• Research
  • Emissary
  • About
  • Experts
Carnegie Global logoCarnegie lettermark logo
DemocracyIran
  • Donate
{
  "authors": [
    "David Livingston"
  ],
  "type": "legacyinthemedia",
  "centerAffiliationAll": "dc",
  "centers": [
    "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace"
  ],
  "collections": [],
  "englishNewsletterAll": "ctw",
  "nonEnglishNewsletterAll": "",
  "primaryCenter": "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
  "programAffiliation": "SCP",
  "programs": [
    "Sustainability, Climate, and Geopolitics"
  ],
  "projects": [
    "Carnegie Oil Initiative"
  ],
  "regions": [
    "North America",
    "United States"
  ],
  "topics": [
    "Climate Change"
  ]
}

Source: Getty

In The Media

A Call for Greater Oil Transparency in California

California has the opportunity to lead the globe in oil data transparency even as it faces hidden climate risks from its oils.

Link Copied
By David Livingston
Published on May 2, 2017
Program mobile hero image

Program

Sustainability, Climate, and Geopolitics

The Sustainability, Climate, and Geopolitics Program explores how climate change and the responses to it are changing international politics, global governance, and world security. Our work covers topics from the geopolitical implications of decarbonization and environmental breakdown to the challenge of building out clean energy supply chains, alternative protein options, and other challenges of a warming planet.

Learn More
Project hero Image

Project

Carnegie Oil Initiative

The Carnegie Oil Initiative analyzed global oils, assessing their differences from climate, environmental, economic, and geopolitical perspectives. This knowledge provides strategic guidance and policy frameworks for decision making.

Learn More

Source: KCSB

Carnegie’s David Livingston spoke with UC Santa Barbara’s KCSB-FM Radio about California’s hidden climate risks—its oil—as well as the opportunity for the state to be a global leader in oil data transparency. 

“I would argue that transparency is important, not just in California, but on a global scale for the oil sector," explained Livingston. "California simply has the opportunity to be a real leader in this space as it has been in so many areas of environmental policy."

The interview referenced two new case studies from Carnegie, Need to Know: The Case for Oil Transparency in California and Drilling Down on Oil: The Case of California’s Complex Midway Sunset Field, which identify potential climate risks across the state and find that some of oil fields may rival the dirtiest in the world, much like the Canadian oil sands.

The interview audio and original broadcast can be found on KCSB-FM. 

About the Author

David Livingston

Former Associate Fellow, Energy and Climate Program

Livingston was an associate fellow in Carnegie’s Energy and Climate Program, where his research focuses on emerging markets, technologies, and risks.

    Recent Work

  • Article
    Advancing Public Climate Engineering Disclosure

      Deborah Gordon, Smriti Kumble, David Livingston

  • Commentary
    Working Around Trump on Climate

      Erik Brattberg, David Livingston

David Livingston
Former Associate Fellow, Energy and Climate Program
Climate ChangeNorth AmericaUnited States

Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.

More Work from Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

  • Commentary
    Strategic Europe
    How to Join the EU in Three Easy Steps

    Montenegro and Albania are frontrunners for EU enlargement in the Western Balkans, but they can’t just sit back and wait. To meet their 2030 accession ambitions, they must make a strong positive case.

      Dimitar Bechev, Iliriana Gjoni

  • Fire damage is pictures as US President Joe Biden (out of frame) visits to an area devastated by wildfires in Lahaina, Hawaii on August 21, 2023.
    Article
    The United States Has an Internal Displacement Problem

    By reorganizing federal disaster policy around the rights of displaced people, the United States could unlock additional federal resources, accelerate the rebuilding of lives and livelihoods, and reduce suffering and economic disruption.

      • Kayly Ober

      Kayly Ober

  • flood wall
    Commentary
    Emissary
    BRIC Is Critical for U.S. National Security. After a Yearlong Legal Battle, It’s Back.

    Its reinstatement should be celebrated, but it retains some major shortcomings.

      Leonardo Martinez-Diaz

  • Aerial shot of island community
    Commentary
    One Year After the Great Aid Recession, Investments in Climate Mobility Offer Cost-Effective Returns

    Climate mobility interventions can vary, but they all present opportunities to unlock transformative results that mitigate costs associated with inaction.

      • Alejandro Rodriguez

      Alejandro Martin Rodriguez

  • Female farm labourers pick strawberries in the Kenitra province country side of Morocco as the world marks the International Women's Day on March 8, 2017.
    Article
    Climate Change, Gender, and Inequality in Morocco’s Souss-Massa Region

    For Morocco, integrating gender into climate governance is not simply a matter of social justice. It is a strategic imperative for effective adaptation.

      Fadwa Rajoauni

Get more news and analysis from
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Carnegie global logo, stacked
1779 Massachusetts Avenue NWWashington, DC, 20036-2103Phone: 202 483 7600Fax: 202 483 1840
  • Research
  • Emissary
  • About
  • Experts
  • Donate
  • Programs
  • Events
  • Blogs
  • Podcasts
  • Contact
  • Annual Reports
  • Careers
  • Privacy
  • For Media
  • Government Resources
Get more news and analysis from
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
© 2026 Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. All rights reserved.