The EEP option is designed for students from all backgrounds with an interest in environmental economics and public policy.
It provides students with an ability to employ economic reasoning and an understanding of the importance of institutions and policy processes to the analysis of a broad range of national and international policy issues such as biodiversity protection, climate change, poverty/environment linkages and the management of renewable resources; an awareness of the institutional and policy context in which environmental economic solutions might be applied; working knowledge of a wide range of economic tools and project and policy evaluation methods; and a sound but critical understanding of environmental economics as a discipline including knowledge of the different paradigms of analysis in the field.
Further information
Environmental economics is now an indispensable part of the education of anyone dealing with environmental issues. As one of the fastest growing areas of research and study, its influence over environmental policymaking and practice is already widely recognised. For example, it has become commonplace to speak about green taxes, carbon trading mechanisms, environmental valuation and incentive design for sustainable development.
What are the underlying causes of tropical deforestation? How rapidly should we take action to deal with global warming? What is the most efficient way to tackle air pollution? Are consumers willing to pay more for cleaner fuels and technologies? These are some of the questions which environmental economics attempts to address, pointing to the need to link individual choices and patterns of behaviour to the underlying structure of the economy and its institutions. A central insight is that environmental degradation, far from being an incidental consequence of economic activity, is in many ways a central feature of the way production and consumption is currently organised. Economists are uniquely well placed to comment on, and offer analysis of, these linkages. At the same time, economists argue that solutions require systematic changes to the economic incentives which drive human behaviour in these domains, bringing about the shifts in production and consumption that are necessary for sustainable development.
The demand for individuals with a good grounding in environmental economics continues to grow. There are promising career opportunities in government, industry, consultancy and research for people able to apply economic ideas, concepts and methodologies to environmental problem-solving and policymaking. In drawing up this new Option, we have been concerned to offer a course which will educate and inspire individuals interested in a career in these fields. It aims to provide a broad but integrated survey of environmental economics as a field of study and assist students in developing an ability to think about and analyse environmental problems in economically-literate terms. By the conclusion of the course, students will have a sound understanding of the economic and institutional context for environmental policymaking and will be able to apply economic concepts to understanding, and prescribing solutions for, a wide range of environmental problems.