PERC scholars provide the intellectual capital that fuels our approach to environmental problems and how to solve them. We're confident that it's possible to avoid more regulation, government bureaucracy, and financial waste -- and, in fact, to solve environmental problems in a cooperative and collegial manner. Markets and property rights can show us the way. This is what PERC does:
Research and Policy Analysis - Original research by PERC scholars leads to new policies and approaches for applying free market environmentalism to a wide variety of natural resource issues. Current topics of research include water marketing, ecosystem services, Native American institutions, wildlife habitat management, fisheries preservation, environmental entrepreneurship, public lands management, and the shifting relationship between resource extraction and resource protection.
Outreach - PERC's research is widely distributed to policy makers, environmentalists, journalists, entrepreneurs, scholars, and students. In this way, it can be incorporated into the thinking and planning that goes into policy formation. It also serves to define a new way of thinking about how to solve environmental problems. Outreach takes the form of a quarterly magazine known as PERC Reports, as well as case studies, policy series, books, articles, blogs, videos, podcasts, Facebook, Twitter, as well as a stimulating array of conferences, workshops, and speaking engagements.
Applied Programs - PERC’s Applied Programs help conservationists and resource managers apply PERC's ideas to solve on-the-ground environmental problems. This area focuses on applied programs for resource managers and environmental leaders. Resource managers include a broad range of people who deal directly with land, water, wildlife, and air resources. Typically they are individuals who have a direct stake in how natural resources are used and are interested in exploring ways of increasing the value of those assets. PERC's Enviropreneur Institute has a 12-year history of providng training to aid individuals in creating businesses that can broker deals with resource owners.
- Programs and Fellowships - As PERC has grown over the past 30 years, so too have the number of programs and fellowships that we offer. Some programs are open to the public and others are designed for particular groups -- such as conservation professionals or professors. Many (but not all) of the in-residence programs include a stipend, room and board, and travel expenses. For more information on these programs, and for online applications, visit our Programs and Fellowships pages.
Founded 30 years ago in Bozeman, Montana, PERC—the Property and Environment Research Center—is the nation’s oldest and largest institute dedicated to improving environmental quality through property rights and markets.
PERC’s publications, each designed to resonate with specific groups, move ideas generated at PERC to broader audiences.
Research is at the heart of PERC's work, with a focus on the question: What is the link between economic growth and environmental quality?
The goal of PERC’s programs is to fully realize the vision of establishing “PERC University,” where scholars, students, policy makers, and others convene to expand the applications of free market environmentalism.
PERC's fellowships share a common goal of exposing new scholars, students, journalists, and policy makers to free market environmentalism, as well as enable scholars already familiar with FME to explore new applications.
PERC continues to publish and present a broad range of research and discussion through podcasts, videos, and other multimedia channels.