Researching the region’s most pressing sustainability challenges
We provide citizens and decision-makers with the policy analysis and practical tools they need to advance an economy and way of life that are environmentally sound, economically vibrant, and socially just.
Our Work
All Sightline Institute research is available to you to cite, use, and share, per our free use policy.
Washington Bill Would Legalize Low-cost “Co-living” Homes
180 Sites Account for a Quarter of Cascadia’s Carbon Pollution
One Year In and One Year Out: An Update on Portland Charter Reform
How Parking Ratios Kill Homes
Sightliners’ 2023 Giving Tuesday Recommendations
Is the Permitting Process for Transmission Lines Really Broken?
Lessons for Washington State Leaders as Another US Oil Refinery Closes
One of Washington’s Anti-Climate Initiatives, 2066, Eked Out a Victory. Why?
Four Ways Gov.-elect Ferguson and Washington Lawmakers Can Build on the State’s Big Climate Win
Correcting the Record on Initiative 2066
The Contradiction of a Split Vote on Washington’s Anti-Climate Ballot Initiatives
(Re)explaining Washington’s Climate Commitment Act
Maine’s Lessons in Ranked Choice Voting
What Oregonians Need to Know About Ranked Choice Voting
Mirroring the Nation, Voter Turnout Dropped in Alaska’s 2022 Election
Reporting on Ranked Choice Voting in Portland’s 2024 Elections
Proportional representation in just three (brutally hard, agonizingly slow) steps!
Four Ways Context Matters for Wildfire News Coverage
Blazing a Trail: The Vital Role of Wildfire Hazard Maps
The Best Wildfire Solution We’re Not Using
Washington’s Most Parking-Burdened Towns and Cities
Twice As Many Small Towns Have Eliminated Parking Mandates As Large Cities
Five Reasons Four-Story Apartment Buildings Are Good
Can We Go Beyond Car Primacy—To Policymaking that Serves People and Places First?
Audit Stretches to Find Trouble in Portland’s Affordability Mandate
Video: Housing Solutions Are Climate Solutions
Poll: Washington Voters Out Ahead Of Local Leaders On Zoning Reforms
Video: Zoning for All Kinds of Affordable Homes
Recipes for Successful Abundant Housing Communications
How to Tear Down the Invisible Walls in Your City’s Zoning Code
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Cut through the noise and get the news you can use. Sightline editors—real people—hand-pick headlines from 150+ outlets to keep you on top of the stories shaping our region’s communities, economy, and environment. Reader favorite; formerly known as Sightline Daily.
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Issue insights from Sightline experts
Hear directly from our team of experts. They take you on a deeper dive into Sightline’s solutions, translating their latest analysis and sharing behind-the-scenes context for the research—as well as what to watch for next. Delivered about monthly.
Housing + Cities
Parking, zoning, sprawl, pollution, property rights, commutes, rents, and home prices—they all intersect where a legacy of exclusionary rules and regulations restrict homebuilding and fuel our housing shortage. Hear from Dan Bertolet, Catie Gould, Michael Andersen, and others exploring solutions for low-carbon, affordable, accessible cities and towns.
Climate + Energy
From electrification to decarbonization, carbon pricing to grid upgrades, Emily Moore and team decode the policy solutions to power a greener, more equitable, and robust economy for the region’s future.
Democracy + Elections
Protecting voter choice and voice with clear-eyed, independent analysis and models of success—Alan Durning, Jay Lee, Shannon Grimes, Al Vanderklipp, and others send you the latest elections solutions and opportunities, from Alaska to Oregon and inland to Montana and Idaho.
Farms + Forests
Where sustainability meets stewardship of our natural resources and food systems. Get dispatches from actual farms and forests—and the policy discussions that determine their health and climate impacts.
