Research Library

Recycling solar panels is an expensive, complicated and energy-intensive process, writes energy fellow Rachel Meidl. But with cumulative solar waste projections expected to rise globally over the next few decades, she argues that it is vital to design a more circular and sustainable management system for end-of-life panels.

Held virtually across three days in December 2020, the Presidential Elections Program's third conference — "A Presidential Election During the Time of COVID-19" — brought together a diverse group of academics, campaign consultants and other prominent individuals to review the dynamics and outcome of the 2020 presidential election. This report summarizes the presentations and discussions of the many individuals who participated in the conference’s five thematic panels, as well as a moderated conversation featuring veteran political consultants Stephanie Cutter and Beth Myers, who served as the conference's honorary co-chairs.

By subsidizing only electric vehicles and EV batteries produced by union labor in the U.S., the auto industry could face trouble in valuable trade partnerships with Canada and Mexico, writes fellow David Gantz.

A new source of revenue — taxes on digital advertising — is gaining momentum at the state level. This brief reviews the case for and against digital ad taxes, and trends to look out for as developments unfold.

Texas social studies curriculum standards do not give public school students the balanced coverage of religion they need to function effectively in an increasingly diverse society, contends the author. His comparison of equivalent curriculum standards in five culturally similar states identifies lessons Texas can learn from its counterparts.

On Monday, David Julius and Ardem Patapoutian received the 2021 Nobel Prize in Medicine or Physiology “for their discoveries of receptors for temperature and touch.” Fellow Kirstin Matthews praises their research on how capsaicin and TRP affect nerve cells as an accomplishment made possible by U.S. federal funding for and support of science.

The federal government aims to narrow the $1 trillion gap between cryptocurrency taxes owed and those actually paid. Read how it's doing so in the Baker Institute Blog.

Millions of undocumented immigrants have lived in the U.S. for decades and become part of America's fabric. This brief makes the case for prioritizing their legalization — and shows how it can be done.

This brief explores a potential hydrogen pathway that also creates opportunities for advanced carbon-based materials in a clean energy future.

Gabriel Collins, the Baker Botts Fellow in Energy and Environmental Regulatory Affairs, explains why Section 625 of the CLEAN Future Act — which aims to classify oilfield-produced water as a hazardous waste — would likely induce multi-system disruptions severe enough to prevent the act from achieving its climate, energy, environmental, and social objectives.