This document and trademark(s) contained herein are protected by law. This representation of RAND intellectual property is provided for noncommercial use only. Unauthorized posting of this publication online is prohibited. Permission is given to duplicate this document for personal use only, as long as it is unaltered and complete. Permission is required from RAND to reproduce, or reuse in another form, any of its research documents for commercial use. For information on reprint and linking permissions, please visit www.rand.org/pubs/permissions.html.The RAND Corporation is a research organization that develops solutions to public policy challenges to help make communities throughout the world safer and more secure, healthier and more prosperous. RAND is nonprofit, nonpartisan, and committed to the public interest.RAND's publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of its research clients and sponsors.Support RAND Make a tax-deductible charitable contribution at www.rand.org/giving/contribute www.rand.org For more information on this publication, visit www.rand.org/t/TL165Published by the RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, Calif. © Copyright 2016 RAND CorporationR® is a registered trademark. Cover (clockwise from top): Images via Matyas Rehak/Fotolia, francis49/Thinkstock, Flavijus Piliponis/Fotolia.iii PrefaceMore than 2 billion people around the world, especially in developing countries, do not have access to high-quality services related to food, energy, and water. To provide information to development agencies and efforts focused on food, energy, and water resources, the RAND Corporation developed the Pardee RAND Food-Energy-Water Security Index. The index can be accessed online through an interactive RAND website (www.rand.org/t/TL165) that allows exploration of the data through maps and charts or downloading of the data for offline analysis. This report serves as the technical documentation for the index.Funding for the development of the Pardee RAND Food-Energy-Water Security Index was provided by philanthropic contributions from RAND supporters and income from operations. Additional funding was made available through the establishment of the Pardee Initiative for Global Human Progress, made possible by the generous support of Frederick S. Pardee.The index described in this report (available at www.prgs.edu/pardee-initiative/foodenergy-water/interactive-index.) provides a standardized, quantitative, and transparent estimation of the nexus between food, energy, and water that can easily be used by policymakers, the development community, scientists, and the public interested in improving human development worldwide. RAND Infrastructure Resilience and Environmental Policy ProgramThe research reported here was conducted in the RAND Infrastructure Resilience and Environmental Policy program, which performs analyses on urbanization and other stresses. This includes research on infrastructure development; infrastructure financing; energy policy; urban planning and the role of public-private partnerships; t...

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Objectives: This study examined perceptions of factors that influence use and non-use of Alternative Tobacco Products (ATPs) among unaccompanied youth experiencing homelessness. Methods: Focus groups were conducted with 30 homeless 18–24 year olds (80% men, 50% Hispanic, 30% Black, 17% White, 20% multi-racial/other) recruited from drop-in centers in Los Angeles. Discussion focused on several ATPs (hookah, electronic cigarettes/vaping devices, cigarillos/little cigars, smokeless tobacco, snus, natural cigarettes, clove cigarettes), soliciting participants’ experiences using each ATP and motivations for using or not using each ATP. Results: Focus group transcripts were subjected to a rigorous coding procedure and 8 themes relating to the reasons that participants may or may not use ATPs emerged. Each ATP was associated with distinctive characteristics that motivated use and non-use. For example, hookah use was viewed positively with positive sensory and social features dominating the discussion, whereas electronic cigarettes were viewed largely negatively (i.e., that they were expensive and harmful to health). Homelessness characterized participants’ responses to the extent that cost was a factor in their choice of ATP. Conclusions: These data provide important, first look insights into factors that may influence the use and non-use of ATPs among unaccompanied youth experiencing homelessness.

A social marketing campaign was introduced in California in 2012, promoting media adherence to consensus-based guidelines on reporting about suicide. We examine adherence to these guidelines by applying quantitative scores to articles in California and a national control group in two six-month intervals prior to and following campaign implementation. Utilizing a difference-in-difference approach, we found no significant effect of the campaign, though the type of article content was a significant indicator of the overall score. Findings also demonstrated a nation-wide downward trend in the quality of reporting. Qualitative results suggest a need for more flexible guidelines in light of a technologically driven news culture.