Overview
Tibor Vegh serves as a senior policy associate with the Nicholas Institute for Energy, Environment & Sustainability. He is an applied social scientist with a background in environmental planning and economics. Vegh’s applied and policy-relevant research centers on the resilience of coupled human and natural systems; the economic, social, and environmental implications within the context of coastal adaptation; and the reliance on natural systems to benefit communities in the face of uncertainty and environmental risks. Vegh is a lead or collaborator on a wide range of projects where he contributes his economic, financial, and policy analysis skills, as well as his understanding of environmental planning approaches to solve real-world problems.
Vegh’s most recent work focuses on the social and economic aspects of coastal and urban resilience and multidimensional adaptation to risks in coastal and ocean systems. He has also collaborated on projects spanning many other topics, including fisheries economics, plastics pollution mitigation, ecological restoration, ecosystem service markets, bioenergy, and more.
Vegh holds a PhD in city and regional planning with a focus on environmental planning from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. He earned his master's degree in forestry with a focus on economics from Northern Arizona University in 2011 and his bachelor's degree in economics with a minor in mathematics from North Carolina State University in 2008.
Current Duke Appointments & Affiliations
Recent Scholarly Works
Determinants of Private Participation in Programs Delivering Natural Infrastructure as a Watershed Service: A Review
Report · March 6, 2026 The success of many payments for ecosystem services (PES) programs is determined, in large part, by programs’ ability to successfully enroll participants. However, underenrollment remains a frequent challenge and little systematized knowledge about the det ... Open Access Link to item CiteTrade-Offs Between Social Equity and Ecological Benefits When Targeting Floodplain Buyouts for Natural Infrastructure Provision
Report · March 6, 2026 Damages resulting from coastal and riverine flooding in the United States exceed $32 billion annually and cause accelerating societal impacts, with disproportionate disruptions to the lives and livelihoods of vulnerable populations. Two approaches for floo ... Open Access Link to item CiteAssessing the Financial Services Sector’s Leverage in Advancing a Sustainable Ocean Economy
Report · June 6, 2025 Prior research suggests that the global financial services sector could influence the sustainability of the ocean economy, particularly with better information on companies’ externalities (Barbier 2023; Sumaila et al. 2021; Jouffray et al. 2019). This brie ... Open Access Link to item CiteRecent Grants
Nature-based Solutions Accessibility Index
ResearchResearch Associate · Awarded by Walton Family Foundation · 2026 - 2027Scaling Ocean Disclosure
ResearchResearch Associate · Awarded by CDP North America Inc. · 2025 - 2027Scaling up financing for resilient mangrove ecosystems
ResearchPrincipal Investigator · Awarded by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations · 2026 - 2026View All Grants