Coburn, a Professor of Systems Engineering, specializes in the integration of data science, machine learning and systems across the broader energy landscape, including oil & gas, renewable energy, and transportation and mobility. His research examines the energy-water-food nexus, electric and alternative fuel vehicles, agrivoltaics, carbon capture and sequestration, and the impacts of energy on climate, health, justice and policy.  

Before joining CSU, Coburn founded the School of Energy Economics, Policy and Commerce at the University of Tulsa. He also held various roles at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s Center for Transportation Technologies and Systems, and now holds a joint appointment at the Joint Institute for Strategic Energy Analysis at NREL and a faculty position at the Idaho National Laboratory.  

Coburn’s academic articles cover a wide range of topics, including committed emissions reductions, urban infrastructure interdependence and machine learning in petroleum production. He earned his M.S. and Ph.D. in statistics and industrial engineering from Oklahoma State University and his undergraduate degree in math and physics from Abilene Christian University.