Credit hours
In-class work per week |
Practice per week |
Credits |
Duration |
Total |
6 |
2 |
8 |
10 weeks |
120 hours |
Instructor
Alexandre Nunes de Almeida
Objective
The field of environmental economics consists of analysing, given the current technologies and consumer
preferences, the environmental degradation from our production and consumption decisions. The main
target of an environmental economist is to find the balance between what is efficient for firms and
consumers. This trade-off is not simple because it involves agents who respond according to their
interests and incentives, whether mandatory or voluntary. On the other hand, the field of natural
resource economics consists of applying economic principles to the study of exploitation and
preservation of renewable and non-renewable natural resources. More specifically, market allocations
that are socially optimal regarding the use of these scarce resources should be analyzed through
dynamic optimization problems. The design of policy instruments and the role of natural resources in
economic growth and international trade are also explored.
For students, it is expected: 1) To learn the basic economic principles that govern the management of
various categories of environmental resources and policies; and 2) to get experience with analytical tools
to apply these principles to real-world problems.
Content
1. Externalities and Market Failures
2. Instruments of Environmental Regulation Policies
3. Hotelling Rule and Extraction of Natural Resources
4. Economic Growth and Environmental Sustainability
5. International Trade and Environment
6. Valuation of Natural Resources and Cost-Benefit Analysis
Bibliography
Baumol, W. J. and W.E. Oates, The Theory of Environmental Policy, Cambridge University Press, 1988. Bergh, Jeroen C. J. M. Van Den. Handbook of Environmental and Resource Economics. Edward Elgar Pub, 2002. BROWN, Thomas C.; CHAMP, Patricia A.; BOYLE, Kevin J. A Primer on Nonmarket Valuation (The Economics of Nonmarket Goods and Resources, V. 3). Kluwer Academic Publishers, 2004. Chiang, A. C. Elements of Dynamic Optimization, New York: McGraw-Hill, 1992. Conrad, J. M. Resources Economics (2nd edition), Cambridge University Press, 2010. Freeman, A. M. III. The Measurement of Environmental and Resource Values: Theory and Methods, Washington, D.C.: Resources for the Future, 1993. Hanley, N.; Shogren, J. F. and White, B. Environmental Economics in Theory and Practice (2nd edition), Palgrave Macmillan Press, 2007. HOWE, C.W. Natural Resource Economics: Issue, Analysis and Policy. John Wiley and Sons, Inc., New York, N.Y. , 1979. HUFSCHMIDT, M.M. et alii. Environment, natural systems, and development: an economic valuation guide. Baltimore and London, The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1983. Hartwick, J. Olewiler, N. E. The Economics of Natural Resource Use, Addison-Wesley, 1998. KAHN, James R. Economic Approach to Environment and Natural Resources. South-Western College Pub, 2004. KNEESE, A.V. & J.L. SWEENEY (eds.) Handbook of natural resource and energy economics. Amsterdam, Elsvier Science Publishers, 1985. Vols. I & II. RANDALL, A. "Resources Economics and Economic Approach in Natural Resources and Enviriomental Policies". 2nd Ed. John Wiley and Sons, N.Y., 1987. Stavins, Robert N., ed., Economics of the Environment: Selected Readings (5th edition), W.W. Norton, 2005. TIETENBERG, Tom. Environmental and Natural Resource Economics (7th Ed.). Addison Wesley, 2005.