Tianrun Yang joined the group of Energy & Resources at the Copernicus Institute of Sustainable Development at Utrecht University as a PhD candidate. He holds a Bachelor in Energy and Environment System Engineering, a Bachelor in Finance, and a Master in Power Engineering and Engineering Thermophysics. His current research focus is to develop methods allowing integrated assessment of seasonal thermal energy storage from technical, economic, environmental and energy system consequences points of view. The methods will be applied in certain areas of China to identify the role and extent to which seasonal thermal energy storage and alternative heat sources can replace conventional fossil fuel-based heat supply.