OECD Insights Sustainable Development Linking Economy, Society, Environment


Book Description

A succinct examination of the concept of sustainable development: what it means; how it is impacted by globalisation, production and consumption; how it can be measured; and what can be done to promote it.




Economic Growth and Sustainable Development


Book Description

Economic growth, reflected in increases in national output per capita, makes possible an improved material standard of living and the alleviation of poverty. Sustainable development, popularly and concisely defined as ‘meeting the needs of the present generations without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs,' directly addresses the utilization of natural resources, the state of the environment, and intergenerational equity. Now in its second edition, Economic Growth and Sustainable Development features expanded discussion of income distribution, social capital and the insights of behavioural economics for climate change mitigation. Boxed case studies have been added which explore the impact of economic growth on people and countries in both the developed and developing world. This text addresses the following fundamental questions: What causes economic growth? Why do some countries grow faster than others? What accounts for the extraordinary growth in the world’s population over the past two centuries? What are the current trends in population and will these trends continue? How do we measure sustainable development and is sustainable development compatible with economic growth? Why is climate change the greatest market failure of all time? What can be done to mitigate climate change and global warming? With a blend of formal models, empirical evidence, history and policy, this text provides a coherent and comprehensive treatment of economic growth and sustainable development. It is suitable for those who study development economics, sustainable development and ecological economics.




Handbook of Environmental Economics


Book Description

The Handbook of Environmental Economics focuses on the economics of environmental externalities and environmental public goods. Volume I examines environmental degradation and policy responses from a microeconomic, institutional standpoint. Its perspective is dynamic, including a consideration of the dynamics of natural systems, and global, with attention paid to issues in both rich and poor nations. In addition to chapters on well-established topics such as the theory and practice of pollution regulation, it includes chapters on new areas of environmental economics research related to common property management regimes; population and poverty; mechanism design; political economy of regulation; experimental evaluations of policy instruments; and technological change.




Economic Development and Environmental Gain


Book Description

This volume contains detailed information and assessment of incentives and policy instruments available within Europe to encourage good practice, and of how to achieve environmental gain in regional economic programmes. It describes an appropriate methodology for securing improved environmental benefit and explores the potential for achieving regional environmental competitiveness. There are insights based on wide international comparative experience of programme evaluation.







Economic Growth and Environmental Sustainability


Book Description

A key area of public policy in the last twenty years is the question of how, and how much, to protect vthe environment. At the heart of this has been the heated debate over the nature of the relationship between economic growth and environmental sustainability. Is environemental sustainability economic growth or `green growth', a contradiction in terms? Avoiding the confusion that often surrounds these issues, Ekins provides rigorous expositions of the concept of sustainability, integrated environmental and economic accounting, the Environmental Kuznets Curve, the economics of climate change and environmental taxation. Individual chapters are organised as self-contained, state-of-the-art expositions of the core issues of environmental economics, with extensive cross-referencing from one chapter to another, in order to guide the student or policy-maker through these complex problems. Paul Ekins breaks new ground in defining the conditions of compatibility between economic growth and environmental sustainability, and provides measures and criteria by which the environmental sustainability of economic growth, as it occurs in the real world, may be judged. It is argued that `green growth' is not only theoretically possible but economically achievable and the authors show what environmental and economic policies are required to achieve this. Economic Growth and Environmental Sustainability will be welcolmed by students of and researchers in environmental economics and environmental studies, as well as all interested policy-makers.







Economic Evaluation of Sustainable Development


Book Description

This book is open access under a CC BY 4.0 license. This book presents methods to evaluate sustainable development using economic tools. The focus on sustainable development takes the reader beyond economic growth to encompass inclusion, environmental stewardship and good governance. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide a framework for outcomes. In illustrating the SDGs, the book employs three evaluation approaches: impact evaluation, cost-benefit analysis and objectives-based evaluation. The innovation lies in connecting evaluation tools with economics. Inclusion, environmental care and good governance, thought of as “wicked problems”, are given centre stage. The book uses case studies to show the application of evaluation tools. It offers guidance to evaluation practitioners, students of development and policymakers. The basic message is that evaluation comes to life when its links with socio-economic, environmental, and governance policies are capitalized on.




The Limits to Growth


Book Description

Examines the factors which limit human economic and population growth and outlines the steps necessary for achieving a balance between population and production. Bibliogs




Economic Growth and Environmental Quality


Book Description

It is possible to "grow out of" some environmental problems, but there is nothing automatic about doing so. Action tends to be taken where there are generalized local costs and substantial private and social benefit. Where the costs of environmental degredation are borne by others (by the poor or by other countries), there are few incentives to alter damaging behavior. Trade, debt, and other macroeconomic policy variables seem to have little generalized effect on the environment.