Vanderbilt’s Justin Potter Professor of American Competitive Enterprise and professor of law Mark Cohen is taking on a new role as vice president of research for Research for Resources for the Future (RFF). RFF is an independent, non-partisan research organization dedicated to improving environmental, energy and natural resource policymaking worldwide through social science research of the highest caliber. Cohen has been granted a sabbatical from the Vanderbilt Owen Graduate School of Management to lead a team of 40 researchers in Washington, D.C.

Cohen is a leading expert on enforcing environmental regulations and on corporate crime and punishment. He has published more than 85 articles and books on such diverse topics as the effect of community "right to know" laws on firm behavior; why firms reduce toxic chemical emissions; cost-benefit analysis of oil spill regulation and enforcement; how the financial markets value corporate environmental policies and performance; and government enforcement policy and judicial sentencing of individuals and firms convicted of environmental crimes.

Cohen is co-director of the Vanderbilt Center for Environmental Management Studies and currently part of a team of researchers investigating greenhouse gasses and individual behavior through Vanderbilt’s Climate Change Research Network.

"It’s crucial that the brightest minds in academia and the business community take the lead on creating ways to protect and improve the environment. Owen is strongly committed to teaching our students the value of integrating environmental innovation and sustainability into business,” said Owen Dean Jim Bradford. “We applaud Mark's selection into this prestigious organization."

Cohen is a member of the Stakeholder Council of the Global Reporting Initiative, which is affiliated with the United Nations Environment Programme, dedicated to developing and disseminating globally applicable sustainability reporting guidelines. He has recently served as a member of the U.S. EPA Science Advisory Board's Illegal Competitive Advantage Economic Benefit Advisory Panel; the General Accounting Office's Expert Panel on Disclosure of Environmental Information in SEC filings; and was a member of Tennessee's Environmental Justice Steering Committee. Prior to joining the Owen faculty in 1986, Cohen served as an economist at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.



Contact: Amy Wolf, (615) 343-2634
amy.wolf@vanderbilt.edu