Veterans in Advanced Energy Profile: Robin Tyner

Robin Tyner, a 2020-2021 Veterans advanced energy fellow. click the button below to learn more about the fellowship.

Robin Tyner, a 2020-2021 Veterans Advanced Energy Fellow, witnessed firsthand how US military strategy around renewable energy developed from inside the Pentagon walls working for the Chief of Naval Operations. Today, she says renewable energy is a “win-win” and is excited about emerging technologies like river and tidal energy. As told to Leah Emanuel.

Why did you join the military?

I never intended to join the military. A ROTC recruiter came to my chemistry class in high school and talked to us about the program. I was trying to save up for college so it seemed like a pretty good deal to me. I thought, “I’ll sign up for the program and receive a year for free, during which I can save up more money and then I can quit because God knows I don’t want to be in the military.” So I signed up. Then a blue and gold officer said to me, “Why didn’t apply to the Naval Academy as well?” And I said, “Well, I don’t know, what’s that?” He gave me a bunch of forms and I filled them out and somehow I ended up there. I fully intended to leave after a year, but I didn’t. Then I intended to leave after my five years of service, but I didn’t. Then 32 years later, I finally retired—with many great experiences and sea stories! 

What was your role? 

“All of the above”—I had a very eclectic career. In 32+ years, I served on gray ships, white ships, flying orders, various shore duty roles, command, and multiple Pentagon tours. I served everywhere from Hawaii to Maine to Indonesia to Europe. I hit six continents and all 7 seas, including the Arctic. My educational background is oceanography/meteorology, and about half of my tours were in the oceanography community.  The other half were working for unrestricted line officers in various capacities, mostly Pentagon and Joint/HQ. I was also Surface Warfare qualified (aka ship driver) and qualified as an Aviation Observer and an Information Warfare Officer. 

How did the military influence your career trajectory into energy?

photo provided by robin tyner

If you’re an oceanographer in the Navy, you’re required to get a master's degree. Most of us get a dual master's in oceanography and meteorology, so you learn a bit about climate science in the process. I was always really interested in the Arctic—I did a thesis on the decadal variability of the Arctic thermohaline (approximately the upper 150 meters of the water) in the vicinity of the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas.

I was in the Pentagon when President Barack Obama transitioned in and brought Secretary of Navy Ray Mabus. I managed all decision forums for the Chief of Naval Operations (CNO), including topics such as Task Force Climate Change and Task Force Energy. This particular CNO was very open-minded to different view points, and a lot of this work, based on science and need, really took off. The CNO held All Flag Officer meetings 2-3 times a year, including all Senior Executives and Admirals. At one meeting, the Commandant of the Marine Corps spoke of how, from a logistics, tactics, and strategy perspective, renewable energy was invaluable. He described the differences between marines carrying a backpack with a little solar device in it to generate their own energy, and the dependence on supply lines and logistics lines that are targets for an enemy. He believed the portable renewable energy sources saved lives—as well as money, fuel, logistics, and manpower. His story was very compelling.

I believe renewable energy should be non-political. It seems like such a no-brainer because it helps the earth, and there are great economic arguments and great environmental stewardship arguments for it. I could argue it for any political party, and from the greenest hippie to the most conservative Christian. If done right, it’s win-win for everyone.

What are you most excited about in advanced energy developments, and what are you most concerned about?

I really like a technology that I learned more about this past year: river and tidal turbines. It’s energy from a completely renewable source, end to end, and it’s constant. It’s not like solar or wind since the sun doesn’t always shine and the wind doesn’t always blow. It’s constant: the currents don’t stop, the rivers don’t stop, the tides don’t stop. The earth is 70% ocean/lakes, and then you factor in all the rivers. There’s so much potential there that’s untapped. That, to me, is a very exciting technology. 

I’m always concerned about political and corporate influences pushing agendas. I’m cautious about technologies that may have challenges, but somebody with power, money, and clout is pushing real hard for it, too often for personal or business gain. Some solutions may sound really great, but the devil in the details shows that they actually serve another agenda. I’m more excited, though, by the growing number of new, amazing technologies available now. If we really care about all people, if we really care about the earth, if we really want to do what we need to, there are great technologies out there NOW, and we could just make them fly if we have the collective integrity to focus our resources on the most end-to-end green, low-impact, near-term solutions—turbines, geothermal, biofuels, carbon scrubbing. I’m excited about those. 

Why is energy important to U.S. national security?

A military force of any type requires energy. Whether it’s a soldier on foot needing rations, or trucks and planes needing fuel. Everything from people to equipment to machines requires energy to operate and move. It goes hand-in-hand. You cannot do anything without energy, so when there are finite resources with long and burdensome supply/logistics chains, such as fossil fuels, you experience negative impacts, which brings us back to the importance of renewable energy. 

Do you have advice you would like to share with other veterans? 

I would share with anybody, veteran or not: research things for yourself and learn. Don’t believe everything you hear, use your critical thinking skills. At the Naval Academy, new students are given a book called “Reef Points” and must memorize its pages during the six-week indoctrination—called Plebe Summer. There’s an excerpt in there that has always been one of my favorites. It’s from Vice Admiral William P. Mack’s farewell speech in 1975, after serving as the 47th Superintendent of the Naval Academy. He talked about the ”necessity of listening to and protecting the existence of the ‘Dissenter’—the person who does not necessarily agree with his commander, or with popularly held opinion, or you.” He described many examples throughout history where the dissenters were later proved to be correct. Much of this was in a military or tactical sense, but it applies across the spectrum. This is especially important nowadays. Everyone’s always trying to get funneled into different groups. Forget that, you don’t have to fit into specific category. Just follow your noggin and your heart. 

What is your greatest take-away from the Veterans Advanced Energy Fellowship? 

I think the best thing about any forum or fellowship like this is learning about the other people involved in the group, whether it’s the people running it, or the other fellows participating. In any course I’ve done outside of the undergraduate college setting, the material is great, the speakers are great, the experiences are great, and you learn SO much from listening to your peers who have interesting life experiences or experiences that are totally foreign from your own. I think that’s one of the neatest things.