Research Library

This is the first analysis focused specifically on whether subnational resource curse dynamics seen in other oil-rich locales (1) apply to the Permian Basin and if so, to what extent, and (2) compensatory policy steps.

Baker Institute Rice Faculty Scholar and University Professor Moshe Vardi analyzes three recent crises — the 2021 winter storm in Texas, the COVID-19 pandemic and the Boeing 737 Max software failure — that highlight the cost of valuing efficiency over resilience and provide lessons for bringing society into balance.

This report explores Houston's substantial comparative advantage in finding and developing low-carbon solutions and creating opportunities to efficiently and effectively deploy the region’s vast resources to produce and deliver cleaner, greener fuels to the nation and the world.

Texans served by regulated electricity markets, especially by electric cooperatives, were much more satisfied with their providers’ performance during Winter Storm Uri than those in deregulated markets. In this post for the Baker Institute Blog, the authors offer possible explanations for the contrast in favorability.

The recent cyberattack on the Colonial Pipeline, one of America’s most critical pieces of energy infrastructure, offers lessons in the crucial role of energy storage and the importance of cybersecurity for maintaining our nation’s long-term energy security, writes Kenneth B. Medlock III, the senior director of the Center for Energy Studies, in a post for the Baker Institute Blog.

Some states still face challenges with racial and ethnic disparities in COVID-19 vaccine distribution, and Texas is one of them. How might we avoid these inequities in the future?  The authors explain in the Baker Institute Blog.

Why have consumer credit scores gone up during the pandemic?  In this brief, public finance fellow Joyce Beebe discusses the disconnect between credit scores and other economic indicators, and the public policies behind the rising scores.

Michelle Michot Foss, fellow in energy, minerals and materials, testified before the U.S. House Subcommittee on Energy about the CLEAN Future Act and key considerations for decarbonizing the transportation sector.

The May 3 subway collapse in Mexico City highlights the ongoing institutional weakness and corruption of the current administration, with deadly results for the country’s citizens. Read more at the Baker Institute Blog.

Private equity investment in hospitals has grown substantially in the 21st century, and it accelerated in the years leading up the COVID-19 pandemic. In this study of short-term acute care hospitals acquired by private equity firms, the authors find they not only have higher markups and profit margins, they’re also slower to expand their staffs.