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ISE Newsletters to Congress

  • ISE's research programs send regular updates to Congress on issues being discussed on the Hill.
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Featured Publications

Publications may be purchased online, or downloaded for free.

Balancing Environment and Development

Cover Image Western Riverside County's Multiple Species Habitat Conservation Plan -- a sweeping effort to protect endangered and threatened species while accelerating the approval of transportation improvements -- has made significant progress, but needs modifying to reach its goals in Southern California's changing economy.

Reorganizing U.S. Domestic Intelligence

Cover Image In the wake of 9/11, Congress directed the Department of Homeland Security to evaluate whether the U.S. needs a dedicated domestic intelligence agency, separate from law enforcement, to deter terrorism. DHS asked RAND not to offer specific recommendations, but to make clear what should be considered in the creation of such an agency.

Welcome to ISE

RAND Infrastructure, Safety, and Environment (ISE) provides effective solutions and insights to decisionmakers in the public and private sectors on the challenges of developing, managing, and protecting energy, transportation, water, communications, and other infrastructure as well as the safety and security of individuals and communities. ISE studies are coordinated through four programs: Environment, Energy & Economic Development; Homeland Security; Safety & Justice; and Transportation, Space, & Technology.

ISE is known for its:

  • Objective, innovative approaches to problem solving
  • Impartial, expert analysis of complex—and sometimes controversial—policy issues
  • Clearly communicated findings and recommendations subject to rigorous quality assurance
  • Capabilities that cut across traditional policy boundaries and span multiple economic sectors

Featured Event

Policy Analysis Techniques for Homeland Security Professionals: Nov. 16–20, 2009

people attending a seminar

RAND Infrastructure, Safety, and Environment is offering a five-day course on advanced policy analysis techniques relevant to current and emerging challenges in the fields of risk management and program planning for homeland security. Through presentations, small working groups, Q&A sessions, and an end-of-program tabletop exercise, the course will provide attendees with a nuanced discussion of risk assessment, risk management, programmatic evaluation, and future-threat forecasting and horizon scanning.

Course Details Registration Form and Brochure Maps and Directions

Featured Media

RAND Focuses on Climate Change

smokestacks

On April 13th, RAND held a panel on What Constitutes an Effective Approach to Limiting Greenhouse Gases? Panelists included Peter Molinaro, The Dow Chemical Company; David Hawkins, Natural Resources Defense Council; and William Kovacs, U.S. Chamber of Commerce. The event was moderated by Michael Toman from RAND.

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Featured Research

Cincinnati Police Department Traffic Stops: Analyzing Racial Disparities — Oct. 12, 2009

night time traffic stop

RAND has developed a fair, yet rigorous approach to analyzing traffic stop data for racial bias. Based on five years of data from the Cincinnati Police Department, the approach addresses bias in the decision to stop, flags officers with disparate stop patterns, and assesses bias in search and citation rates.

iconFull DocumenticonYear One Evaluation ReporticonYear Two Evaluation ReporticonYear Three Evaluation ReporticonRelated Report

How China Can Strengthen Its Economy by Investing in High-Technology Applications — Feb. 13, 2009

Tianjin port, photo courtesy of Flickr/egorgrebnev

China's Tianjin Binhai New Area (TBNA) and Tianjin Economic-Technological Development Area (TEDA) can best spur regional development and economic growth by focusing on emerging high-technology applications, including molecular-scale drug development and green manufacturing.

iconFull DocumenticonNews Release: English VersioniconNews Release: Chinese Version (PDF)iconFull Report: Chinese VersioniconExecutive SummaryiconThe Global Technology Revolution 2020, In-Depth AnalysesiconThe Global Technology Revolution 2020, Executive Summary

Methamphetamine Use Estimated to Cost the U.S. About $23 Billion in 2005 — Feb. 4, 2009

teen smoking meth pipe, photo courtesy of methproject.org

The economic cost of methamphetamine use in the United States reached $23.4 billion in 2005, including the burden of addiction, premature death, drug treatment and many other aspects of the drug.

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Evaluating Options for U.S. Greenhouse-Gas Mitigation Using Multiple Criteria — Apr. 14, 2009

electrovoltaic car, photo courtesy of nrel.gov

Devising policies to mitigate greenhouse gases responsible for climate change is one of the great challenges facing the U.S. Options that are effective and politically feasible must not just be cost-effective but also consider the realities of passing major federal legislation with widespread impacts on U.S. producers and consumers.

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Understanding Forfeitures: An Analysis of the Relationship Between Law Enforcement Funding and High Asset Forfeiture — Apr. 5, 2009

man in suit in handcuffs

The Treasury Executive Office for Asset Forfeiture (TEOAF) administers the forfeitures that result from the prosecution of criminal enterprises - such as drug cartels, terrorist organizations, and individual embezzlers - can be used to fund future investigations. TEOAF commissioned RAND to examine such funding and forfeiture outcomes.

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Is It Time to Rethink U.S. Entry and Exit Processes? — Mar. 23, 2009

passport

Meeting mandated standards for managing individual travelers' entry and exit at U.S. borders has been a longstanding difficulty for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the U.S. border protection apparatus. This paper examines related policies and procedures critical to their success.

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Challenges and Opportunities Related to the Interconnection of Climate, Energy, and Transportation Policies — Mar. 9, 2009

power production facility

In June 2008, RAND convened three workshops for private and public sector representatives to discuss their competing views on climate change mitigation. The conference allowed them to find commonality on such issues as technological innovation; potential legislative and regulatory solutions; international cooperation; and public engagement.

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Organized Crime Is Increasingly Active in Film Piracy; Three Cases Link Terrorists to Piracy Profits — Mar. 3, 2009

handgun, money, and dvds

Organized crime increasingly is involved in the piracy of feature films, with syndicates active along the entire supply chain from manufacture to street sales. While crime syndicates have added piracy to their criminal portfolios, the profits from film piracy also have been used on occasion to support the activities of terrorist groups.

iconFull DocumenticonNews ReleaseiconResearch Brief iconVideo: Film Piracy, Organized Crime, and Terrorism

The Challenge of Domestic Intelligence in a Free Society — Feb. 2, 2009

feed from surveillance camera on street

Whether U.S. terrorism-prevention efforts match the threat continues to be central in policy debate. Part of this debate is whether the United States needs a dedicated domestic counterterrorism intelligence agency. To inform future policy decisionmaking, this book examines, from a variety of perspectives, the policy proposal that such an agency be created.

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Police-Community Relations in Cincinnati: Year Four Evaluation Report — Jan. 23, 2009

police and driver at traffic stop

In 2002, the Cincinnati Police Department and the ACLU joined together to review police-community relations. This report finds that CPD is not the same as the department that policed Cincinnati in 2001. With crime reduced and no evidence of racial bias at traffic stops, there is still room for improvement with community relations.

iconFull DocumenticonYear One Evaluation ReporticonYear Two Evaluation ReporticonYear Three Evaluation Report

The RAND Database of Worldwide Terrorism Incidents — Jan. 14, 2009

Radar map

The Database of Worldwide Terrorism Incidents defines and categorizes terrorist attacks in order to help analysts, policymakers, and practitioners understand general trends in the threat. It is based on over 30 years of research by analysts at RAND.

iconVisit the RAND Database of Worldwide Terrorism Incidents

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