Resources for the Future

Overview

Resources for the Future (RFF) is a nonpartisan, nonprofit research institution in Washington, D.C. that conducts independent research on environmental, energy and natural resource issues, rooted primarily in economics and other social sciences. Founded in 1952, RFF was the first think tank devoted exclusively to natural resource and environmental issues.

Key functions and role

RFF researchers develop and apply techniques in environmental and resource economics, including cost-benefit analysis, nonmarket valuation and integrated assessment modeling of climate impacts, and the organization does not take institutional positions on specific legislation. RFF publishes Resources magazine, discussion papers and issue briefs, hosts the Resources Radio podcast, and operates the RFF-CMCC European Institute on Economics and the Environment in Milan, Italy, in partnership with the Euro-Mediterranean Center on Climate Change.

History

RFF grew out of a 1951 presidential commission chaired by CBS chairman William S. Paley, convened at the request of President Harry Truman to study U.S. dependence on natural resource imports amid Korean War-era shortages. The commission's 1952 report, "Resources for Freedom," recommended creating an independent research organization to study resource supply, and RFF was incorporated that October with initial funding from the Ford Foundation. RFF economist Allen Kneese's research on market-based approaches to water pollution helped lay the conceptual groundwork for the tradable pollution-credit programs the Environmental Protection Agency later adopted.

Political positions

RFF describes itself as nonpartisan and independent, emphasizing empirical, economics-based analysis over policy advocacy; it states that while its scholars may express professional opinions in their research, the organization itself does not take institutional positions on pending legislation or regulation.

Leadership

William A. Pizer became President and Chief Executive Officer in 2024, succeeding Richard G. Newell, who had led RFF since 2016. Susan F. Tierney chairs RFF's Board of Directors.

Location and contact info

Address
1616 P St. NW, Suite 600
Washington, DC 20036, USA
Phone
(202) 328-5000
Website
https://www.rff.org