Dr. Max Harleman secures prestigious Bezos Grant

Dr. Max Harleman (Department of Government and Sociology) was awarded a $100,000 “Resilient Energy Economies” grant from the Bezos Earth Fund and Resources for the Future. Dr. Harleman is a co-principal investigator on the grant along with Dr. Jeremy G. Weber (University of Pittsburgh), and they are collaborating with Dr. Katie Jo Black (Kenyon College) and Dr. Shawn McCoy (University of Nevada Las Vegas).

Natural amenities, like clean streams and rivers, may play an important role in strengthening the economies of historic energy communities. Dr. Harleman’s project examines whether improving amenities, specifically remediating abandoned mine drainage that pollutes streams and rivers, can provide meaningful and sustained economic benefits to communities. His research, which is split into three “seasons,” will use Census data to examine whether remediation that occurred over the last three decades in Pennsylvania has improved long-run economic performance in the surrounding community (Season 1). It will leverage semi-structured interviews with members of six communities to understand their perceptions of the role that unremediated and remediated waterways play in local economies (Season 2). Finally, it will examine how remediation affects property values, real estate investment, and short-term rental markets near the waterways to give a more detailed and rigorous assessment of contributions to economic resilience (Season 3). Dr. Harleman and his colleagues will use their findings to inform state and local officials of the potential economic benefits of using their limited financial, administrative, and grant-seeking resources for remediation and complementary investments.

Photo: Dr. Max Harleman (right) and Dr. Jeremy G. Weber (left)