Planning for Sustainability in Small Municipalities: The Influence of Interest Groups, Growth Patterns, and Institutional Characteristics

How and why small municipalities promote sustainability through planning efforts is poorly understood. We analyzed ordinances in 451 Maine municipalities and tested theories of policy adoption using regression analysis.We found that smaller communities do adopt programs that contribute to sustainability relevant to their scale and context. In line with the political market theory, we found that municipalities with strong environmental interests, higher growth, and more formal governments were more likely to adopt these policies. Consideration of context and capacity in planning for sustainability will help planners better identify and benefit from collaboration, training, and outreach opportunities

Sustainable cities : agenda setting and implementation of sustainability initiatives in U.S. cities

textPublic Polic

Growth Without (Emissions) Growth: State Progress and Drift on Decoupling​

Decoupling of GDP growth from growth in carbon emissions is taking on an increasing salience since it represents the squaring of the circle necessary to decarbonize the global economy while maintaining economic growth. Now the evidence says that since 2000 the United States has fully decoupled economic growth from carbon emissions: GDP went up by 30 percent over the past 15 years while carbon emissions decreased by 10 percent. This public lecture and presentation will discuss how the transformation of economic growth towards a lower dependency on fossil fuels and related carbon emissions is happening across U.S. states including in Nevada

Designing the Next Generation of Federal Tax Credits for Low-Carbon Technologies

Achieving emissions reductions to reach economywide net-zero emissions by 2050 will require sustained technological innovations and widespread deployment of emerging low-carbon technologies that are not yet commercially deployed on a mass-market scale. Tax credits are an important policy tool for supporting the early-stage deployment of emerging technologies as well as more mature technologies that have not yet reached widespread deployment. While existing federal tax credits have played an important role in enabling the deployment of several low-carbon technologies, including wind, solar, and electric vehicles, they also suffer from critical design deficiencies that make them less effective. This paper proposes six considerations for designing the next generation of federal tax credits that can support deployment of clean energy and low-carbon technologies in the U.S. power, transportation, industrial, and buildings sectors. Within each consideration, the paper lays out different approaches and discusses the tradeoffs between each.</jats:p

Just Transitions in the Oil and Gas Sector: Considerations for Addressing Impacts on Workers and Communities in Middle-Income Countries

About half of the world’s oil and gas is produced by “middle-income” developing countries. These countries could face a significant drop in government revenue due to the global shift away from fossil fuels. The shift away from oil and gas will also contribute to job displacement and economic insecurity for workers and communities supported by the industry. This paper advises policymakers to pursue a just transition away from the oil and gas sector while minimizing harm to workers and communities that have depended on that industry.</jats:p

The Economic Benefits of the New Climate Economy in Rural America

Rural US communities can reap significant benefits from investments in the new climate economy, including measures to advance clean energy systems, remediate abandoned fossil fuel production sites, restore trees to the landscape and reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire. Collectively, these measures can create new economic opportunities in rural places while addressing climate change. This working paper presents a detailed analysis of the rural economic impact from federal policies that invest in the new climate economy, including information about the geographic and sectoral distribution of those investments. This analysis finds that with a total annual federal investment of $55 billion, nearly$15 billion would flow to rural counties, supporting nearly 260,000 rural jobs over at least five years. This working paper also offers recommendation on policy vehicles to ensure that federal investment reaches rural areas and communities most in need.</jats:p