Research Library

With center-right President Emmanuel Macron facing off against extreme-right Marine Le Pen, what’s in store for the French presidential election next April? In a new brief, Baker Institute faculty scholar Julie Fette and William Tsai, Rice '24, examine the polls, platforms and possibilities.

With its significant reserves of critical metals and other geographic advantages, Chile is well positioned to help enable the energy transition. The authors discuss the country's leveraging of its copper and lithium resources and its growing trade with China.

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.

Although Texans broadly support relaxing cannabis laws and other criminal justice reforms, state leaders continue the war on drugs and other policies that propagate systemic racism, writes fellow Katharine Neill Harris.

The term “sustainability” is a frequently misconstrued descriptor, oftentimes used synonymously with the concept of a circular economy. In this issue brief, energy fellow Rachel Meidl explains the distinction between circularity and sustainability and how a systems-level approach to waste management can build an economy that is resilient to future global disruptions.

This issue brief explores whether there are discernible left/right differences regarding definitions, approaches, views, policies and their outcomes on corruption and anti-corruption in the Americas.

In the second brief of a two-part series on the Chinese Communist Party's 100th anniversary, the author examines the rhetoric of China's president, Xi Jinping, and his deeply nationalistic vision of a unified country that erases ways of being Chinese that do not conform to that of the Han majority.

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

In this brief, public finance fellow Jorge Barro explains some of the long-term economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and argues that policymakers can prepare for the impending macroeconomic shortfalls by maintaining a commitment to improving education, prioritizing immigration and resolving fiscal imbalances.

Stephen Mumme, nonresident scholar at the Center for the United States and Mexico, explores the recent Rio Grande water war and its temporary resolution, arguing that the 1944 water treaty has once again proven resilient and adaptable to the challenges confronting both the United States and Mexico as they share their transboundary water resources.