Master's Project Directory

Overview of MEDS Capstone projects Overview of MESM Group projects

Five students posing together for a photo

Guiding Insurance Instruments to Leverage Natural Infrastructure for Climate Change Resilience

The Nature Conservancy enlisted this group project team to help determine whether investments in natural infrastructure could lower insurance costs to hoteliers and coastal development sites.

Faculty Advisors: Ashley Larsen, Samantha Stevenson

Clients: The Nature Conservancy

Five female students standing with two male faculty members

Managing Endemic Species Across the California Islands Archipelago in the Face of Climate Change

This project team worked with The Nature Conservancy, Santa Barbara Botanic Garden, and other island conservation organizations to better understand how climate change will impact island oaks and their recovery.

Faculty Advisors: John Melack, Bruce Kendall

Clients: The Nature Conservancy, Santa Barbara Botanic Garden

Utilizing Flexible EV Charging to Mitigate Renewable Energy Curtailment and Support a Low Carbon Grid

In California, there is often an excess supply of solar energy in the middle of the day, which can lead to grid curtailment - when clean, renewable energy is not generated to its full capacity or sold to other regions at negative pricing. As more electric vehicles enter the market in California and are poised to charge at the similar peak demand times, utilities are looking for strategies to shift demand of electric vehicle charging to use that excess supply of solar energy. The project's goal was to analyze the potential of electric vehicles as a flexible demand response tool and how to turn a challenge into an opportunity.

Faculty Advisors: Christopher Costello

Clients: Southern California Edison

Three students standing in front of a project poster

Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions Through Materials Innovation in the Apparel Industry

By modeling various product changes out to the year 2035 with company growth, this team identified the material and dye applications with the largest GHG savings for apparel company Patagonia. From this, they sought to develop realistic product change recommendations to decrease the overall environmental impact of Patagonia’s products.

Faculty Advisors: Roland Geyer

Clients: Patagonia

Evaluating Synergies and Tradeoffs Among Agricultural Productivity, Ecosystem Services and Human Wellbeing in Rwanda

This project aimed to identify synergies and tradeoffs between agricultural practices, ecosystem health, and human wellbeing in Rwanda. Their approach was to examine Vital Sign’s integrated data across a variety of indicators. This analysis was then used to inform agricultural development decisions.

Faculty Advisors: Mark Buntaine

Clients: Conservation International

Evaluating Watershed Ecosystem Services and Nature-Based Conservation Solutions in the Carson and Walker Basins

This research group project was commissioned by The Nature Conservancy (TNC) to conduct a watershed analysis of the Carson and Walker river basins of Douglas County, Nevada. They developed a conceptual model of the local watershed, evaluated ecosystem services and the impacts of climate change, as well as performed a market feasibility study to determine if a water fund mechanism would be possible in the region.

Faculty Advisors: Scott Jasechko

Clients: The Nature Conservancy

Five students posing with their project mentors

Using Historical Ecology to Guide Restoration and Management Planning at Point Conception’s Dangermond Preserve

This project provided a unique opportunity to use history to inform conservation planning. The property has a long history of human land use, with controlled fires set by the Chumash and centuries of ranching under Spanish land grants. Due to the lasting influence of human disturbance on ecosystem structure and function, a comprehensive understanding of land use history is essential to an effective conservation plan.

Faculty Advisors: Kelly Caylor

Clients: The Nature Conservancy

Five students posing with their project mentor

Building a Case for Conservation-Compatible Renewable Energy Development in the US Wind Belt

This project worked in partnership with the Nature Conservancy (TNC) to explore how we can support the wind energy growth while ensuring the continued conservation and protection of nature and biodiversity. To do this, the group evaluated whether wind power projects located in areas that avoid harming wildlife have a lower likelihood of cancellation.

Faculty Advisors: Kyle Meng, Sarah Anderson

Clients: The Nature Conservancy

Life Cycle Greenhouse Gas Emissions Assessment of California Floating Offshore Wind Energy

To develop floating offshore wind projects in federal waters off the coast of California, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Pacific Region has tasked the Bren School with characterizing and assessing the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with the integration of offshore wind energy into California electricity markets.

Clients: Bureau of Ocean Energy Management

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Program

Clients

Year

Faculty Advisors

Guiding Insurance Instruments to Leverage Natural Infrastructure for Climate Change Resilience

Managing Endemic Species Across the California Islands Archipelago in the Face of Climate Change

Utilizing Flexible EV Charging to Mitigate Renewable Energy Curtailment and Support a Low Carbon Grid

Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions Through Materials Innovation in the Apparel Industry

Evaluating Synergies and Tradeoffs Among Agricultural Productivity, Ecosystem Services and Human Wellbeing in Rwanda

Evaluating Watershed Ecosystem Services and Nature-Based Conservation Solutions in the Carson and Walker Basins

Using Historical Ecology to Guide Restoration and Management Planning at Point Conception’s Dangermond Preserve

Building a Case for Conservation-Compatible Renewable Energy Development in the US Wind Belt

Life Cycle Greenhouse Gas Emissions Assessment of California Floating Offshore Wind Energy

The Hurd Co. (Eco-E)

Eco-Entrepreneurship: Roots

Next Generation Water Action Plan for General Electric

Prioritizing Cost-Effective Dust Mitigation at the Salton Sea

Motivating Private-Public Collaboration to Reduce Fire Severity in the Southern Sierra Nevada Mountains

Environmental Impacts of Utility-Scale Battery Storage in California

Air-Based Land Management – Assessing Drone and Imaging Tools for the Tejon Ranch Conservancy