Research & News
Faculty Research and News
Joe Árvai recognized for his contribution to risk analysis
Erb Institute Faculty Director Joe Árvai is one of the six fellows that the Society for Risk Analysis (SRA) recently named, recognizing their substantial achievements in science or public policy relating to risk analysis, as well as their service to the society. SRA...
New ways to study individual corporations’ supply chains
Multinational corporations wield immense power. A mere 100 companies control a quarter of global trade. Walmart is the 10th-largest economic entity on the planet. Coca-Cola is the world’s largest consumer of aluminum and sugarcane. In choosing where to invest, what...
Guidelines aim to slow spread of fake climate change news on Facebook
In this era of conflicting ideologies, fake news about climate change—especially on Facebook—can embolden those who remain unconvinced that it’s a threat and can easily influence people who only casually follow the issue. Lauren Lutzke is a doctoral student at the...
Andy Hoffman: Honored for his work on book “Culture Shapes the Climate Change Debate”
Andy Hoffman is a 2019 recipient of the RRBM award for his work on "Culture Shapes the Climate Change Debate." The book seeks to understand why people are rejecting the science on climate change and what the science says about how to overcome that schism. One...
What does society look like in the future of the Anthropocene? A Q&A with Andy Hoffman
We have entered a new geologic epoch, called the Anthropocene, that recognizes people’s effect on the Earth’s ecosystems—harming them in ways that are likely irreversible. So what will Anthropocene society look like in the future? Erb faculty member Andrew Hoffman and...
The five Ws of supply chains: Who, what, where, when and why corporations should care
Not a month goes by without a media campaign linking the supply chain of a well-known brand with unsavory labor practices or environmental mismanagement. Such exposés can devalue brands and reduce well-meaning corporate sustainability initiatives to hypocrisy. Beyond...
Simple interventions can help to inhibit the spread of fake climate change news on Facebook
Research by Lauren Lutzke, U-M SEAS Master’s Student; Caitlin Drummond, Erb Institute Postdoc; Joe Arvai, Erb Institute Faculty Director Article by Lauren Lutzke, M.S. Candidate in Behavior, Education, and Communication at the University of Michigan “Fake News” has...
Ross Professor: There’s Something Terribly Wrong With How We Make Decisions About Climate Change
For over two decades, Joe Árvai has studied how we actually make choices — compared to how we think we make them. It will come as no surprise to even the most casual observers that the gulf between them can be large. In a recent study, Árvai and Douglas Bessette of...
The faculty member who fights fake news – Erb Institute faculty Andy Hoffman in La Nación
Andy Hoffman teaches business and sustainability courses at the University of Michigan and studies cultural issues and the knowledge that impacts decisions. He visited Costa Rica and spoke with Irene Rodríguez S. at ‘La Nación’. Translated to English from the...
Why sustainability should include political activity – Professor Tom Lyon in the California Management Review
Why sustainability should include political activity Professor Tom Lyon in the California Management ReviewCorporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability initiatives have gone mainstream, but they are missing something important: They ignore corporations’...
When you realize, it’s not just you. – Shedding light on gender and navigating academia
Or how two professors are bringing awareness and a voice to gender issues in higher education: Erb Staffer Carolyn Kwant talks with Sara Soderstrom, Asst. Professor, University of Michigan and Maria Farkas, Asst. Professor, Department of Management, Imperial College...
Do people cheat when no one’s looking? Implications for environmental management
Many environmental management programs offer people incentives to engage in conservation activities. But these activities, carried out on a local level, often are difficult to monitor. Are people inclined to cheat to get the incentives? Research led by Rohit Jindal of...