Get Informed

Fall 2024 
By Lynn Gosnell

Knowledge is more than power — it’s also the backbone of an informed electorate and the basis for effective government policies. For 30 years, Rice’s nonpartisan Baker Institute for Public Policy has brought knowledge — research expertise, data and experience — to the attention of policymakers and the general public alike. 

During presidential election transitions, new administrations have welcomed the Baker Institute’s insights into such critical national issues as energy, immigration and health. This year, the Baker Institute is partnering with other Rice offices to take these efforts a step further via a new initiative, “Election 2024: Policy Playbook.” The playbook combines a series of accessible, nonpartisan policy briefs with a robust program of public engagement events for students and the public around key issues at stake in the 2024 elections. 

The playbook combines a series of accessible, nonpartisan policy briefs with a robust program of public engagement events for students and the public around key issues at stake in the 2024 elections. 

The policy briefs share scholarly insights on key decisions awaiting the incoming U.S. presidential administration and Texas Legislature. Throughout the fall, these briefs will also deliver the insights of Rice’s best scholars to voters, candidates, the media, policymakers and industry leaders. Contributing scholars include researchers with expertise in topics that are front and center in the national conversation: the economy and jobs; AI, science and technology; energy and sustainability; health and education; borders and immigration; building strong and resilient communities; elections and governance; and national security. 

The first public engagement event took place Sept. 5, with a discussion that featured journalists Peter Baker of The New York Times and Susan Glasser of The New Yorker in a conversation that explored the issues shaping the upcoming November election. 

“Presidential election years present an opportunity to inform both the discourse and direction of policymaking. Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy is exceptionally positioned to contribute to this process, as the world’s top-ranked university-affiliated think tank,” says David M. Satterfield, director of Rice’s Baker Institute. “By leveraging our extensive intellectual resources alongside the strong reputation of the institute among policymakers, we have a chance to make a meaningful impact on issues that matter.”

This series promises to be an essential resource for anyone seeking to navigate the complex landscape of American politics.

In Conversation: Great Minds

Just two weeks before Nov. 5, Rice’s School of Humanities and the Progressive Forum will co-host a special event featuring esteemed Rice historians — W. Caleb McDaniel and Douglas Brinkley — who will share historical perspectives about the 2024 presidential election. The conversation will be moderated by School of Humanities Dean Kathleen Canning and Rice historian Fay A. Yarbrough as part of the Humanities Innovations series. The in-person event takes place Tuesday, Oct. 22, at 7 p.m. in the Shepherd School of Music’s Stude Concert Hall. 

Go to humanities.rice.edu/humanities-innovations for registration information.

W. Caleb McDaniel is the Mary Gibbs Jones Professor of Humanities and professor of history. Douglas Brinkley is the Katherine Tsanoff Brown Professor in Humanities and professor of history. Fay A. Yarbrough is the William Gaines Twyman Professor of History and associate dean of humanities for faculty and graduate programs. Kathleen Canning is dean of the School of Humanities and the Andrew W. Mellon Professor of History.