Anna’s focus on environmental economics began with a question about how growth shapes people’s everyday lives. As an undergraduate at Appalachian State University, she was working on a paper about the effects that increasing enrollment has on student housing choices and welfare. Anna needed a way to measure willingness to pay when her advisor, an environmental economist, suggested she use a ‘discrete choice experiment'. This research method, where participants choose between a fixed number of options with different attributes, helps researchers analyze preferences and trade-offs without asking participants directly.

Anna had previously worked in experimental economics with a different faculty member, so getting to collect data for this project was something she was familiar with doing. So with her skillset in place, after graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration in Economics, she began her career as a regulatory economist for the New York City Department of Public Service. Anna worked with a team of economists to forecast electric and gas demand across different regions in the state.

The road to Virginia Tech

As a native North Carolinian from Greenville, Anna spent four years driving up and down I-40 for holidays and to visit family, and she realized the economic effects that the rapid population growth had on North Carolina. These effects shaped her research firsthand, leading to her first publication, which examined how the large influx in enrollment at Appalachian State had strained the student rental market.

Anna chose Virginia Tech because of its faculty and geographic location in a region that closely aligns with her research interests in the Southeast and Appalachia.

That decision was also shaped by meeting Klaus Moeltner, professor in the Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics, at a workshop on econometrics and random forests. As she researched faculty in the department, she also became interested in Zhenshan Chen’s work on energy and solar, an assistant professor in the same department. Virginia Tech was at the top of her list, and she committed the day after she received her acceptance letter.

Her research helps solve regional issues with population growth and how to smoothly transition communities to renewable energy. She’s especially interested in this work because it connects directly to individual well-being, whether that’s access to affordable housing or the ability to benefit from clean energy transitions.

“Anna demonstrates exceptional insight into energy policy, particularly in the areas of energy pricing and renewable energy siting," Chen said. "Part of her research examines the welfare impacts of renewable energy siting using cutting-edge analytical methods and original data. I'm quite confident her work will meaningfully inform energy policy and create profound public benefit.”

One of the most exciting moments for her has been recognizing how interconnected population growth, housing markets, and energy transitions all influence one another. That realization really shaped how she approaches her research moving forward. These connections are one of her favorite things about economics.

Anna, Penny her dog, and boyfriend, Gavin, hiking
Photo courtesy of Anna Carroll.

She hopes her research will inform how we design and implement energy policies, especially as communities transition toward renewable energy. By studying how these changes interact with environmental risks and local economies, she wants to help ensure that the benefits of energy transitions are widely shared and that communities, particularly in the Southeast, are not left behind. Outside of Virginia Tech, she likes to hike with her dog, Penny, and boyfriend, Gavin, knit, and bake.

Anna Carroll, Ph.D. Candidate

  • Research interests: Applied Econometrics, Environmental Economics
  • Advisor: Zhenshan Chen
  • Anticipated graduation year: 2029