Public Panel Discussion on “Who’s Responsible for Sustainability?” at Indiana University

In September 2015, the School of Public and Environmental Affairs, the Integrated Program in the Environment, the Indiana University Office of Sustainability, and the ISOS Center for Social Responsibility hosted a public panel discussion on the need for tri-sectoral collaboration on the world’s most challenging social problems. Gnarly Tree Sustainability Institute took the lead on recruitment of guest speakers, sustainable event planning, and marketing.

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National University of Singapore Asia-Pacific Executive MBA Programme Sustainability Module

Gnarly Tree Sustainability Institute developed and delivers a four-day sustainability module in the NUS Asia-Pacific Executive MBA Programme.

Carbon Tax Guide: A Handbook for Policy Makers

Gnarly Tree Sustainability Institute partnered with the School of Public and Environmental Affairs and Climate Focus to develop a guidebook for policy makers interested in developing carbon taxes, which included some of the most comprehensive case studies of carbon taxes to date.

“The Evolution and Anatomy of Recent Climate Change Bills in the U.S. Senate” for U.S. Senator Richard Lugar’s Office (2009)

During the 110th and 111th Congresses, several cap-and-trade legislative proposals were considered in the U.S. Senate: the Bingaman-Specter bill (S. 1766), the Lieberman-Warner bill (S. 2191), and the Manager’s Amendment to the Lieberman-Warner bill (S. 3036). Gnarly Tree Sustainability Institute reviewed all three bills and wrote several analyses as the bills were being considered in the U.S. Senate. Particular attention was directed at the emissions reduction targets, cost containment measures, point and scope or regulation, incentives for activities outside covered facilities, and distribution of allowances and auction revenue included in each proposal. Recommendations for improvements were provided throughout the legislative process. Iterations of this analysis were published in Environmental Law Reporter and Environs – Environmental Law and Policy Journal.

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Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) Review of a Hong Kong Stock Exchange Listed Waste-to-Energy Company

Gnarly Tree Sustainability Institute was recruited to assist with an Asian Development Bank project to review a Hong Kong Stock Exchange Listed Waste-to-Energy (WTE) company’s governance practices based on the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s Principles of Corporate Governance and industry best practices.

Presentation on “Understanding the Sustainability Landscape” for Global Reporting Initiative Training Session at Indiana University

The School of Public and Environmental Affairs hosted a GRI sustainability reporting training session in collaboration with the ISOS Center for Social Responsibility in September 2015. Dr. Richards delivered his frequently requested guest lecture on “Understanding the Sustainability Landscape” during the training session.

“International Forest Carbon Sequestration in a Post-Kyoto Agreement” – contract research for Harvard Project on International Climate Agreements (October 2008)

Dr. Kenneth Richards and Dr. Andrew Plantinga recommend a national-level carbon accounting system as an alternative to the project-based approach of Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD). This early work provided the foundation for an article in Climatic Change and book chapters in Post-Kyoto International Climate Policy: Implementing Architectures for Agreement and Issues of the Day: 100 Commentaries on Climate, Energy, and the Environment. This work was also presented at the 16th Conference of the Parties of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in Cancun, Mexico.

“Environmental Policy and Institutional Reform in Azerbaijan” for the United States Agency for International Development and the Caucasus Forecast Project (May 2009)

USAID/Caucasus Forecast Project recruited Bloomington Energy and Environmental Intelligence, LLC and its associates to assist the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of the Republic of Azerbaijan in its efforts to promote comprehensive and cost-effective environmental protection. The report evaluated the strengths and weaknesses of the country’s current environmental regulation system and made recommendations for potential improvements.

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