Global climate models developed by the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change predict glacial retreat, rises in sea level, and other impacts on human and natural activity, from agriculture to migratory patterns. RAND researchers have studied and are continuing to examine the effects of climate change, particularly how governments and businesses respond to both observed changes and projected scenarios.
By examining not only how a service is produced but how it is provided, energy services analysis can lead to greater reductions in energy use and greenhouse gas emissions than conventional approaches.
Climate change, water scarcity, and pandemics are examined for their national security implications and impacts on the global commons. This paper describes four clusters of policy approaches for these complex, interconnected issues and uses suggestive examples to build the case for policy evolution away from fixing problems and toward innovative alternatives, such as anti-fragile systems, that actually benefit from change and uncertainty.
Geoengineering is risky, but could transform the portfolio of options for limiting future climate change. Some geoengineering approaches could prove fast acting and inexpensive and could be deployed by one or a few nations without global cooperation.
U.S. power plants seek to diversify their fuel sources and biomass energy is a renewable resource that generally has lower life-cycle greenhouse-gas emissions than fossil fuels. This model estimates the cost and availability of biomass energy resources from U.S. agricultural lands from the perspective of an individual power plant.
This paper explores how much British citizens might be willing to pay for carbon emissions reduction, and the implication of this for climate change policies.
If the U.S. military increases its use of alternative fuels, there will be no direct benefit to the nation's armed forces. It makes more sense for the military to direct its efforts toward using energy more efficiently.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency ended a voluntary national program that encouraged facilities to improve all aspects of their environmental performance. The significant environmental challenges that the U.S. faces require it to continue to seek complements to traditional regulatory approaches.
The United States can become more energy efficient and create more "green" jobs by adopting some of the strategies used by the European Union and Australia to rate and disclose the performance of commercial and government-owned buildings.
International energy-assistance programs are a potentially important tool for addressing the challenges of reducing global greenhouse gas emissions and increasing U.S. energy security. This study reviews U.S. programs and compares them with German programs, which take a different, more centralized approach. Insights from recent studies of U.S. energy and climate policy are presented, along with recommendations for further investigation.
Shortly after the inauguration of President Barack Obama, RAND hosted a panel discussion with three former U.S. secretaries of transportation. These conference proceedings summarize their comments on which issues should be among the Department of Transportation's (DOT's) top priorities, DOT funding and appropriation, earmarking and transparency in the transportation funding process, and the federal role in transportation policy.
Devising policies to mitigate greenhouse gases responsible for climate change is one of the great challenges facing the U.S. Options that are effective and politically feasible must not just be cost-effective but also consider the realities of passing major federal legislation with widespread impacts on U.S. producers and consumers.
In testimony presented before the California Little Hoover Commission, James Dobbins suggests financing alternatives to replace declining fuel taxes and non-user fees in order to promote efficient transportation infrastructure development.
In June 2008, RAND convened three workshops for private and public sector representatives to discuss their competing views on climate change mitigation. The conference allowed them to find commonality on such issues as technological innovation; potential legislative and regulatory solutions; international cooperation; and public engagement.
In testimony presented before the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, James T. Bartis addresses critical R&D needs and opportunities associated with fossil energy.
China's Tianjin Binhai New Area (TBNA) and Tianjin Economic-Technological Development Area (TEDA) can best spur regional development and economic growth by focusing on emerging high-technology applications, including molecular-scale drug development and green manufacturing.
The federal government can spark the creation of a commercially competitive coal-to-liquids industry by fostering early development of plants that would produce transportation fuels from coal, as well as by expanding its investment in carbon sequestration technology to help limit, and possibly reduce, greenhouse gas emissions levels.
Alternative sources of fossil fuels such as oil sands and coal-to-liquids have significant economic promise, but the environmental consequences must also be considered.
A comprehensive look at Los Angeles traffic debunks common myths about the metropolitan region's traffic patterns and details the reasons why congestion is so bad — and why it will get worse in the coming years without significant policy changes.
The volume of freight transported in the United States is expected to double over the next 30 years. Greater use of rail freight could allow the supply chain to accommodate this increase while minimizing highway congestion and reducing fuel consumption.
Dramatic progress in renewable energy technology is needed if the United States desires to produce 25 percent of its electricity and motor vehicle fuel from renewable sources by 2025 without significantly increasing consumer costs.
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