Experts in the News

Middle East fellow Kristian Coates Ulrichsen explained why the Saudis reassessed their position in a three-year standoff with Qatar.

Mark Finley, fellow in energy and global oil, said international oil companies shouldn’t throw in the towel amid uncertainty in the industry. “It is still the case that oil and gas combined are over half of the world’s total energy needs.”

“You are more likely to be arrested for marijuana if you are poor or if you are Black and Latino. And if you look at the data on drug use, there are not differences in drug use by race or ethnicity,” said drug policy fellow Katharine Neill Harris. “The primary factor there is not the severity of the drug use, but has much more to do with where you are, where the police are, and whether you are Black or brown.” Neill Harris is the Alfred C. Glassell, III, Fellow in Drug Policy.

“The scientific evidence has got stronger and the potential outcomes of climate change scarier,” said senior fellow Neal Lane, former U.S. presidential science adviser.

As Texas faces a large economic deficit brought on by the coronavirus, reports show that legalized marijuana could bring annual revenues of $1 billion to state coffers. But political science fellow Mark Jones didn't see a scenario where the Texas Senate would legalize marijuana or pass any decriminalization measures. "I think it would be dead on arrival,” Jones said.