The Fukushima nuclear meltdown has forced Japan to reconsider its energy policy, and as the country continues to grapple with the aftermath of the crisis triggered by the March 2011 earthquake, public opinion remains deeply divided about the country’s future energy policy including nuclear power. The United States, too, is facing its own challenges, as a bonanza in natural gas within its borders in recent years is redefining the meaning of energy independence. How both countries are looking beyond petroleum to meet their respective energy needs, and prospects for alternative energy sources including nuclear power, were the topics of discussion at the latest Japan-U.S. Joint Public Policy Forum, held in Tokyo on October 31, 2012. more

Today’s population of 7 billion people has a significant impact on the planet’s natural resources and on global security. Seven critical challenges—security, climate change, water scarcity, food insecurity, deforestation, loss of biodiversity, and future population growth—are affected by population dynamics in complex ways that demand holistic solutions. One effective and relatively inexpensive way to meet these challenges is to empower women by improving their access to education and health care, including family planning. more

Launched in July 2012, FLOAT Beijing—a community art project that utilizes citizen science—offers a simple, innovative, and non-confrontational approach to air quality monitoring: kites. Pioneered by two U.S. graduate students, the project tracks air pollutants using air sensor modules attached to kites. more

Recognizing a need to strengthen the ties between urban policymaking and scholarly work on urban development, and to disseminate evidence-based programming, the Woodrow Wilson Center’s Comparative Urban Studies Project, USAID’s Urban Programs Team, the International Housing Coalition, Cities Alliance, and the World Bank came together in 2010 to co-sponsor an academic paper competition for graduate students studying urban issues. The success of the 2010 competition led to the expansion of the competition in 2011 and publication of the top papers. In this third year, the focus is on three topics: climate change, youth, and land markets. A panel of urban experts representing the sponsoring institutions reviewed over 70 abstract submissions, from which 15 were invited to write full-length papers. Of these, eight were selected for this publication. more