The Economics of Global Climate Change
by Jonathan M. Harris, Brian Roach and Anne-Marie Codur
This module, based on Chapters 12 and 13 of Harris and Roach’s textbook, Environmental and Natural Resource Economics: A Contemporary Approach, discusses the scientific evidence on climate change, including recent data and projections on emissions, temperature and sea-level rise. It then evaluates the strengths and weaknesses of economic analysis of the issue, including discussion of valuation of environmental damages, carbon taxes, tradable permits, and other policy responses. A section on current policy issues discusses recent international actions and commitments, and evaluates the challenges of getting to net zero emissions as well as global climate equity issues. The module has been updated to include the latest science and policy developments, including the most recent reports of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and new information on carbon storage in soils and forests.
This 66-page module is suitable for several weeks of class time.
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