In response to the growing demand for undergraduate research experiences in economics, the FIRE Sustainability Analytics program offers a compelling solution. This program provides a course-based undergraduate research experience (CURE) in empirical environmental economics for first-year students at the University of Maryland (UMD). This paper outlines the program’s instructional design, highlights its role in advancing students’ higher-order economic proficiencies, discusses the institutional support behind the program, describes its research projects and their outcomes, and shares insights gained from nine years of program implementation.

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