Skip to main content Skip to secondary navigation

Explore Energy is a cross-campus effort of the Precourt Institute for Energy.

Our House Leaders

Main content start

Meet the Explore Energy 2023-2024 House Leaders

They bring passion for energy and connection to the House, and are excited to create an extraordinary living experience for residents. 

Langston Buddenhagen

Langston Buddenhagen

Langston is a junior in Urban Studies and a coterminal Master’s student in Public Policy.  As a young man of color from Oakland, California –– an urban environment with a discriminatory history of energy and pollution –– equitable, clean energy policy that supports marginalized communities is extremely important to him. Langston has engaged with energy policy through graduate- and undergraduate-level coursework, and during an internship with the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services. Langston enjoys riding and repairing vintage bicycles, playing soccer, solving the crossword, rock climbing, and taking, developing, and printing film photographs.

Nicole Ike

Nicole is a senior from Columbus, Ohio, studying Economics. Nicole enjoys learning about the energy sector through her economics coursework and energy events on campus. She is a team lead for Consult Your Community and is involved with Black organizations on campus. In her free time, you can find Nicole at a live music event on or off campus.

Steven Liu

Steven is a sophomore majoring in Chemical Engineering. Steven's academic focus evolves around electrochemistry and batteries, working to improve current lithium-ion technology and implement new chemistries in markets ranging from consumer electronics to grid-scale long duration energy storage. 

Sarayu Pai

Sarayu is a coterminal Master’s student from Greensboro, North Carolina, studying Mechanical Engineering. Her passion for supporting the world’s transition to clean energy stems from interning at Tesla on the Solar Roof and Battery Engineering teams. After working on an educational farm in Hawai’i and participating in the Galápagos Sophomore College program, she began dreaming of working for NatGeo. Outside of school, Sarayu loves climbing, hiking, writing for The Stanford Daily, and playing instruments!

Varun Shirhatti

Varun is a junior from Bangalore, India and San Diego, CA studying Earth Systems. He’s interested in ecology and human-environment interactions, especially how nature-based approaches to sustainability can benefit both humans and local ecosystems. On campus, Varun is part of Students for a Sustainable Stanford and teaches Public Speaking. Outside of academics, he likes to play Magic: the Gathering, make music, and get outside for hikes.

Stephanie Unur

Stephanie is a senior from Roanoke, Virginia pursuing her co-term in Sustainability Science and Practice. She’s interested in clean energy, climate tech and sustainable infrastructure. She’s worked in in government, academia, and the non-profit sectors, and is spending this summer decarbonizing buildings at Buro Happold, an engineering and consulting services firm. She loves to hike in nature, FaceTime her family back in Mongolia, and work out, from lifting to hot yoga and pilates.