Molly Sears

Dr. Molly Sears is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics at Michigan State University (MSU), part of the College of Agriculture & Natural Resources. She holds a PhD from UC Berkeley (2022) and has a multidisciplinary background in agricultural economics, environmental policy, and econometrics. Her research focuses on improving agricultural productivity while preserving environmental quality, with emphasis on nutrient management, water policy, and climate resilience. She has secured over $8.5 million in grants as PI or co-PI for projects related to AI-based agricultural forecasting, climate-smart practices, and irrigation efficiency.

Education:

• PhD in Agricultural and Resource Economics, UC Berkeley (2022)
• MS in Agricultural and Resource Economics, UC Berkeley (2018)
• MS in Agriculture and Resource Economics, Purdue University (2016)
• BS in Environmental and Water Resource Economics & Environmental Science, University of Arizona (2014)

Research Interests:

• Technology adoption in precision agriculture
• Water policy and irrigation management
• Nutrient management practices
• Climate change adaptation strategies
• Farmer decision-making under uncertainty
• Economic impacts of environmental regulations

Recent Contributions: Her work bridges economics and environmental science, with over 30 publications in top journals like Ecological Economics and Applied Economics Perspectives and Policy. Notable projects include development of decision-support tools for irrigation retrofitting and farm bill analysis. She advises graduate students on topics like cloud seeding effectiveness and crop insurance impacts.

Awards & Service:

• Recipient of NSF Environment & Society Fellowship (2017-2019)
• Leadership roles in MSU's Department Advisory Committee and W5190 Multi-State Hatch project
• Referee for Water Resources Research, Canadian Journal of Agricultural Economics, and others

Teaching: Teaches Public Policy in the Agri-Food System at MSU and has extensive experience instructing environmental economics courses at UC Berkeley.