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Energy and Environment

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RAND energy and environmental analyses examine the implications of existing and proposed energy policies on the environment. Building on a long history of policy research, RAND helps balance the need for environmental protections and economic development.

Essay

Manipulating the Climate: What Are the Geopolitical Risks?

Dec 29, 2021

Geoengineering technologies that could block the sun's rays or siphon huge amounts of carbon from the air are not that far out of reach. Yet the international community has not established the kinds of guardrails you might expect for potentially world-changing technologies.
Report

Assessing Social Equity in Disaster Preparation, Response, and Recovery

Nov 16, 2021

In this webinar, senior social scientist Melissa Finucane reviews the complex nature of social equity--including contextual, procedural, and distributional equity dimensions--and how a robust, evidence-based approach is needed to measure progress toward equity in disaster contexts.

Topics in Focus:

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Blog

Geoengineering, the Russia-Ukraine Crisis, Biosimilar Drugs: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on technologies that manipulate the climate, what NATO could do to address the Ukraine-Russia crisis, and cost savings from biosimilar drugs.

Jan 14, 2022
Tool

Identifying and Planning for Vulnerabilities in the San Bernardino Valley Municipal Water District’s Water Management Plans

This interactive tool presents the results of a study that evaluated the performance of the San Bernardino Valley Municipal Water District water plans under a range of future conditions, including climate change, drought occurrence, and water demand.

Jan 6, 2022
Essay

Citizen Science Helps Communities Participate in, Understand, and Trust Science

Good citizen science brings a community together and helps it prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters. A RAND guide takes non-expert investigators from the early stages of defining their questions and setting their goals, through building their teams, to planning for action.

Jan 4, 2022
Periodical

RAND Review: January-February 2022

The cover story highlights the risks of geoengineering -- the large-scale manipulation of environmental processes to control climate. The Q&A with Jacqueline Burns sheds light on how her military experience informs her approach to research and analysis.

Jan 4, 2022
Blog

RAND Commentary Highlights of 2021

Vaccine rollouts, an attack on the U.S. Capitol, massive ransomware attacks, the withdrawal from Afghanistan, record numbers of job openings and people quitting, and more. RAND researchers weighed in on all these topics and more.

Dec 21, 2021
Journal Article

Adaptive Water Management in the Face of Uncertainty: Integrating Machine Learning, Groundwater Modeling and Robust Decision Making

This study examines climate change and water resources management challenges facing water suppliers in drought-prone regions.

Dec 21, 2021
Tool

Mid-Atlantic Regional Climate Impacts Summary and Outlook: Fall 2021

This climate summary aims to inform Mid-Atlantic policymakers and practitioners about fall 2021, regional climate trends, and the upcoming winter season. A tool shows an analysis of future projected changes in temperature, compared to climate normals.

Dec 21, 2021
Blog

Russia and Ukraine, Climate Migration, Democracy in Asia: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on Russia and Ukraine, planning for climate migration, the state of democracy in Asia, and more.

Dec 10, 2021
Report

Addressing Climate Migration

As the effects of climate change increase in scope and severity, more people will relocate to preserve or enhance their lives and livelihoods. A review of how six countries are managing climate mobility provides options for policymakers considering the needs of climate migrants and their host communities.

Dec 7, 2021
Blog

Addressing Anti-Asian Racism, Stabilizing U.S. Rivalries, the Debt-Ceiling Fight: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on countering anti-Asian racism, the instability of U.S. rivalries with Russia and China, the rise in extremist online activity, and more.

Dec 3, 2021
Blog

Measuring Greenhouse Gases in Los Angeles County

Los Angeles, once the U.S. capital of smog and sprawl, has vowed to lead the nation into a cleaner, greener future by stamping out carbon pollution. A small array of sensors installed on the roof of RAND's Santa Monica headquarters could help it get there.

Nov 30, 2021
Commentary

More Than Green: Leveraging Green Bonds to Invest in Greater Climate Resilience

The significance of green bonds may depend not only on having a lot of them but also on carefully developing, investing, and tracking projects against the larger goal of climate resilience.

Nov 24, 2021
Commentary

The Growing Green Bond Market Could Plateau. How Can It Grow Further?

If green bonds are a viable tool to reduce emissions and adapt infrastructure to the effects of climate change, how can governments encourage the issuance, sales, and growth in the share of green bonds in the total bond market?

Nov 23, 2021
Journal Article

Overview of the Jack Rabbit II (JR II) Field Experiments and Summary of the Methods Used in the Dispersion Model Comparisons

This paper summarizes the Jack Rabbit II chlorine release trials conducted at the U.S. Army Dugway Proving Ground in 2015 and 2016 and provides on overview of comparisons of 17 widely used dense-gas dispersion models using the JR II data.

Nov 23, 2021
Commentary

Green Bonds Can Leave Issuers in the Red

To achieve the Biden administration's blueprint for solar energy and focus on climate change mitigation and adaptation, green bonds may be worth considering. But, like any other financing instrument, they may be best considered through a cost-benefit lens.

Nov 22, 2021
Journal Article

Lessons from Harvey: Improving Traditional Damage Estimates with Social Media Sourced Damage Estimates

Social media systems were incredibly active during disasters. Traditional sources such as the initial FEMA damage estimates can miss areas of heavy impact. This study provides a novel use case in crisis informatics.

Nov 16, 2021
Journal Article

Run Uphill for a Tsunami, Downhill for a Landslide

Following fatal landslides, the town of Sitka, Alaska, worked with scientists to create a new, individualized hazard warning system, revealing the complexities of coproducing knowledge.

Nov 12, 2021
Blog

North Korea, Sexual Violence in the U.S. Military, America's Labor Shortage: RAND Weekly Recap

This weekly recap focuses on dealing with a nuclear North Korea, preventing sexual violence in the military, supporting immigrant children in U.S. schools, and more.

Nov 5, 2021

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