POTSDAM -- Former U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu and Bridges to Prosperity CEO Avery Bang will be awarded honorary degrees at Clarkson University's 121st commencement on May 10.

Steven Chu now teaches physics and molecular and cellular physiology at Stanford university. From January 2009 until April 2013, Chu was the 12th U.S. Secretary of Energy under President Barack Obama. As the longest serving energy secretary, he began several initiatives, including ARPA-E (Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy), the Energy Innovation Hubs, and the Clean Energy Ministerial meetings. During his tenure, the deployment of renewable energy in the U.S. doubled.

Avery Bang believes that every person has a right to safe travel, and she has built an innovative approach to act on that belief where pedestrian bridges can help. Since joining Bridges to Prosperity as a volunteer in 2006, Bang has developed a scalable model to ensure safe year-round access to schools, markets and health clinics through pedestrian bridge building and training in rural developing communities. Bang also teaches cable-supported pedestrian bridge design at the University of Colorado.

Each honorary degree recipient will briefly address the students, their families and guests about a topic central to their success in life.