James Salvador Niffenegger is a Researcher II in the Water Power R&D group at the National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR). Prior to NLR, James received his Master of Science in mechanical engineering at Stanford University in 2021 and his Bachelor of Science in the same field after graduating magna cum laude at Harvard University in 2019. His research at NLR focuses on promoting and facilitating the integration of marine energy technologies into marine carbon dioxide removal methods, developing novel flexible wave energy converters, combining water power with other renewable energy sources to power offshore applications such as electrochemical carbon capture systems and modeling wave energy converters. His research interests include marine carbon dioxide removal, novel wave energy converter designs, and hybrid energy system optimization. He has published and presented his own research on scientific and humanitarian topics at national and international conferences. In terms of awards, he received a President’s Award from NLR in 2024.