Skip to page content

Environmental and Natural Resource Management

Featured

The use and conservation of natural resources such as water, land, soil, plants, and animals affects a multitude of industries, from agriculture and mining to tourism, fishing, and forestry. RAND researchers concerned about ecosystems and sustainability pursue studies in flooding, nuclear energy, drought, coastal restoration, and more in their quest to mitigate the potential adverse effects of mismanagement.

Commentary
Amid Climate Change, These Tech and Policy Experts See Reason for Optimism
To slow climate change and adapt to the damage already underway, the world will have to shift how it generates and uses energy, transports people and goods, designs buildings, and grows food. That starts with embracing innovation and change.
Apr 18, 2022
Commentary
How Could the United States Incentivize Investors to Decarbonize the Economy?
While mandatory climate-related disclosure may improve information and decisionmaking for investors, it alone is unlikely to accelerate investment in decarbonization at the rate needed. To motivate private investment in climate mitigation, policymakers could explore additional policies.
May 12, 2022

Explore Environmental and Natural Resource Management

Periodical
RAND Review: March-April 2023
The cover story describes how K-12 schools can build trust with students to increase threat reporting and strengthen school safety. The Q&A with Ashley Woo explores how restrictions on race- and gender-related topics are affecting teachers.
Mar 22, 2023
Essay
The Time to Prevent Shortfalls in Critical Materials Is Now
China's domination of the rare earth market is a matter of economic and national security concern. Existing plans to diversify the market and help the United States break its reliance on China likely don't go far enough or fast enough, and the clock is running.
Mar 20, 2023
Report
Growing Toward a Low-Carbon Future: Estimating Greenhouse Gas Emissions in California's Westlands Water District
The authors assessed the greenhouse gas emissions of crop production in California's Westlands Water District and the trade-offs of policies aimed at decarbonization. They provide policy insights and recommendations to local and state decisionmakers.
Mar 1, 2023
Research Brief
Growing Toward a Low-Carbon Future: Policy Implications of Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Their Trade-Offs in California's Westlands Water District
The authors assessed the greenhouse gas emissions of crop production in California's Westlands Water District and the trade-offs of policies aimed at decarbonization. They provide policy insights and recommendations to local and state decisionmakers.
Mar 1, 2023
Brochure
Implications of Climate Change for Department of the Air Force Missions and Operations
This compilation of climate research conducted within RAND Project AIR FORCE for the Department of the Air Force and more broadly across RAND offers insights about climate change and its implications for military operations and other contexts.
Feb 1, 2023
Tool
Chesapeake Bay Model Inventory and Selection Tool (MIST)
The Model Inventory and Selection Tool (MIST) is an interactive, searchable database of empirical, statistical, and conceptual models relevant to water- and climate-related planning and decisionmaking in the Chesapeake Bay watershed and beyond.
Jan 19, 2023
Tool
Mid-Atlantic Regional Climate Impacts Summary and Outlook: Fall 2022
This climate summary aims to inform Mid-Atlantic policymakers and practitioners about fall 2022, regional climate trends, and the upcoming winter season. An interactive tool shows an analysis of the longest stretches of dry days and how they are expected to change in the future.
Dec 23, 2022
Report
Critical Material Supply Chains Should Be More Resilient
The COVID-19 pandemic and Russian invasion of Ukraine highlight the vulnerabilities of supply chains that are dependent on foreign inputs. How can the U.S. Department of Defense increase the resilience of its supply chains for materials essential to national security?
Dec 15, 2022
Commentary
Is Seabed Mining an Opportunity to Break China's Stranglehold on Critical Minerals Supply Chains?
China dominates global supply chains for nearly all critical mineral resources, including the rare earths that power decarbonization technologies. Seabed mining may be a way to diversify critical minerals supply chains and break China's stranglehold on supplies of some of the world's most important natural resources.
Nov 21, 2022
Commentary
Governance in Space: Mining the Moon and Beyond
Without further cooperation and agreement among space powers, multiple, competing governance systems may end up being established, further increasing potential for conflict. The time to address this issue is now, so that the use of deep-space resources contributes to prosperity, security, and freedom on Earth and throughout the solar system.
Nov 18, 2022
Tool
Mid-Atlantic Regional Climate Impacts Summary and Outlook: Summer 2022
This climate summary aims to inform Mid-Atlantic policymakers and practitioners about summer 2022, regional climate trends, and the upcoming summer season. An interactive tool shows an analysis of the longest stretches of high heat days and how they are expected to change in the future.
Sep 22, 2022
Multimedia
Update on Findings of Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
In this webinar, contributors to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and experts from the RAND Climate Resilience Center discuss findings from the report of the IPCC Working Group II.
Aug 3, 2022
Tool
Mid-Atlantic Regional Climate Impacts Summary and Outlook: Spring 2022
This climate summary aims to inform Mid-Atlantic policymakers and practitioners about spring 2022, regional climate trends, and the upcoming summer season. A tool shows an analysis of future projected changes in total monthly precipitation, compared to two baseline periods.
Jun 27, 2022
Blog
Helping Ukrainian Refugees, Truth Decay, Algorithmic Inequity: RAND Weekly Recap
This weekly recap focuses on how to help Ukrainian refugees, the link between cognitive processes and Truth Decay, tracking wastewater to understand the spread of COVID-19, and more.
Apr 1, 2022
Commentary
National Wastewater Tracking Could Help Us Stay Ahead of COVID-19—but Congress Cut the Funds
For years, medical experts have used wastewater to track the spread of diseases. The National Wastewater Surveillance System has the potential to significantly change the way we fight COVID-19 as well as future pandemics, bacterial diseases, and viruses. But building up the robustness of a wastewater surveillance system will take financial support, and it's not clear Congress will provide it.
Mar 24, 2022
Journal Article
Remote Sensing for Natural Disaster Recovery: Lessons Learned from Hurricanes Irma and Maria in Puerto Rico
We present how remote sensing data was incorporated into the assessment and planning process, focusing on the applications for Puerto Rico's natural resources in the months following the hurricanes.
Mar 23, 2022
Tool
Mid-Atlantic Regional Climate Impacts Summary and Outlook: Winter 2021–2022
This climate summary aims to inform Mid-Atlantic policymakers and practitioners about winter 2021–2022, regional climate trends, and the upcoming winter season. A tool shows an analysis of future projected changes in precipitation, compared to climate normals.
Mar 18, 2022
Commentary
A Timely Opportunity for the U.S. Coast Guard to Teach a Man to Protect His Fish
The U.S. Coast Guard has made strong statements suggesting it would be increasing its effort to deter illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing activity. As it does so, the Coast Guard might also consider enhancing its role as a trainer of other nations.
Feb 24, 2022

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Next

RAND Topic:
Environmental and Natural Resource Management

Research conducted by

Researcher Spotlight

Matthew Kubasak

Ph.D. Student, Pardee RAND Graduate School, and Assistant Policy Researcher, RAND

Matthew Kubasak is a Ph.D. student in the Research, Analysis, and Design stream at Pardee RAND Graduate School and an assistant policy analyst at RAND. He has a B.S. in applied and computational math and statistics and double majored in political science from the University of Notre Dame.
Robert J. Lempert

Director, Frederick S. Pardee Center for Longer Range Global Policy and the Future Human Condition

Robert Lempert is director of the Frederick S. Pardee Center for Longer Range Global Policy and the Future Human Condition and a principal researcher at the RAND Corporation. His research focuses on risk management and decisionmaking under conditions of deep uncertainty. Lempert's work aims to…

Explore Our People »