Research Library

Attempts to undermine church-state separation in Texas reached a crescendo in 2023, writes nonresident scholar David R. Brockman. In this paper, he explores how three high-profile bills introduced during the state’s 88th legislative session threatened to tear down the wall between church and state.

The U.S. is facing a dire shortage of health care providers. Immigrants can help fill the gap, writes contributing author Shishir Shakya.

Progress on the UN’s sustainable development goals — aimed at achieving peace and prosperity for all people and the planet — has been slow. However, fellow Harris A. Eyre and his co-authors explain how applying a brain capital framework could change the trajectory.

The creation of a new industry of brain capital technologies could stimulate major economic activity, create jobs, and contribute to technological advances for the U.S. and its allies, write Harris Eyre, Rachel Meidl and co-authors.

Electronic waste is surging globally, presenting growing threats to the environment and human health. Rachel A. Meidl explains how coordinated action can help us move to a sustainable, circular economy of electronics.

The food environment currently dominated by the industrialized food industry is undermining both brain health and our environment.

Texas has long been an economic leader, but the state lags critically in a major area: health. A new report by M.D. candidate Kushal T. Kadakia and nonresident scholar Anaeze C. Offodile II offers a road map for improving Texas’ health rankings by 10 spots in 10 years.

In this study, the authors surveyed students in 80 Harris County schools, as well as their parents, to identify external factors that influence academic performance, particularly among students living in poverty. Their findings can be broadly used to better understand the unmet needs of students under current systems of support, and to develop solutions that can give every child an opportunity to succeed.

This report examines the societal and economic benefits of investing in children’s early brain development. It also assesses public child care, preschool, home-visiting and parenting education programs in Texas and makes recommendations for possible reforms.

In a new survey, the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Episcopal Health Foundation sought to gauge Texans’ views on health policy priorities at both the state and national level. Overall, the survey finds that health care is a priority for Texans, with over half saying the state legislature should increase spending on health care programs, while roughly two-thirds of Texans say the state should expand its Medicaid program.