Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions - October 12, 2015

Upcoming Events

October 14

Salt Lake City, Utah

The Why and How of "Trade Ready"

October 15

Charlotte, NC

Realizing Common Goals in Mitigation

October 22

Durham, NC

Leadership in a Time of Rapid Change: Envisioning Solutions to Environmental Challenges

November 3
Durham, NC

Pope Francis in America (and the World)

For information on other upcoming events, visit the Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions website.

Featured Multimedia

Marketplace: Pope Francis's Global Metaphor for Wealth and Climate

In the News

Mother Jones, China will Pony Up $3.1 Billion to Help Poor Countries Fight Climate Change

Thomson Reuters, Healthy Oceans Critical to Achieving U.N. Sustainable Development Goals

ClimateWire, Australia's Water Architect Tests a Legal Reform to Help Drought-Parched U.S. West ($)

On Earth Magazine, Mangrove Forests Help Keep Our Heads Above Water--and Marine Protected Areas Help Them Help Us

Le Monde Diplomatique, Climate Change: Two Funds, Same Money

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Our Impact: Harnessing Science to Inform Agricultural Policy, Carbon Markets

In 2008, policy makers were drafting a federal cap-and-trade bill that increased the likelihood that energy and fuel prices could rise. This, coupled with uncertainty surrounding whether agricultural offsets--an uncapped sector--would provide profitable benefits to farmers without harming production, while also creating real reduction in greenhouse gases capable of offsetting industrial emissions, sparked significant concern in the environmental and agriculture communities. In the tenth installment of a 12-part series highlighting the environmental policy impacts of the Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions over its first decade, we describe how the Technical Working Group on Agricultural Greenhouse Gases (T-AGG) was created to inform this debate.

Blueprint for Water Allocation in the West

Unbundling of existing water rights could help the drought-stricken U.S. West better manage water scarcity. In a new Nicholas Institute report, visiting fellow Michael Young, one of Australia's leading water rights experts, presents a pilot-testing-ready blueprint to guide reforms that would allow for low-cost trading of water shares and allocations and a transition to sustainable use arrangements in the U.S. West. If implemented, the reforms would convert prior appropriation water rights into systems that allow rapid adjustment to changing water supply conditions, generate diverse income streams, and improve environmental outcomes.

Annual Report: Anniversary Issue Online

In our 2015 annual report, we celebrate our accomplishments in 2015 and reflect on how far we've come at this, our tenth anniversary. In the feature story, we present some of the most cutting-edge and influential projects in our vast portfolio of work. Our education section looks at some of the transformative work of our student partners and staff.

Register: October Environmental Forum

Only a few spaces remain for the Nicholas Institute's forum "Leadership in a Time of Rapid Change: Envisioning Solutions to Environmental Challenges" on the Duke University campus, October 22. Register to claim your free seat.

Protected Areas Save Mangroves

Protected areas not only keep significant swaths of Indonesia's shrinking mangrove habitats intact, but also prevent emissions of carbon dioxide that would have been released had these mangroves been cleared, according to a study in the journal Ecological Economics. The analysis examined the success of protected areas between 2000 and 2010, finding that their use has avoided the loss of 14,000 hectares of mangrove habitat.

Climate Change Action in U.S., China

A team of Duke University faculty brought their expertise on climate change, efficiency and other energy-related topics to China for a workshop at Duke Kunshan University and visits to other universities and facilities across the country.

Impacts: Climate Change Mitigation Policies

What are the potentially adverse impacts of carbon pricing for industry? Proponents of carbon pricing tout its economic incentives for reducing carbon emissions, but critics claim that it will burden domestic manufacturers with higher costs, reduced production and increased competition from imports. A new article forthcoming in the Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists and co-authored by the Nicholas Institute's Billy Pizer, examines this tension in depth, and provides a potential policy path forward.

The Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions helps decision makers create timely, effective, and economically practical solutions to the world's critical environmental challenges.

Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions, Duke University,

P.O. Box 90335, Durham, NC 27708.