About
Galen's primary research interests have so far focused on the politics of energy and climate in the American states and at the national level. After graduating in 2020 he worked in the Climate and Development Lab at Brown, leading several studies on public counter-movements against greenhouse gas mitigation policies as well as state-level interest group politics. At Michigan he will continue this line of research using multiple methods, primarily quantitative analysis of texts, demographic and political data, and data on interest groups.
Galen is also developing a second line of research using big data to identify consistent socio-behavioral dynamics relating to mobility, inequality, and energy that will impact the response to climate change. At the broadest level, he aims to import quantitative methods from other fields such as physics and mathematical ecology, grounded in sociological theory, and apply them to understand pressing issues surrounding the climate crisis and inequality.
