Gale A. Boyd, Associate Research Professor in the Social Science Research Institute

Gale A. Boyd

Gale Boyd is an Associate Research Professor in the Social Science Research Institute & Department of Economics. He was the Director of the Triangle Federal Statistical Research Data Center from 2006-2020.  Prior to joining Duke University, Gale was an economist at Argonne National Laboratory. His career has been primarily in area of industrial energy/environmental economics. 

His recent work includes using the non-public Census micro-data and other non-pubic data from industry and trade associations on energy, environmental, and productivity related issues for industrial energy efficiency and related energy/environmental policy research. His research includes preparing statistical benchmarks of energy performance in manufacturing plants, or Energy Performance Indicators (EPI), is supported by the EPA ENERGY STAR program and is used by industry for energy management and public recognition from ENERGY STAR.  Studies of the implications of management practices and environmental policy on industry energy efficiency and total factor productivity are in progress.



Office Location:  261 Gross Hall, Box 90989, Durham, NC 27708
Email Address: send me a message

Teaching (Spring 2024):

Education:

Ph.D.Southern Illinois University1984
Specialties:

Environmental and Resource Economics
Research Interests: Energy & Environment, Production Efficiency, Micro-data, index number decomposition

Current projects: Developing industry specific energy efficiency benchmarking tools for use in the EPA Energy Star voluntary energy efficiency program

Gale Boyd’s research interests pertain to production efficiency, micro-data, index number decomposition, and energy in relation to the environment. His studies have also focused on energy markets, developing industry, voluntary environmental programs, and emissions trading. In his recent studies, he analyzes his subjects through microeconomic modeling and proceeds to develop specific energy efficiency benchmarking tools. He has published his papers in numerous leading academic journals and volumes, from The Energy Journal and the Annual Review of Energy and Resources to the Journal of Economic Literature and the Journal of Industrial Ecology. His writings include such titles as, “Estimating Plant Level Manufacturing Energy Efficiency with Stochastic Frontier Regression,” “Modeling Industrial Energy Consumption,” and “Advances in Energy Forecasting Models based on Engineering-Economics.” Dr. Boyd’s current projects involve the investigation of energy efficiency benchmarking tools for use in the EPA Energy Star voluntary energy efficiency program.

Areas of Interest:

energy markets
emission trading
voluntary environmental programs
climate change

Keywords:

energy • productivity • efficiency • environment • frontier

Working Papers

  1. Gale Boyd and Charles McClure, Waste, Water, and VOC Benchmarking in North American Automotive Manufacturing (Winter, 2012)
  2. Gale A. Boyd and Gang Zhang, Measuring Improvement in the Energy Performance of the U.S. Cement Industry (November, 2011) (Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions Report NI R 11-10, Duke University Durham, NC.) [available here]  [abs]
  3. Gale Boyd, Tatyana Kuzmenko, Béla Személy, & Gang Zhang, Preliminary Analysis Of The Distributions Of Carbon And Energy Intensity For 27 Energy Intensive Trade Exposed Industrial Sectors (April, 2011) (Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions: Duke Environmental Economics Working Paper Series: EE 11-03.) [paper]  [abs]
  4. G.A. Boyd, Assessing Improvement in the Energy Efficiency of U.S. Auto Assembly Plants (June, 2010) (Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions: Duke Environmental Economics Working Paper Series: EE 10-01.)
Recent Publications

  1. Browning, M; McFarland, J; Bistline, J; Boyd, G; Muratori, M; Binsted, M; Harris, C; Mai, T; Blanford, G; Edmonds, J; Fawcett, AA; Kaplan, O; Weyant, J, Net-zero CO2 by 2050 scenarios for the United States in the Energy Modeling Forum 37 study, Energy and Climate Change, vol. 4 (December, 2023) [doi]  [abs]
  2. Abolhassani, A; Boyd, G; Jaridi, M; Gopalakrishnan, B; Harner, J, “Is Energy That Different from Labor?” Similarity in Determinants of Intensity for Auto Assembly Plants, Energies, vol. 16 no. 4 (February, 2023) [doi]  [abs]
  3. Dutrow, E; Worrell, E; Boyd, G, ENERGY STAR Continues the Focus on Energy Efficiency in Industrial Decarbonization, 2023 AEE World Energy Conference and Expo (January, 2023), ISBN 9781713883937
  4. Wachs, L; McMillan, C; Boyd, G; Doolin, M, Exploring New Ways to Classify Industries for Energy Analysis and Modeling (October, 2022), Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI) [doi]
  5. Worrell, E; Boyd, G, Bottom-up estimates of deep decarbonization of U.S. manufacturing in 2050, Journal of Cleaner Production, vol. 330 (January, 2022) [doi]  [abs]
Conferences Organized