Michael Levi
Essay
May/June
2013
The U.S. energy revolution is not confined to a single fuel or technology: oil and gas production, renewable energy, and fuel-efficient automobile technologies all show great promise. To best position the country for the future, U.S. leaders should capitalize on all these opportunities rather than pick a favorite; the answer lies in ‘most of the above.’
Snapshot
Republicans and Democrats alike have touted the energy sector as the key to solving the United States' employment problems. They are both wrong.
Essay
Jul/Aug
2011
Saudi Arabia and other OPEC members have long maintained large oil reserves to limit volatility in oil prices. But with key states now refusing to maintain such expensive buffers, the world must learn how to cope with big price swings in the years ahead.
Essay
Nov/Dec
2010
Clean-energy technology is expensive and the United States is spending far too little on developing it. The U.S. government must do more to promote cross-border innovation and protect intellectual property rights.
Postscript
For many climate-change experts, the Copenhagen summit was something of a failure. In order to make real progress on pressing climate issues, policymakers must give up on a binding deal and begin to look outside the UN process.
Author Interview
News & Events
Michael Levi talks with Robert McMahon about the deadlock in climate change negotiations and argues that the world urgently needs a "Plan B" for Copenhagen.
Essay
Sep/Oct
2009
The Copenhagen conference won't solve the problem of climate change once and for all. Rather than aiming for a broad international treaty, negotiators should strengthen existing national policies and seek targeted emissions cuts in both rich nations and the developing world.
Essay
Jan/Feb
2008
Nuclear terrorism poses a grave threat to global security, but seeking silver bullets to counter it does not make sense. Instead of pursuing a perfect defense, U.S. policymakers should create an integrated defensive system that takes advantage of the terrorists' weaknesses and disrupts their plots at every stage, thereby chipping away at their overall chances of success.
