In June, UChicago researchers at the student-run, nonpartisan think tank, the Paul Douglas Institute (PDI), worked with teams from three other universities (Cambridge University, Cornell University and The University of Edinburgh) to build an open-source, user-friendly Global Climate Policy Database. This database aims to increase the amount of publicly available data on the global climate policy landscape, which remains largely inadequate. With over 50 variables, and covering 193 countries, the Global Climate Policy Database sheds light on policies in four key areas relating to climate change: agriculture, emissions reporting, energy, and extraction.
The collaboration between these four student-led think tanks is known as the Global Student Policy Alliance (GSPA). GSPA believes that students—who have fewer institutional constraints than governments or international organizations—are uniquely situated to conduct research that can effect policy change, and invites university students from around the world to get in touch if they are interested in helping update and expand the Database.