Research

Research Focus

The diverse research foci of CBIE faculty members are united by a common interest in how humans interact with their environment. How do institutional arrangements and the biophysical environment constrain and facilitate the way humans make decisions in collective action situations about their common resources? Increasingly our research focuses on coupled infrastructure systems, recognizing that collective action for the creation and maintenance of natural and human-made infrastructure are similar in rural irrigation systems as well as urban water governance.

At CBIE, research questions are addressed from a multi-method approach. We combine methods from original field research and historical analysis to controlled experiments and formal modeling. We have scholars, students and faculty, trained in diverse methodologies, who work together on common projects.