This document outlines Heidi Garrett-Peltier's presentation on the work of the Political Economy Research Institute (PERI). PERI conducts policy-oriented economic research to improve human and environmental well-being. Examples of recent projects include a study on controlling climate change through green growth and job creation in the US. PERI aims to produce high-quality research and write for non-academic audiences. Effectiveness is harder to measure than traditional academic work but can be seen through policy impacts, media references, social media engagement, and other feedback from target audiences.

1. H E I D I G A R R E T T - P E L T I E R
A S S I S T A N T R E S E A R C H P R O F E S S O R
P O L I T I C A L E C O N O M Y R E S E A R C H I N S T I T U T E
U N I V E R S I T Y O F M A S S A C H U S E T T S , A M H E R S T
6 T H A N N U A L M A G R E E N C A R E E R S C O N F E R E N C E
O C T 1 , 2 0 1 4
Research, Writing, and Strategy:
Economics and Environmental Policy

2. Outline of Today’s Presentation
— Introduction to PERI
— Guiding principles of our research
— Examples of PERI’s work
— Who is our audience and how do we reach them?
— How does this differ from academic writing?
— How do we gauge the effectiveness of our work?

3. Introduction to PERI
— The Political Economy Research Institute (PERI) is
affiliated with the Economics department at UMass
Amherst
— Some PERI researchers are also Econ dept faculty,
others are full-time researchers (all are Econ PhDs)
— PERI’s research is policy-oriented and academically
rigorous: We bridge the gap from academia to
workable policy proposals
— We strive to produce high-quality research that
improves human and ecological well-being

4. Guiding principles of our research
— Producing high-quality research
— Researching/writing on topics of particular
importance for human and ecological well-being
— Focus on advancing policies that improve living
standards for working people and the poor
— Creating, as Robert Heilbroner put it, “a workable
science of morality” within economics

6. Examples of PERI’s recent work
— Green Growth: A U.S. Program for Controlling Climate
Change and Expanding Job Opportunities
— An Assessment of the Fiscal Impact of the Proposed
Sonoma County Living Wage Ordinance
— Social Hierarchies and Public Distribution of Food in
Rural India
— Finance and Growth: The Neglected Role of the Business
Cycle

7. “Green Growth”
— Green Growth: A U.S. Program for Controlling Climate
Change and Expanding Job Opportunities
- Published on Sept 18, 2014 along with the Center for
American Progress (CAP)
- Proposes a workable program for private investment and
public support for energy efficiency and renewable
energy, to meet our 2030 emissions targets
- Written for audiences with minimal economics
background, but contains technical details in appendices
for those with economics expertise
- 417 page study, with summary and introduction available
for separate download

8. Reaching our audience
— Who is our audience?
¡ Policy-makers at local/regional/national/international levels
¡ Activists and advocacy organizations who use our research to support
their work
¡ Professionals and other economists who conduct similar research
¡ Students, interns, others interested in either content and/or methods
— How do we reach them?
¡ Make publications freely available on our website
¡ Present at conferences and other public venues
¡ Press releases and other communications to the media
¡ Communications Director uses social media and other methods to
get the word out
¡ Collaborating with organizations in DC and elsewhere helps us access
policymakers and other networks

9. How does this differ from academic writing?
— Academic writing aims to advance the discipline, to
improve/expand theory and methods, which may or may
not have immediate practical applications
— Academic writing has a specific format, is generally peer-
reviewed, and generally undergoes a long process from
writing to publication
— Writing for a policy-oriented audience often means
publishing “working papers” or reports, not necessarily
peer-reviewed journal articles, can reach audiences
sooner
— This writing is geared toward an audience with a wider
variety of backgrounds (not nec. Economics) and
prioritizes the content rather than the methods

10. Gauging the effectiveness of our work
— Academic effectiveness = # of citations
— Effectiveness in policy-oriented writing is harder to
measure, but there are a few indicators:
¡ Establishment of policies that refer to the work
¡ Media (print, radio, tv) – references, interviews
¡ Social media (tweets, FB shares, etc)
¡ Word of mouth (e.g., an organization mentions usefulness of
our work)
¡ Requests for use of the work, questions about methodology,
other inquiries which show the relevance to our audience

11. Thank you for your attention!
Visit PERI on the web:
http://www.peri.umass.edu/
Contact information
Heidi Garrett-Peltier
hpeltier@econs.umass.edu