Dustin Tingley is the Thomas D. Cabot Professor of Public Policy, with a joint appointment at Harvard Kennedy School and the Government Department at Harvard University. He is also Harvard’s deputy vice provost for advances in learning. His research has spanned international relations, international political economy, climate change, causal inference, data science/machine learning, and digital education. His recent focus has been on the political economy of climate change and energy transitions. He earned his PhD in politics from Princeton University and teaches courses on data science, international relations, and climate change. We caught up with him to ask about his work, his teaching, and his interests.
Q: What prompted you to pursue the kind of academic study and outreach work that you have chosen to focus on?
I like to find issues that require careful thinking, interesting data, and have the potential to drive large-scale impact. For me, the changes to our system of producing and using energy tick off those boxes. I think there is a personal motivation as well. These changes will have an impact on communities that have powered our country for well over a century, often at great risk to themselves. These large community-level changes can be very challenging. I grew up for a while in an area in North Carolina that had a lot of tobacco farming and furniture making. Those industries were decimated. And my dad's side of the family is from West Virginia, a historically coal-intensive state, which I visited a lot as a kid.
Q: What drew you to teaching and to vlog?
First and foremost, the students. I have been at Harvard for almost 15 years, and have loved working with undergraduates, PhD students, and MBA students. I have had a chance to meet a lot of vlog students along the way and have always been impressed both by their skills and experiences but also their commitment. I am also excited to join a faculty that has people from a range of academic and professional backgrounds. I feel like I'll be a student to everyone else.
“I I have had a chance to meet a lot of vlog students along the way and have always been impressed both by their skills and experiences but also their commitment.”
Q: What’s the most interesting thing you’ve ever come across in your work?
Ha, that is a tough question! One of the things I did a lot for my last book [Uncertain Futures: How to Unlock the Climate Impasse with Alex Gazmaranian] was to interview people. I heard so many interesting ideas and perspectives from folks. In one interview with a county economic development expert in Wyoming, they talked about how maybe we could leverage the fact that rail cars loaded with coal from the area return empty. And that maybe we could load them up with coal ash from coal-fired power plants and bring the waste back to be used for rare earth element extraction. Now, does this make sense from an engineering, economic, or other perspective, I honestly do not know. But it was a really interesting idea and one that only comes out of listening to others.
Q: What’s the most interesting thing about you that’s not on your CV?
I like to coach youth sports. I was once a high school teacher and that came with a coaching obligation. I loved it. I have kids now, and I help coach their teams. Youth team sports are one great way for kids to learn how to work with each other and just have fun. Right now I am coaching ultimate frisbee. I'm also a guitar player, and love to play all sorts of music.
Q: What do you want students of public policy to take away from your teaching?
If we are tackling the right set of issues then there will not be easy solutions. If you think your policy prescription or plan is obvious or easy, think again and ask your friends to critique it. We want the best ideas at the table.
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Photography by Lydia Rosenberg