Kenneth R. Richards

Kenneth Richards is an Associate Professor of Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana University's O'Neill School and an Affiliated Associate Professor of Law at the Maurer School of Law. Currently on leave, he holds the Musim Mas Chair in Sustainability at the National University of Singapore Business School.

His educational background includes:

• PhD in Public Policy, Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania (1997)
• J.D., University of Pennsylvania Law School (1997)
• MSCE in Urban and Regional Planning, Northwestern University
• BSCE in Environmental Engineering, Northwestern University
• BA in Botany and Chemistry, Duke University

Richards' research centers on climate change policy, carbon sequestration economics, and environmental policy implementation. He pioneered the U.S. government's first position paper on climate policy instruments (1989) and co-authored the first detailed cost analysis of terrestrial carbon sequestration (1990). His expertise spans energy law, climate change law, administrative law, environmental economics, and cost-benefit analysis, with significant contributions to carbon pricing mechanisms and sequestration policy design.

His 2005-2018 publications demonstrate consistent focus on evaluating carbon taxes, emissions trading systems, forest carbon offset protocols, and subsurface property rights for carbon storage. These works integrate rigorous economic modeling with practical policy implementation challenges, emphasizing cost-effectiveness and regulatory design across U.S. federal and state contexts.

Richards directs the IU at Oxford Program and serves as associate director for both the Richard G. Lugar Center for Renewable Energy and the Center for Research in Energy and the Environment. He maintains an active role as Senior Visiting Fellow at Oxford's Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment.