Research Reports

As efforts to address climate change accelerate, government policies and programs will continue to look to energy efficiency as a powerful and cost-effective strategy for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Energy efficiency upgrades can help school districts advance their educational mission by reducing energy and other operating costs. Protecting and enhancing indoor air quality also supports the core mission of schools by promoting staff and student health, productivity, and attendance.

In an effort to link the spill-related processes with the existing framework, we released a report in April 2014 entitled “Building Bridges: Connecting the Overlapping Goals, Resources, and Institutions of Gulf of Mexico Restoration and Conservation (Federal Programs).” That report addressed opportunities to link existing federal programs with the processes initiated in response to the spill, identifying dozens of existing federal programs with goals and objectives that overlap with the oil spill restoration processes.

In this report, we focus on Gulf of Mexico state plans (including regional plans) and state programs. As oil spill restoration efforts move forward, these plans and programs may be important to consider for a number of reasons.

Government-to-government consultation is an opportunity for better U.S. Arctic management decisions that are built on an exchange of views and perspectives with Alaska Natives. However, our past research showed that consultation had often failed to live up to its potential. The Handbook attempts to change that by providing a tool to support Alaska Natives as they develop their own policies and procedures for consultation, with a specific focus on marine mammal issues.