Energy and Environment

Water Resources Management
commentary
How to Ensure Quality Drinking Water Service for All? One Option Is Fewer Utilities.
David Catt, Michelle E. Miro, Miriam Elizabeth Marlier
Mar 26, 2019
The RAND Blog
California's Human Right to Water Bill declares that “every human being has the right to safe, clean, affordable, and accessible water adequate for human consumption, cooking, and sanitary purposes.” One clear barrier to reaching this target is the sheer number of small water utilities that pose service sustainability and public health risks to their customers.
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Water Resources Management
commentary
Lessening Leakages: How Water Systems Can Learn From Smart Electric Grids
Jalal Awan, Michelle E. Miro, Miriam Elizabeth Marlier
Mar 22, 2019
The RAND Blog
As drought and population growth place increasing pressure on water supply, the need to save and efficiently manage Southern California's water resources becomes increasingly critical. A single information and communication technology platform could go a long way toward moving water utilities from reactive to proactive maintenance practices.
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Water Supply
commentary
Increasing Groundwater Reliance in L.A. County Means Dealing with Extensive Contamination
Alexandra Huttinger, Michelle E. Miro, Miriam Elizabeth Marlier
Mar 12, 2019
The RAND Blog
As the Los Angeles region increases its reliance on groundwater sources to become more resilient in the face of drought and to reduce demand for imported water sources, advances in the information available on groundwater quality and contamination could help community water systems avoid health hazards and better ensure a safe drinking water supply.
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Global Climate Change
essay
Resilience and Adaptation Strategies Can Address the Impacts of Climate Change
Feb 26, 2019
With climate change already generating storms, heat waves, and droughts beyond historical norms, local governments need to do more to prepare. A decisionmaking framework developed by RAND allows communities to stress-test ideas, weigh the trade-offs, and plan for a range of possible futures.
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China
commentary
The Little-Known Security Gaps in China's Belt and Road Initiative
Mollie Saltskog, Colin P. Clarke @ColinPClarke
Feb 18, 2019
The National Interest
China's Belt and Road Initiative focuses on developing infrastructure to connect Beijing to key hubs of economic activity throughout the world. But the more interests one has abroad, the more one has to protect.
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Global Climate Change
commentary
Triaging Climate Change
Benjamin Lee Preston @bl_preston, Johanna Nalau
Jan 23, 2019
The Conversation
There are many opportunities to manage climate risk around the world, but not everything can be saved. Delaying triage of climate damages could leave societies making ad hoc decisions instead of focusing on protecting the things they value most.
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Energy Conservation
commentary
Can Innovative Financing by the Public and Private Sectors Build on Momentum in Energy Efficiency Improvements for Affordable Multifamily Housing?
Lisa Jonsson, Aimee E. Curtright @ACurtright
Dec 12, 2018
The Energy Collective
Nearly one in three American households in 2015 reported difficulty paying their energy bills or sustaining adequate home heating and cooling. Emerging models of energy services and financing show promise, and could identify creative ways to increase access to funding that could preserve and improve home affordability for millions of Americans.
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Disaster Recovery Operations
commentary
Overlapping Environmental Disasters Put a Strain on Gulf Communities
Melissa L. Finucane @MelissaFinucane
Nov 29, 2018
NOLA.com
For Gulf Coast residents, dealing with the impact of the Deepwater Horizon disaster is challenging enough. With the Taylor Energy spill, they may face an even more daunting recovery, one that could take decades. Acknowledging the extent and complexity of recovery is the first step toward supporting coastal communities to build their resilience in the face of overlapping disasters.
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International Diplomacy
commentary
Could America Use Its Leverage to Alter the Saudis' Behavior?
Ariane M. Tabatabai @ArianeTabatabai, Becca Wasser @Becca_Wasser
Nov 15, 2018
Newsweek
As the Saudis' chief political and military partner and the undisputed security guarantor in the Middle East, the United States has considerable influence it can wield over Saudi decisionmaking. The Trump administration could consider using its influence to encourage Saudi leadership to moderate its assertive and damaging policies abroad.
