Center for the Economics of Sustainability

Center for the Economics of Sustainability
Forces of Nature.
Courses of Action.
Resilient cattle farmer
In Focus
Methods & Measurement Do asset transfers build household resilience?

When households escape poverty, how likely is it they will fall back in the future?

little brown bat
In Focus
Fighting white-nose syndrome in bats benefits agriculture, study shows

URBANA, Ill.

Green roof view PDX
In Focus
Green roofs are worth the cost for urban residents

URBANA, Ill. ­– Plant-covered roofs have become a regular sight in Portland, Oregon.

Hill depicting deforestation
In Focus
Preventing pandemics starts with protecting wildlife

Two years after COVID-19 emerged, researchers have provided three cost-effective actions to help decision-makers prevent future pandemics by stopping “spillover” of diseases from animals into humans: better surveillance of pathogens, better manage

Why it Matters.

The Center for the Economics of Sustainability harnesses economics to promote prosperity and human well-being now and in the future with a balance of reliable food, water and energy systems, environmental quality, and community development. Our research helps inform environmental policy and resource management decisions in Illinois — and around the world.

Research Output

three researchers posing for a photo while standing in the middle of tall grasses
Updates
Study identifies best bioenergy crops for sustainable aviation fuels by U.S. region, policy goals
July 23, 2024
8:00 AM

Researchers analyzed the financial and environmental costs and benefits of four biofuels crops used to produce sustainable aviation fuels in the U.S. They found that each feedstock — corn stover, energy sorghum, miscanthus or switchgrass — performed best in a specific region of the rainfed United States.

a plot full of green showing soil sampling
Updates
Organic farmers’ beliefs about soil microbiome affect their practices, study shows
June 13, 2024
10:00 AM

Organic farming can support soil microorganisms that promote plant defenses and reduce insect pests. But not all organic practices are equally beneficial for soil microbes, and it’s important to understand farmer motivations in order to encourage the adoption of microbiome-supportive efforts.

Agricultural land in Urbana
Updates
The Achilles Heel of Farming
September 12, 2022
10:19 AM
Urbana, Illinois

Farms have a promising opportunity to fight climate change using a simple but plentiful asset: soil. Soil has the capacity to store carbon in amounts that can meaningfully offset greenhouse gas emissions through retaining carbon (otherwise called carbon sequestration).

Solo farmhouse in the Western US
Updates
Consumers Worry About Climate Change's Impacts on Food System
July 21, 2022
10:19 AM

Consumers across the United States worry about the effects of climate change on various parts of the food system. Though concern over issues like land availability, food shortages, and food prices is prevalent in every part of the country, the degree of the population's concern depends on where they live.

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