Jerry Yang ‘90 and Akiko Yamazaki ‘90 saw their $50 million gift finally put into use at the dedication ceremony yesterday for the building created in their name. The Jerry Yang and Akiko Yamazaki Environment and Energy Building, known by its acronym Y2E2, is the result of an eight-year effort to create a multidisciplinary institution addressing environmental sustainability and the effects of global climate change.

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Mae Ryan

Dean of the School of Earth Sciences Pamela Matson addressed a crowd at the formal dedication of the new Jerry Yang and Akiko Yamazaki Environment and Energy Building, or Y2E2. Also present were Yahoo! co-founder Jerry Yang and wife Akiko Yamazaki.

The ceremony — which was preceded by a three-hour environmental symposium in Memorial Auditorium — highlighted the significance of the building in climate change research and commemorated those who made its construction possible. Speaking at the event were Chair of the Board of Trustees Burt McMurtry MS ‘59, President John Hennessy, Dean of the School of Earth Sciences Pamela Matson, Yahoo! co-founder Jerry Yang and his spouse Akiko Yamazaki.

As a center focused on environmental sustainability, Y2E2’s construction is aimed at reducing its carbon footprint. The building, located near Roble field, is projected to use half of the energy used by similar-sized buildings.

All four speakers spoke extensively on the revolutionary nature of the project, both in the building’s innovative design and the groundbreaking nature of the research that will be conducted at the center.

“Our efforts began with a core group of environmental faculty, but eventually they would grow to encompass all seven schools at Stanford,” Hennessy said. “[We had] a broad range of engagement with people focused on the issues of sustainability and business in industry, questions of environmental education, and of course the fundamental science that underlies any technology or [improves on] policies.”

Yang and Yamazaki said they were compelled to invest in the project due to the scope and gravity of the environmental problems it aims to address. Yamazaki emphasized the importance of environmental research in creating a planet that can support future generations.

“The complexity of today’s global environmental questions requires that experts from a variety of fields come together to address different facets of the same problem,” Yamazaki said. “For our children to be able to enjoy and experience what we’ve been blessed with, we cannot afford not to do something today.”

Matson enumerated the numerous groups of people involved in the construction and development of Y2E2. She remarked on the importance of the building as a meeting center for students, professors and researchers across the entire campus.

“As you walk around here, you will see lots of meeting spaces, work spaces and gathering places,” Matson said. “We did that on purpose because we wanted this to be a coming-together place not just for the people who are actually in the building, but for the whole university.”