The UC Berkeley campus at dusk.

Research

Research focus areas

Capitalism and Democracy

Powerful economic interests play an outsized and skyrocketing role in politics, contributing to legislative collapse, rising discontent, and institutional crisis. Our research offers solutions for balancing the demands of capitalism with the imperative of democratic citizenship.

Climate and Green Industrial Strategy

Under the right conditions, business and government collaboration can accelerate decarbonization by creating and scaling clean tech markets. We support the theoretical, empirical, and practical study of green industrial strategy through collaborations between scholars, practitioners, and policymakers.

Technology

For all its benefits, tech industry “disruption” has a pattern of concentrating economic power and wealth, sowing division, and undermining human autonomy and civic solidarity. Our distinctly political-economic approach identifies the institutional mechanisms that sustain the industry and trains a skeptical eye on the outcomes.

Political Economy of California

As California goes, so goes the nation. Our research and programs deliver insights to help California policymakers achieve critical reforms to expand shared prosperity.