 Jason Funk in New Zealand where he is investigating the alignment of reforestation policy incentives with other economic and cultural drivers |
Research Highlights
Research is the cornerstone of the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Environment and Resources. Faculty and graduate students at Stanford are engaged in interdisciplinary research projects such as studying the effects and constraints of agricultural intensification and urbanization in the Yaqui Valley of Sonora, Mexico, to spatial analysis of land use changes in Vietnam. Students in IPER have the opportunity to work on existing projects and are also expected to develop their own research directions and topics during their course of study.
Research projects by students in the program address issues such as the science and policy of global climate change, environmental quality, regional security, the mapping and valuation of ecosystem services, energy development, agricultural intensification and variability, characterization and effects of land use change, conservation finance, and natural resource management. Examples of research projects currently underway include:
• Investigating ecosystem services of the Hawaiian countryside, focusing on the sustainable management of native hardwood on private lands by creating financial incentives to make biodiversity conservation economically attractive to landowners.
• Evaluating the electric power sector development in China and India, and the potential for international policy mechanisms to steer these countries toward less CO2-intensive growth paths.
• Examining how organizational learning can promote local management and valuation of common-pool resources, particularly water, in underserved Bolivian communities.
While a thesis or research project is not required of the MS degree, there are opportunities for MS students to engage in research or other projects that involve IPER students and faculty.
Visit the Student Research page to read more about our current students, their backgrounds and research pursuits. For more information about integrative environmental research at Stanford in general, visit the Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment website.
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