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Global Climate Change
commentary
Mitigating India's Climate-Change Misery
Gulrez Shah Azhar
Oct 11, 2018
Project Syndicate
Despite years of dire forecasts, the international community has been unable to halt the steady climb in global temperatures, and it is the world's poorest who are paying the heaviest toll. As heat-related risks intensify, those living on the margins—in India and elsewhere—will need help to cope effectively.
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Natural Hazards
announcement
RAND Wins $2.1 Million Grant to Improve Landslide Prediction
Oct 10, 2018
A RAND-led team that includes the University of Southern California, the University of Oregon, the Sitka Sound Science Center, and the Sitka Tribe of Alaska will design a novel landslide risk warning system for Sitka, Alaska, a coastal town of 9,000 near the landslide-prone slopes of the Tongass National Forest.
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Environmental Pollution
commentary
Ammonia – Why the Big Stink?
Sarah Giles, Hadeel Tabaqchali, Susan Guthrie, Catriona Manville @CMManville
Sep 18, 2018
The Royal Society
Ammonia pollution harms human health and reduces the richness and diversity of the environment. As new policy frameworks are implemented in the UK, there is an opportunity to support farmers to make the changes necessary to reduce ammonia pollution.
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Occupational Training
essay
Appalachia Partnership Helps Both Workers and Employers in a Changing Market
Aug 30, 2018
An innovative program in Appalachia is realigning the skills of the workforce with the needs of employers, getting people back on the job and providing a 21st-century model of workforce development.
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Emerging Technologies
commentary
A Better Way to Think About Scooters
Robert J. Lempert @RobertLempert, Tim McDonald, Andrew J. Lohn @andrewjlohn
Aug 28, 2018
Los Angeles Times
Unleashed in Santa Monica, California, last September, Bird and its competitors are now in 30 American cities and counting. Cities are responding to the scooter takeover with new regulations and increased law enforcement. But if officials rely only on 20th-century tools to integrate these 21st-century scooters into their cities, they will miss a big opportunity.
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Environmental Regulation
commentary
Suggestions to Help EPA Successfully Implement Retrospective Reviews
Benjamin M. Miller
Jul 19, 2018
Legal Planet
The EPA's interest in including a systematic retrospective review element in new regulation has the potential to provide a transparent and well-structured method for assessing which decisions worked well and which didn't. If successful, it could serve as a role model for other regulatory agencies.
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Emergency Preparedness
commentary
FEMA's Transformation
Daniel M. Gerstein @Daniel_Gerstein
Jun 8, 2018
CNN
The Federal Emergency Management Agency's strategic plan shows several shifts in U.S. disaster relief policy. Redirecting longer-term recovery operations to state and local authorities would allow FEMA to concentrate its assets on the catastrophic disasters it is uniquely designed to handle.
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The Policy Currents Podcast

Measuring Wellbeing to Help Communities Thrive

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Improving Access to Early Childhood Education

Addressing the Invisible Wounds of War

Energy and Environment

How to Ensure Quality Drinking Water Service for All? One Option Is Fewer Utilities.

Lessening Leakages: How Water Systems Can Learn From Smart Electric Grids

Increasing Groundwater Reliance in L.A. County Means Dealing with Extensive Contamination

Resilience and Adaptation Strategies Can Address the Impacts of Climate Change

The Little-Known Security Gaps in China's Belt and Road Initiative

Triaging Climate Change

Can Innovative Financing by the Public and Private Sectors Build on Momentum in Energy Efficiency Improvements for Affordable Multifamily Housing?

Overlapping Environmental Disasters Put a Strain on Gulf Communities

Could America Use Its Leverage to Alter the Saudis' Behavior?

Mitigating India's Climate-Change Misery

RAND Wins $2.1 Million Grant to Improve Landslide Prediction

Ammonia – Why the Big Stink?

Appalachia Partnership Helps Both Workers and Employers in a Changing Market

A Better Way to Think About Scooters

Suggestions to Help EPA Successfully Implement Retrospective Reviews

FEMA's Transformation

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