Climate change is one of the greatest challenges facing humanity, and the new global climate framework calls for a fundamental shift in the energy sector to ensure sustainable development and environmental protection.

Korea is no exception. Expanding renewable energy is essential to increase energy independence and to transition toward a low-carbon economic and social structure.
In addition, high energy efficiency must be realized across the entire energy ecosystem, from energy producers to consumers.
As a resource-poor country, Korea must actively foster emerging energy industries that are driving revolutionary change.

Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST) established the Research Institute for Sustainable Energy (RISE) to develop core technologies that will drive the expansion of solar energy and industrial growth, and it has since become a global hub for next-generation photovoltaic research. In particular, GIST has launched the Heeger Center for Advanced Materials and the Ertl Center for Catalysis in collaboration with Nobel Laureates Professor Alan J. Heeger (USA) and Professor Gerhard Ertl (Germany), conducting joint research in organic solar cells, fuel cells, and catalysis. GIST has also established international research partnerships with leading institutions, including Imperial College London in the UK and the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) in the USA, building a foundation for cross-border collaboration. RISE is expanding its research scope beyond renewable energy technologies such as photovoltaics and energy storage to include core energy technologies for next-generation transportation and energy grid systems, with the goal of becoming a world-leading institute shaping the future energy landscape.

The Research Institute for Sustainable Energy (RISE) at GIST conducts active research to enhance the efficiency of clean energy production, storage, transmission, and management, centered around its laboratories for solar cells, demonstration systems, energy storage, and artificial intelligence. Through this research, the envisioned future energy society will enable low-cost and efficient electricity generation using solar energy, as well as energy storage through conversion into chemical energy. The development of large-capacity, high-efficiency secondary batteries will further support energy supply for future transportation systems, including electric and hydrogen vehicles. Moreover, the integration of renewable energy, electric vehicles, and hydrogen vehicles into smart power grids will enable the creation of a wide range of new business models. Through these efforts, RISE aims to realize the carbon neutrality demanded by our time.

The mission of the Research Institute for Sustainable Energy (RISE) is clear.
RISE is committed to developing core energy technologies and advancing their practical application through industry–academia collaboration, while promoting emerging energy industries to support the transition to a carbon-neutral society. As a leader in next-generation energy research, RISE aims to lay the foundation for new energy industries to become a national growth engine. Through these efforts, RISE seeks to contribute to the realization of carbon neutrality and to a future energy society in which the global environment and the energy ecosystem exist in harmony.