Environmental Markets

Current projects and partnerships include:

GE/World Resources Institute
The World Resources Institute, in partnership with Goldman Sachs and GE, launched an initiative to develop a standardized approach to identifying, measuring and mitigating water-related corporate risk. The Water Index will provide one of the most expansive measures of water risks currently available, allowing companies to transparently and adequately capture the various components of water-related risk in making investment decisions.

Resources for the Future (RFF)
Following the release of RFF’s November 2007 report entitled “Assessing U.S. Climate Policy Options” and the subsequent seminars The Center hosted throughout the U.S., The Center agreed to further support RFF’s Climate and Technology Policy Program on a new initiative that focuses on analyzing and developing an international framework as it relates to global climate change. The 15-month project will provide design options and a thorough analysis of the economic and environmental implications of various approaches.

Assessing U.S. Climate Change Options, November 2007 [PDF, 7 MB] 

Assessing U.S. Climate Change Options - Executive Summary, November 2007 [PDF, 900 KB]

Woods Hole Research Center
As part of a commitment to the Clinton Global Initiative, the Center has partnered with the Woods Hole Research Center on a three-year project to examine how to value forest ecosystem resources and services, and to analyze economic alternatives to rainforest destruction.

World Resources Institute
The Center partnered with the World Resources Institute to examine the viability of large-scale deployment of various technology options to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and diversify the world's energy sources. The project assessed the policy, technical and market barriers to deployment and scale-up of each technology.

Capturing King Coal - Deploying Carbon Capture and Storage Systems in the U.S. at Scale, May 2008 [PDF, 1.2 MB]

Plants at the Pump - Biofuels, Climate Change and Sustainability, December 2007 [PDF, 2 MB]

Scaling up: Global Technology Deployment to Stabilize Emissions, April, 2007

Initiative for Global Environmental Leadership (IGEL)
The Center is one of the founding corporate members of IGEL, which has recently been launched by the University of Pennsylvania and The Wharton School. IGEL is intended to provide a forum for discussion and research of environmental issues that are of importance to the business community. It will also provide and promote tools for effective corporate communication, management education and strategic planning related to these issues.

The Prince’s Rainforests Project
The Center is a Steering Committee member of The Prince’s Rainforests Project which was launched by His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales. The project brings together private sector, government and environmental experts to develop practical solutions to reduce deforestation and raise global awareness of the true value of tropical rainforests.

The UC Davis Energy Efficiency Center (EEC)
The Center has partnered with the EEC, the first university-based energy efficiency center in the United States, whose objective is to speed the transfer of new energy-saving products and services into the marketplace.