Research Library

This author examines the main characteristics of Mexican immigrant-owned small and medium-sized businesses established in the United States, and the opportunities and challenges they face.

David Buckley offers brief reflections on distinct approaches to religion in U.S. diplomacy, particularly at the State Department, and the implications they may have for religious tolerance abroad. His post is the first of 12 prepared for an April 2019 workshop on “Religion, Reverence and Tolerance” organized by the Baker Institute for Public Policy and the Boniuk Institute for Religious Tolerance at Rice University.  Baker Institute Blog: https://bit.ly/2z6CGZo

Body-worn cameras (BWCs) are becoming a permanent fixture of modern policing, and their effects are likely to be much more nuanced than originally predicted.

The number of energy-related social conflicts in Mexico has risen dramatically over the last several years. The authors review the reasons for these conflicts and the social impact assessments that should be required for firms developing energy projects in Mexico.

In recent years public opinion surveys have found that a consistent and increasing percentage of Texans support marijuana reform, but this support has not translated into policy change. The authors explain why it should.

Religion nonresident scholar David R. Brockman examines an attempt to force the removal of Tarrant County GOP vice chair Dr. Shahid Shafi because he is Muslim. The paper places the controversy within the context of Islamophobia in politics and outlines the challenges the case presents for the Republican Party both nationally and statewide.

Center for Energy Studies senior director Ken Medlock provided an overview of trends in electricity generation by source — from coal and natural gas to wind, solar and biomass — and the role of infrastructure during testimony before the U.S. Senate’s Committee on Energy and Natural Resources on March 5.  Download the PDFs below to read his written testimony and the questions for the record submitted to Medlock, as well as his answers.

The authors show that border barriers can have unintended but important biological consequences for biodiversity by, for instance, inducing changes to the environment and reducing genetic diversity.

The mix of good short-term prospects for oil revenues along with long-term market uncertainties has a clear policy implication for oil-dependent Latin American economies: use the larger short-term revenues to diversify their economies, nonresident fellow José Antonio Ocampo writes in a new issue brief.