What promises do we have to keep? : A Call for Bipartisan Action on Climate Change
by Casey Fischl Across the globe, countries acknowledge climate change as a scientific fact and have been implementing mitigation and adaptation strategies as per their commitment in the Paris Agreement. This, however, is not the case for the United States where political leaders are still debating and questioning what 97 percent of climate scientists agree Read more…
drinking, still I thirst: the impact of bottled water
by Casey Fischl Bottled water consumption has steadily increased over the last few decades, reaching an all-time high in 2017 with 13.7 billion gallons of bottled water purchased in the United States. The consumption of bottled water has surpassed all other products in the beverage industry, including soda and beer. Read more…
Climate Change Means a Looming Refugee Crisis
by Casey Fischl
There are currently 68.5 million displaced individuals worldwide according to The UN Refugee Agency. Of the many refugees in need of new homes due to violence and persecution in their home countries, only 102,800 have been resettled.
Corn-Fed: Taking stalk of the government’s role in industrialized corn
by Olivia Olson Not on a cob. Not served with peas. But in your soft drinks, condiments, fast food, and salad dressing. The term ‘corn-fed’ once harkened back to Midwestern children with rosy cheeks, but has taken on a whole new meaning with the pervasiveness of industrialized corn. Whether Read more…
Georgia’s energy consumption costs are among the highest in America, study finds
The Atlanta Journal-Constitutioncited comments by Lisa Schweitzerof the USC Price School on how ease of access affects transportation and energy costs across the country. According to University of Southern California professor Lisa Schweitzer, “transport and access make a fairly large difference in many states for gasoline costs.” Full article here
Who Has the Ear of Your Legislators and Why They Can’t Seem to Get Anything Done
We’re six months away from one of the most consequential midterm elections in modern history, and Americans are fed up with Congress. Politicians have gotten a bad rap throughout history, but today’s legislators are setting record lows in approval ratings and public trust. What gives? Why do they disappoint us so often? Are they really ignoring our needs and demands, or are we misunderstanding the challenges they face?
In this episode, Sarah Anderson shows that it’s a little of both: politicians don’t listen to all constituents equally, but they also can’t just snap their fingers and fulfill our wishes.
To listen to this episode of Our American Discourse, click the arrow in the player here. Or download it and subscribe through ApplePodcasts, Soundcloud, Google Play, Stitcher, or your favorite podcasting app – click the links or search “usc bedrosian.”
Tackling U.S. Water Infrastructure Problems
by Patricia Quintero Estades The water crisis in Flint Michigan has shed light on problems of water contamination and of crumbling water infrastructure facing communities all over the U.S. With presidential candidates like Trump and Sanders regularly highlighting infrastructure issues as key aspects of their platforms and the considerable national attention given to Read more…
5 Things to Know About Water On #WorldWaterDay
by Patricia Quintero Estades It’s World Water Day so it seems only fitting we take some time to think about water and how it affects everything and everyone. In previous water posts I’ve stressed the importance of prioritizing water in policy when talking about the Flint water crisis, and about sustainable Read more…
Learning about sustainable water management: The case of Los Angeles
by Patricia Quintero Estades Oh it is magical! In the Disney movie Enchanted, a twist on the traditional fairy tale, Giselle is pushed out of her fairy-tale world into modern-day New York City where a divorce attorney Robert and his daughter take her in. After spending a night in their NYC Read more…
On Flint, water, and environmental justice
by Patricia Quintero Estades If you’re like me, you don’t worry about how you’ll get your next glass of water to drink or your next shower. In most developed nations, clean and safe water is something we often take for granted. When we think of conserving water we most often worry Read more…
Paula Daniels: Championing environmental sustainability
by Justine Dodgen Paula Daniels has long been an advocate for environmental causes. Raised in Hawaii, Daniels has said she’s cared about water from a young age, and remembers learning about the importance of malama aina – stewardship of the land- from her grandfather. In a LA Weekly interview in 2012, Read more…
Political Commitment, Policy Ambiguity, and Corporate Environmental Practices
“Political Commitment, Policy Ambiguity, and Corporate Environmental Practices” Ning Liu, Shui-Yan Tang,Xueyong Zhan, Carlos Wing-Hung Lo DOI: 10.1111/psj.12130 Abstract A lack of clear political commitment together with confusing rules and enforcement often characterize the institutional context of policy implementation and regulatory compliance in developing countries. By connecting such contextual features to Read more…
Belief Change in an Evolving Environmental Policy Network
Consortium on Collaborative Governance Adam Douglas Henry March 12, 2015 12:00 pm to 1:30 pm The Consortium on Collaborative Governance is a three university partnership that studies how public problems are being solved by sectors working together. This event brings Adam Douglas Henry from the University of Arizona his talk is Read more…
USC Price professors lead UN sustainability workshops in Armenia
Originally posted on the USC Price News, October 28, 2014 Frank Zerunyan and Dan Mazmanian enhance knowledge about new trends and emerging issues in governance USC Price School of Public Policy professors Frank Zerunyan and Dan Mazmanian traveled to Armenia to participate in a United Nations workshop titled “Developing Government Read more…
Framing the Sustainable Future
Elgar Companion to Sustainable Cities: Strategies, Methods and Outlook Edited by Daniel A. Mazmanian, Professor of Public Policy, Sol Price School of Public Policy, University of Southern California and Hilda Blanco, Research Professor and Interim Director, Center for Sustainable Cities, Sol Price School of Public Policy University of Southern California, Read more…
Governing the Sustainable Future of Los Angeles
by Caroline Stevens What could Southern California’s urban metropolis look like 20 years? Picture algae encased skyscrapers that absorb carbon dioxide and organically recycle water from within their walls. Imagine community hospitals that never use a single kilowatt-hour of energy from the utility grid. Envision an international airport that recycles 417 Read more…
New book on China’s environmental governance
Professor Yan Tang, Research Director of the Center, has recently published a co-authored book with Carlos Wing-Hung Lo, Institutions, Regulatory Styles, Society and Environmental Governance in China (London and New York: Routledge, 2014). Drawing on the authors’ extensive research in southern China, the book provides an in-depth analysis on China’s Read more…
What can we do about climate change?
USC Earthweek April 22, 2013 5:30pm to 7:30pm At 5:30pm, stop by TCC 227 for a panel discussion hosted by Political Student Assembly, USC Bedrosian Center for Governance, and CALPIRG (and free food!) with LA Deputy Mayor of Environment, Romel Pascual, about climate change and what we can do to Read more…
A Conversation with Ronald Loveridge – Urban and Suburban Sustainability
Students Talk Back: A Weekly Politics and Public Policy Forum February 27, 2013 12:00pm to 1:00pm Students Talk Back is a weekly series presented in partnership with USC Dornsife College’s Unruh Institute of Politics, the USC Price Tomas Rivera Policy Institute, and the USC Price Bedrosian Center on Governance. Join Read more…
Climate Change in the 2012 Presidential Election
On Thursday, November 1st, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg announced that he was endorsing President Obama in this election. He said he had decided that President Obama was the best candidate to address climate change.“Our climate is changing,” he wrote. “And while the increase in extreme weather we have experienced in Read more…
Six Degrees of Dick Cheney and the Last (Environmental) Action Hero
by David Gastwirth This week’s Road to the White House once again explored a critically important policy area that has received scant attention in the presidential campaign – climate change. After Dr. Juliana Wang of USC Dornsife briefly discussed the science of global warming and Dr. Dan Mazmanian provided an Read more…