Research that Informs Business and Public Policy- I’m Not Really Down with Most Top Down Evaluations Maximilian Auffhammer
- Is the Regulatory Compact Broken in Sub-Saharan Africa? Catherine Wolfram
- If a Tree Falls in the Forest…Should We Use It to Generate Electricity? Meredith Fowlie
- Spying on You from Space Maximilian Auffhammer
Category Archives: Uncategorized
I’m Not Really Down with Most Top Down Evaluations
Lunches at Berkeley are never boring. This week I had an engaging discussion with a colleague from out of town who asked me what I thought about statistical top down approaches to evaluating energy efficiency programs. In my excitement, I … Continue reading
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Is the Regulatory Compact Broken in Sub-Saharan Africa?
(Today’s post is co-authored with Paul Gertler. Wolfram and Gertler direct the Applied Research Program on Energy and Economic Growth (EEG) in partnership with Oxford Policy Management. The program is funded by the Department for International Development in the UK.) … Continue reading
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If a Tree Falls in the Forest…Should We Use It to Generate Electricity?
Every summer vacation, we pack our tree-hugging family into the car and head for the Sierra Nevada mountains. In many respects, our trip this summer was just like any other year, complete with family bonding moments and awe-inspiring wilderness experiences: … Continue reading
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Spying on You from Space
The chest thumping in economics about how big and cool our datasets are is becoming somewhat unbearable. Bigger is not always better. In fact, one of the many reasons why we love the field of statistics is that we don’t … Continue reading
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King Coal is Dethroned in the US – and That’s Good News for the Environment
This is the worst year in decades for U.S. coal. During the first six months of 2016, U.S. coal production was down a staggering 28 percent compared to 2015, and down 33 percent compared to 2014. For the first time … Continue reading
Fixing a major flaw in cap-and-trade
While many Californians are spending August burning fossil fuels to travel to vacation destinations, the state legislature is negotiating with Gov. Brown over whether and how to extend the California’s cap-and-trade program to reduce carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases … Continue reading
What the Heck Is Happening in the Developing World?
One of the most important energy graphs these days shows actual and projected energy consumption in the world, separated between developed and developing countries. A version based on data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) is below. The vertical axis … Continue reading
Evaluating Evaluations – Energy Efficiency in California
Last year, Governor Jerry Brown signed a law, Senate Bill 350, that sets out to double energy efficiency savings by 2030. Last week at the Democratic National Convention, Governor Brown focused his remarks on the importance of policies such as … Continue reading
The Promise and Perils of Linking Carbon Markets
The theme of the week is “We’re stronger together“. This rallying cry applies in lots of places.. including climate change mitigation! So this week’s blog looks at how this theme is playing out in carbon markets. A good place to start … Continue reading
Who’s Stranded Now?
Utility costs are like taxes. Everyone knows they have to be paid, but most people have a reason that their own share should be smaller. And, just as with taxes, there are limitless ways to divide up the revenue burden. … Continue reading
