Research | Cooper Center

Demographics
Delivering practical, policy-oriented analysis of census and demographic data.
Economics
Examining taxes, economic development, workforce data, and flood resilience.
Energy
Informing policy through research to facilitate solar development in Virginia.
Survey Research
Providing full-service survey design, data collection, and report preparation.

A picture of a defense building in Charlottesville.

February 6, 2023

The Defense Industry’s Economic Impact on the Charlottesville Region

Terry Rephann

This study examines the size, growth, features, and economic impacts of the defense industry on the Charlottesville Region, looking at impact on GDP, employment,, and other economic indicators.

A pie chart showing the share of livestock, dairy products, meat animals, poultry products, fruits/nuts, vegetables, and other crops that make up Virginia's agricultural output.

October 1, 2022

The Economic Impact of Agriculture and Forest Industries in Virginia

Terry Rephann

This 2022 study looks at the widespread impact of the forestry and agriculture industries on Virginia’s economy, examining shifts due to COVID and supply shifts in both industries.

A graph showing the long-run effects of commodity prices for a price floor imposed on either side of the laissez-faire price.

March 25, 2022

The Effects of ‘‘Nonbinding’’ Price Floors

William Shobe,

Stephen Salant,

Neslihan Uler

This paper explores the impact of price floors on cap-and-trade programs used to limit emissions of pollutants like CO2.

A graph depicting Virginia's electricity generation by fuel type, including coal, gas, hydropower, nuclear, oil, solar, wood, and other, from 2001-2020.

December 11, 2021

Achieving Clean Electricity Generation by 2045

William Shobe,

Anthony Artuso,

Maya Domeshek

This study uses Haiku, an electricity planning model, to explore potential strategies for lowering the costs of meeting Virginia Clean Economy Act (VCEA) emissions targets, and finds flexibility in compliance is key to lowering ratepayer costs.

A bar chart summarizing the findings on paid family leave and medical leave.

November 17, 2021

Virginia Paid Family and Medical Leave Study

Terry Rephann,

Emily Lien,

Arthur Small,

Jeffrey Hayes

This report for The Virginia Employment Commission examines the effects of a proposed Paid Family and Medical Leave (PFML) program for the Commonwealth of Virginia.

A graph showing the stranded capacities of existing generation in the global power sector under the least cost strategy scenarios.

June 3, 2021

Effects of Direct Air Capture Technology Availability on Power Sector

William Shobe,

Shreekar Pradhan,

Jay Fuhrman,

Haewon McJeon,

Matthew Binsted,

Scott C. Doney,

Andres F. Clarens

This study shows how the availability of direct air capture (DAC) affects the quantity of stranded assets – fossil fuels and infrastructure that remains unused – created under the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°-2°C.

A graph showing the effects of DAC availability on the CO2 emissions from the existing power plants in the global power sector.

April 18, 2021

Meeting China’s 2060 Carbon Neutrality Goal

William Shobe,

Jay Fuhrman,

Andres F. Clarens,

Haewon McJeon,

Pralit Patel,

Yang Ou,

Scott C. Doney,

Shreekar Pradhan

This paper models the use of direct air capture and other negative transmission technologies (NETs) in China to understand the role of NETs in helping China and the international community achieve carbon neutrality by 2060.

February 15, 2021

Developing a Smart Grid for Virginia

Anthony Artuso,

Alex Watkins

This report explores how smart grid capabilities can enable integration of clean energy resources, energy storage, and demand management technologies as Virginia's policymakers and stakeholders make the transition to clean energy.

Schedule of actions for a 2050 Virginia decarbonization pathway.

January 11, 2021

Decarbonizing Virginia's Economy

William Shobe,

Ben Haley,

Gabe Kwok

This report explores four strategies for decarbonization in Virginia: efficiency in energy use, eliminating fossil fuels from electricity generation, electrifying transportation services and building energy use, and capturing and sequestering remaining CO2 emissions.

A bar chart showing the breakdown of residential solar soft costs nationally and at the state-level.

November 30, 2020

The Soft Costs of Distributed Solar

William Shobe,

Sarah Benda

This study examines the share of soft costs in solar panel installation and offers policy recommendations for lowering the share of soft costs to make solar more competitive.

Economic Studies

Browse by Topic

The Defense Industry’s Economic Impact on the Charlottesville Region

The Economic Impact of Agriculture and Forest Industries in Virginia

The Effects of ‘‘Nonbinding’’ Price Floors

Achieving Clean Electricity Generation by 2045

Virginia Paid Family and Medical Leave Study

Effects of Direct Air Capture Technology Availability on Power Sector

Meeting China’s 2060 Carbon Neutrality Goal

Developing a Smart Grid for Virginia

Decarbonizing Virginia's Economy

The Soft Costs of Distributed Solar

Browse by Topic