEEE Power & Energy Society General Meeting in Seattle.
Attended ORCAS 2024: International Conference on Energy Conversion and Storage, Bainbridge Island.
Began research project: Extreme Weather Raises Outage Risk Across Accra and Heat Lowers Voltage in Vulnerable Neighborhoods.
Autumn 2024
Teaching and grid resilience
Teaching Assistant for Energy, Materials, Devices and Systems.
Continued Accra grid–weather research.
2025
Winter 2025
Communicating research
UW Scholars’ Studio lightning talk: “Integrating Social Equity and Climate Vulnerability Considerations into Grid Resilience Planning for African Cities.”
Continued Accra grid–weather research.
Presented research at the March 2025 UW ECE Research Showcase.
Internship at Schweitzer Engineering Laboratories.
Autumn 2025
Teaching and conference exchange
Teaching Assistant for EE 454.
INFORMS Annual Meeting, Atlanta: hybrid presentation and poster session, “Bridging Climate Risk and Grid Resilience in Africa’s Energy Transition.”
Continued Accra grid–weather research.
2026
Winter 2026
Grid resilience in conversation
Virtual presentation at a Kilowatts for Humanity meeting: “Bridging Climate Risk and Grid Resilience in Africa’s Energy Transition: A Case Study of Greater Accra, Ghana.”
Continued Accra grid–weather research.
Spring 2026
Connecting evidence with policy
Continued Accra grid–weather research.
Co-authored “When Climate Shocks Collide with Grid Failure,” published by the Energy for Growth Hub on April 9, 2026, with June Lukuyu, Mohini Bariya, and Genevieve Flaspohler.
Research on weather, outages, voltage, and neighborhood vulnerability in Greater Accra, begun in Summer 2024 and completed in Summer 2026. The resulting manuscript has been submitted.
Extreme Weather Raises Outage Risk Across Accra and Heat Lowers Voltage in Vulnerable Neighborhoods
Submitted to Communications Earth & Environment (Nature Portfolio). This is a submitted manuscript, not a published article; no public manuscript link has been added.
Policy memo · 9 April 2026
When Climate Shocks Collide with Grid Failure
Co-authored with June Lukuyu, Mohini Bariya, and Genevieve Flaspohler for the Energy for Growth Hub.
