Overview
Government policy plays a central role in shaping the conditions for human flourishing—but it often introduces barriers that limit opportunity, innovation, and social mobility. This program invites paper submissions that examine the effects of regulation across a range of policy domains, including but not limited to:
- Labor regulation (e.g., occupational licensing, wage requirements, contracting restrictions)
- Health regulation (e.g., certificate of need laws, scope of practice restrictions, Medicaid policy)
- Artificial intelligence regulation
- Housing regulation (e.g., land use rules, conditional use permitting, height and density limits)
- Energy and environmental regulation
- Education policy and school choice
We are particularly interested in research that analyzes how these policies affect social mobility and other outcomes associated with human flourishing. While the primary focus is on US-based policy, strong submissions related to international policy will also be considered.
Program Structure
This program is designed to support both rigorous academic research and its translation into policy-relevant outputs. Participants should be prepared to not only submit a research paper, but also develop skills for communicating their work to broader, public-facing audiences.
- Virtual Research Workshop: Accepted authors will present their work in an online workshop, receiving feedback from faculty mentors and peers.
- Policy Brief Development: A subset of participants will be selected to develop a policy brief based on their research. These briefs should clearly communicate key findings and offer actionable policy recommendations.
- In-Person Workshop (Florida Atlantic University): Selected participants will be invited to an in-person convening to workshop their policy briefs and refine their arguments for broader audiences.
- Public Scholarship Training: Participants will also receive guidance on translating their research into accessible formats, including op-eds and other forms of public-facing writing.