Jason Bordoff profile headshot

Jason Bordoff

Professor of Professional Practice in International and Public Affairs

Jason Bordoff profile headshot

1255 Amsterdam Avenue, Room 101D


Personal Details

Focus areas: The intersection of economics, energy, environment, and national security

Jason Bordoff is Founding Director of the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University SIPA, where he is a Professor of Professional Practice, and is also Co-Founding Dean of the Columbia Climate School. He is also a Senior Advisor at Macro Advisory Partners. He previously served as Special Assistant to President Barack Obama and Senior Director for Energy and Climate Change on the Staff of the National Security Council, and, prior to that, held senior policy positions on the White House’s National Economic Council and Council on Environmental Quality. One of the world’s leading energy and climate policy experts, Bordoff’s research and policy interests lie at the intersection of economics, energy, environment, and national security. He is a columnist for Foreign Policy magazine, a frequent commentator on TV and radio, including NPR, Bloomberg, CNBC and BBC, has appeared on the Colbert Report, and has published in Foreign Affairs, the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, the Economist, and other leading outlets. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the Trilateral Commission, a Trustee of The Nature Conservancy in New York, a board member of Winrock International and Foreign Policy 4 America, and serves on the Leadership Council for Sustainable Energy for All at the United Nations. Earlier in his career, he was a scholar at the Brookings Institution, served in the Treasury Department during the Clinton Administration, and was a consultant with McKinsey & Company. Bordoff graduated with honors from Harvard Law School, where he served on the Harvard Law Review, and clerked on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. He also holds an MLitt degree from Oxford University, where he studied as a Marshall Scholar, and a BA magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Brown University. 

For all media inquiries please email: [email protected].

Education

  • JD, cum laude, Harvard Law School
  • MLitt in Politics, Oxford University
  • AB, magna cum laude, Brown University

Affiliations

  • Council on Foreign Relations
  • Association of Marshall Scholars

Research and Publications

In The Media

Jason Bordoff comments on what the historic drop in emissions seen in 2020 should mean.

Jun 07 2021
The Seattle Times

Jason Bordoff argues that cutting oil production creates new risks and may not speed climate progress—unless we ensure demand falls too.

Jun 02 2021
Foreign Policy

“Eventually we are going to need additional climate legislation in the forms of standards, mandates, a carbon price,” Jason Bordoff comments.

Apr 23 2021
The Economist

Cutting emissions by 50 per cent will be “possible but very difficult”, said Jason Bordoff. “You should be a little ambitious, and use a number that forces the country to stretch.”

Apr 21 2021
Financial Times

Part of the Biden-Harris vision for a greener future is a commitment for the “whole of government,” to be involved, not just a few departments. Jason Bordoff comments.

Apr 21 2021
Marketplace