Community Health and Environmental Policy Projects

Calculating Uncertainty in Biomass Emissions (CUBE) Model
CUBE 2.0, an update of the 2010 release of the 1.0 version, allows users to estimate the "farm-to-gate" greenhouse gas emissions of biomass feedstocks for energy production, as well as the uncertainty in these emissions.
Evaluating Robust Water Management Strategies for the Colorado River Basin
RAND worked with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and Colorado River Basin states to apply innovative robust decision methods to evaluate thousands of plausible futures on the Colorado River and develop and compare strategies to address future vulnerabilities.
RAND Convenience Store Project
The RAND Convenience Store Project is conducting a series of research studies to learn about what people purchase at convenience stores.
How Food Insecurity Affects People Living with HIV in Latin America and the Carribean
RAND researchers developed a decade-long partnership with the World Food Programme and local partners to develop and evaluate pilot projects that address food insecurity and nutritional needs of people with HIV in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Robust Decisionmaking May Help EPA's National Water Plan Manage Climate and Other Uncertainties
Maintaining safe and reliable water supplies depends on timely investments in water treatment, storage, and delivery infrastructure. RAND undertook a project for the EPA to determine the utility of Robust Decision Making (RDM) methods for evaluating the agency's needs and priorities under the National Water Program.
Valuing the Resilience Benefits of Green Infrastructure in Pittsburgh
Urban stormwater management is a growing challenge in many cities, and green stormwater infrastructure can improve water quality and reduce flooding, while also providing new green space. This project assesses the benefits and costs of green infrastructure for two key watersheds in the Pittsburgh area.
Adaptive Management of the L.A. Metropolitan Water District's Integrated Resources Plan
The 2010 Integrated Resource Plan Update developed by the Los Angeles Metropolitan Water District (MWD) includes a preferred resource mix as well as an adaptive management approach to monitor key trends and modify the resource mix as necessary. RAND helped the MWD determine which trends are most useful to monitor.
Advising the Metropolitan Water District's Blue Ribbon Commission
The Southern California Metropolitan Water District sought advice determining which trends are most useful to monitor to implement its adaptive management strategy. RAND supported Metropolitan's Blue Ribbon Commission to develop recommendations for a new business model to help the agency meet its goals over the next fifty years.
Reducing New Orleans Storm-Surge Flood Risk in an Uncertain Future
Preparing for natural disasters is a long, multi-faceted process that requires years of planning, coordination, and direct action. RAND has developed a new approach for assessing hurricane flood risk in New Orleans under uncertainty and evaluating city-wide approaches for reducing this risk.
How Does Neighborhood Environment Impact Health Outcomes?
The PHRESH project examines how neighborhood characteristics—like access to fresh fruits, vegetables, and meats—could make residents more or less healthy.
OnePGH: Supporting Development of Pittsburgh's Resilience Strategy
RAND partnered with the city of Pittsburgh to develop the city's first city-wide Resilience Strategy. Known as OnePGH, it's a comprehensive plan to address the current and future challenges that confront the city and its residents.
Public Health Preparedness for Special Needs Populations
To help state and local public health departments develop emergency preparedness plans for special needs populations, this toolkit distills the most relevant strategies, practices, and resources to identify priority populations and strategies for addressing their needs.
Focus on Wellbeing
The issue of civic wellbeing has become an important topic. RAND research explores the impact of wellbeing on quality of life across several dimensions.
SOPARC Online App Enables Easier Recording of Park Use
SOPARC is a validated, direct observation tool for assessing physical activity and associated people and environmental characteristics in park and recreation settings. RAND developed an online tool for recording park activities.