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Topic 2 Introduction To Natural Resource Economics - 241003 - 233750

Natural resources economics, introduction to Natural resources economics

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6 views

Topic 2 Introduction To Natural Resource Economics - 241003 - 233750

Natural resources economics, introduction to Natural resources economics

Uploaded by

beatz
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
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Introduction to Natural Resource

Economics

AREC 365: Natural Resource


Economics

Douglas Mugabe
[email protected]
Outline

● What is Natural Resource Economics?

● Why Study Natural Resource Economics?

● Environmental and Resource Challenges

● Solution to the Challenges

○ How Will Societies Respond?


What is Natural Resource Economics?

● The study of the exploitation and conservation of natural resources such as

fisheries, forestry, and energy, and the implications for public policy

● Addressing the connections & interdependence between human economies &

natural ecosystems

○ Give examples of any connections between humans and natural ecosystems.

● Valuation of natural resources to aid in the optimization of the production of

goods and services


Is Natural Resource Economics Important?

● It provides science-based information to help producers balance production

demands with elements central to sustainability

● It demonstrates how policy incentives might motivate better choices by producers

and consumers, and makes predictions about the potential side effects of those

choices.

● What else?
Environmental & Natural Resource Challenges
● Discuss any environmental and natural resource challenges that you know.

○ Water Accessibility

○ Ecosystem degradation

○ Land degradation

○ Marine habitat destruction

○ Climate Change

○ etc
Climate Change
● What is Climate Change?

○ long-term changes in temperatures & weather patterns in a given region.

○ Natural shifts and human caused e.g by burning of fossil fuels, cutting down trees, etc

● Most warming attributed to human activity (IPCC, 2007)

○ CO2 increases due to use of fossil fuels; land-use change, methane/NO2 due to agriculture.

○ Human-induced warming and sea-level rise will continue for centuries, even if stabilized.

○ Projected impacts are contracting snow cover, shrinking sea ice, increasing weather events.

● How is climate change linked to water accessibility?


Solutions: Enviro & Natural Resource Challenges
● Solutions depends on:-

1. International Cooperation

- Collaborative relationship between nations mutually agreement,

- e.g Paris Agreement  Funny Video

2. Resilient Market System

- Capacity of a market system to absorb, adapt, or transform in the face of


shocks

- Market systems resilience: A framework for measurement


Solving global environmental problems
● What should be included?

○ An agreement on resource gains

○ Economic incentives approaches

○ Using judicial remedies for environmental problems

● Should countries pay the same cost to solve environmental problems OR Should

3rd world countries be funded by 1st world countries to mitigate environmental

issues? Discuss.
Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation
● Mitigation

○ Reducing emissions, increase planet’s capacity to absorb GHGs

 e.g regulation, R & D, conservation, awareness, positive incentives, adding a price to GHG emissions

○ Geoengineering or climate engineering

 manipulation of the earth system to counteract at least some of the impacts of GHG emissions

 e.g solar radiation management & carbon removal and sequestration

● Adaptation

○ Modify natural or human systems to minimize harm

 e.g Planning for impacts, building resilience & increase society’s capacity to cope with changes
Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies
Mitigation and Adaptation Policy Choice
● How have the mitigation approaches worked in practice? E.g Carbon Markets and Taxes

○ Cost savings and Emission reductions

○ Revenues could be used to reduce the financial burden of the policy on low-income populations

● What determines the effectiveness of Adaptation Policy

○ Property rights matter.

○ Action depends on good information on both the nature of risks & options for adapting to them.

○ Adaptation choices can also be limited by affordability.

○ Much of the adaptation would be affected by public adaptation responses.


How Will Societies Respond?
● Positive Feedback Loops

○ Secondary effects tend to reinforce the basic trends.

● Negative Feedback Loops

○ A self-limiting rather than self-reinforcing process.

● The Role of Economics

○ Understanding human behavior

○ The Use of Models

● Effectiveness of political and economic tools

● Sustainable development
Discuss: The bicycle is the slow death
Class Discussion
1. How do economic and political institutions contribute to managing uncertainty, and

can they effectively respond to unforeseen challenges without becoming paralyzed?

2. What role does the political system play in addressing environmental problems, and

under what circumstances is government intervention deemed necessary to ensure

a timely and democratic response while honoring obligations to future generations?

3. How can we anticipate and address the challenges and opportunities that the future

holds in terms of sustainable development concerns?


Any Questions?

Next: The Economic Approach

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