Civios Podcast

Persistent link for this collectionhttps://hdl.handle.net/11299/218208

In-depth discussions of the story behind the public affairs research by academics affiliated with the Humphrey School.

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Browsing Civios Podcast by Subject "Environment"

Now showing 1 - 7 of 7
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    Episode 11: Local Health Co-Beenfits of Urban Climate Action
    (2017-12-21) Ramaswami, Anu; Conners, Kate
    Reducing carbon emissions across multiple urban infrastructure sectors can yield significant local air pollution related health co-benefits. But cities will see and experience these co-benefits in different ways and to different degrees. In this podcast, Anu Ramaswami, professor at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs, discusses the emerging science around how to connect global carbon reduction actions to city-specific health outcomes.
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    Episode 12: Circular Economies and Low-Carbon Urban Infrastructure Planning
    (2017-12-21) Ramaswami, Anu; Conners, Kate
    What is the unique role that urban infrastructure planning can play in national carbon mitigation? In this podcast, Anu Ramaswami, professor at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs, discusses how cities are positioned to plan infrastructure systems using circular economy principles that reduce material and energy reuse across sectors to deliver a low-carbon future.
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    Episode 13: All-city Carbon Emissions: Understanding City Types and Impact
    (2017-12-21) Ramaswami, Anu; Conners, Kate
    It is common practice to consider the carbon emissions of single cities. But what happens when you analyze carbon emissions for all cities in a country using nationally aligned data? In this podcast, Anu Ramaswami, professor at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs, discusses how all-city analysis can reveal “city types” that help inform carbon policy and action.
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    Episode 23: New Directions for Disaster Planning Research
    (2019-04-29) Jacobs, Fayola; Conners, Kate
    “Talking about some of the theoretical underpinnings that have devalued the lives of oppressed communities worldwide is a really important conversation to have,” says Fayola Jacobs, an assistant professor in the urban and regional planning area at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs. Jacobs' recent work explores how disaster planning has engaged—or failed to engage—oppressed communities. Using the lenses of black feminism and radical planning theory, Jacobs breaks down the concept of "social vulnerability" and its implication for environmental planning and policy. “When we pretend that the field is even and we can just ignore race ... then we implement policies that continue to exacerbate inequities,” she says.
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    Episode 25: Green Infrastructure and Stormwater Utility Fees
    (2020-01-27) Sarmiento, Camila Fonseca; Conners, Kate
    Deep below St. Paul, Minnesota, 450 miles of storm sewers and funnels snake throughout the city. Invisible to everyday life, underground pipeline systems such as these are called gray infrastructure. Camila Fonseca Sarmiento, a research associate at the Humphrey School's Institute for Urban and Regional Infrastructure Finance (IURIF), has been working with the City of St. Paul to identify ways to fund more green infrastructure—a more resilient, sustainable approach to managing stormwater that combines gray infrastructure with natural ecological systems. Governments in the US and abroad have begun to fund stormwater management via a new financial model as an alternative to taxes: stormwater utility fees. Stormwater credits, which reward properties implementing best practices, are also increasing in popularity. With her research, Fonseca Sarmiento aims to help local governments make informed decisions about the tools available to fund stormwater management.
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    Episode 26: The CREATE Initiative: Research at the Intersection of Environment and Equity
    (2020-02-17) Keeler, Bonnie; Foy, Melanie Sommer
    Bonnie Keeler, assistant professor in the science, technology, and environmental policy area at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs, discusses her work with the CREATE Initiative. In founding the initiative, Keeler and University of Minnesota geography professor Kate Derickson sought to combine their research areas in a program that addresses issues at the intersection of environment and equity using interdisciplinary, community-engaged, mission-driven scholarship. Groups of CREATE graduate researchers have partnered with members of the Policy Think Tank—a team of community leaders from Minnesota, Atlanta, and elsewhere—to consider the context of historic racial inequality in cities and understand community members' concerns as cities increasingly invest in policies to address climate change and improve urban sustainability. The CREATE Initiative has also developed an action-oriented policy toolkit to help community members advocate for the benefits of greening initiatives to reach their communities without engendering displacement.
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    Episode 28: Community Solar Intermediaries: Bridging the Gap Between Policy and Practice
    (2020-12-10) Harrington, Elise; Welter, Emma
    In the fall of 2020, Elise Harrington joined the Humphrey School as an assistant professor in the science, technology, and environmental policy area. In her new role, Harrington hopes to continue the research she began with MIT's Tata Center for her PhD, which brought her to both India and Kenya to study innovation in small-scale solar technologies. In this podcast episode, she speaks with us in more depth about her work in Kenya, where she's been investigating ways to close gaps between policy and practice in distribution models and consumer education for off-grid solar technologies like lanterns. Harrington is especially interested in the role played by "frontline solar intermediaries": individuals who act as go-betweens on behalf of solar companies. Intermediaries travel to communities to inform people about solar technology, sell products based on a variety of pricing models, and act as a resource for ongoing help with solar. When it comes to building a more resilient electricity infrastructure, Harrington says,"social interactions really matter”—and these intermediaries play an important role.