In 2010, Stokes moved to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where she earned a master's degree and a doctorate under the supervision of Lawrence Susskind.

At MIT, Stokes created environmental policy curriculum, including The Mercury Game, a treaty negotiation that has been used by over 100 universities around the world.

[11] She has also looked at how the design and presentation of Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS) changes public support for a particular policy.

[13] Tina Smith, Senator for Minnesota, described Stokes as a "powerhouse contributor" to the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, the largest investment into addressing climate change in United States history.

[14] In October 2020, Stokes and Katharine Wilkinson started the podcast A Matter of Degrees, in which they discuss the levers of power that have created the climate problem and the tools to fix it.