Economics, Environment, and Sustainable Development
January 17-18, 2018; Irvine, CA
Organized by Simon Levin, Stephen Carpenter, Gretchen Daily, Sir Partha Dasgupta, Paul Ehrlich, Geoffrey Heal, Catherine Kling, Jane Lubchenco, and Stephen Polasky
Overview
This colloquium was held in Irvine, CA on January 17-18, 2018.
This colloquium highlighted the central role of economics in addressing global environmental change and sustainable development and improving the breadth and depth of economic analysis of these issues.
Ecologists and economists discussed the importance of biological diversity, ecosystem services and natural capital for human welfare as well as tradeoffs and synergies among different desired sustainable development goals, especially between economic growth and the maintenance of natural capital.
Videos
Agenda
Thursday, January 17
Session I - Natural Capital and Ecosystem Services
Moderator: Stephen Polasky
Sustainable? Environment Policies within Economic Development Frameworks, Alexander Pfaff, Duke University
Collective vs. Individual Rights and Responsibilities: Implications for Environmental Protection and Resource Management, Kathleen Segerson, University of Connecticut
Economic Insights to Sustain Natural Capital from the Sea, Christopher Costello, University of California, Santa Barbara
Does Current Water Quality Regulation Benefit the U.S.? How Do We Know?, David Keiser, Iowa State University
Panel: Stephen Carpenter, University of Wisconsin; Gretchen Daily, Stanford University; and Eli Fenichel, Yale University
Session II - Behavioral Economics, Policy and Institutional Design for Environmental Improvement
Moderator: Catherine Kling, Iowa State University
Leveraging Behavioral Economics and Field Experiments in Non-market Valuation, John A. List, University of Chicago
The Good, the Bad and the Conditional: Sustaining Cooperation through Self-Sorting, Karine Nyborg, University of Oslo
International Cooperation on the Global Commons, Scott Barrett, Columbia University
Environmental Catastrophes and Mitigation Policies in a Multi-region World, Avinash Dixit, Princeton University
Panel: Marty Anderies, Arizona State University and Simon Levin, Princeton University
Reflections: Gretchen Daily, Stanford University
Distinctive Voices Public Lecture - Agriculture and the Nine Billion Piece Environmental Sustainability Puzzle
Introduction by Simon Levin, Princeton University
presented by G. David Tilman, University of Minnesota
Friday, January 18
Session III - Economic Development and Sustainability
Moderator: Gretchen Daily
Evaluating Conservation Policies through Randomized Controlled Trials, Seema Jayachandran, Northwestern University
Bigger Impacts For Less Money? The Promise (And Pitfalls) Of Targeting, Kelsey Jack, Tufts University
Irreversibility From Early-Life Exposure To Air Pollution, Subhrendu Pattanayak, Duke University
Panel: Paul Ehrlich, Stanford University and Geoffrey Heal, Columbia Univeristy
Session IV - Challenges and Opportunities in Using Reduced Form Econometrics in the Study of Global Environmental Change
Moderator: Stephen Polasky, University of Minnesota
Pricing the Climate, Solomon Hsiang, University of California, Berkeley
Health, Pollution, and Reduced Form Econometrics, Dan Phaneuf, University of Wisconsin
Causal Inference in Spatial-Dynamic Systems, Paul Ferraro
Panel: Laura Grant, Claremont McKenna College and Catherine Kling, Iowa State University
Workshop summary, reflections on themes,: Catherine Kling, Iowa State University; Simon Levin, Princeton University; Stephen Polasky, University of Minnesota