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Using planetary science to shape economics By Oliver Greenfield - Green Economy Coalition - September, 2011 Six big ideas for a green infrastructure capable of protecting people and future generations Economic theory (and common sense) tells us that when something is valuable, and it is free, its use tends to infinity - this explains why trees, biodiversity, freshwater and atmospheric space for carbon are all being used 'like there is no tomorrow'. It also assumes that when something is exhausted (or too expensive), a substitute is almost certain to be found. Economic theory then takes this substitution concept up to a macro level and thinks of the 'trade-off' between environment and economy. The logic is that we can have 'more environment' if we are prepared to put up with 'less economy', or we can have 'less environment' if we want a bigger economy. The traditional economic world view that dominates the political spectrum is based on infinite resources, substitution, and ultimately this trade-off between environment and economy. If the rationale behind our economic system is based on some of these assumptions, then it seems fitting for us to explore whether the planet can indeed support these assumptions. Let us take a quick journey into planetary science. Back to basics Gravitational forces, generated both by the earth orbiting the sun and the moon orbiting the planet, create movement and flow of magma, collision of tectonic plates and surfacing of minerals. These minerals are weathered and distributed across the earth's surface, primarily by water. The constant heating and cooling created by the earth's rotation accelerates the chemical reactions between newly released minerals (soils and rocks) and atmospheric gases. These chemical reactions are the pool from which life emerged, creating single cells capable of using minerals and energy from the sun to photosynthesise; generating proteins for their own growth, and respiring to br

Crisis, Innovation And Sustainable Development The Ecological Opportunity Blandine Laperche , Nadine Levratto , Dimitri Uzunidis Edited by Blandine Laperche, Lab.RII - ULCO/Clersé CNRS University Lille Nord de France and affiliated Professor, Wesford Business School, Nadine Levratto, EconomiX, CNRS, University Paris Ouest Nanterre La Défense and affiliated Professor, Euromed Management and Dimitri Uzunidis, Lab.RII - ULCO/Clersé CNRS University Lille Nord de France and affiliated Professor, Wesford Business School, France April 2012 c 352 pp Hardback 978 0 85793 701 8 Hardback $150.00 on-line price $135.00 Qty Series: Science, Innovation, Technology and Entrepreneurship series Description 'Crisis, Innovation and Sustainable Development is a fascinating exploration at the frontiers of economics and ecology. It combines topical surveys of current work with deep reflection on the repressed role of nature in the history of economics. A work of great range and value, especially for all concerned with the strategy of economic policy going forward.' - James K. Galbraith, The University of Texas at Austin, US Contents Contributors include: S. Boutillier, J. Courvisanos, M.-H. Depret, A. Diemer, A. Gabus, P. Gugenheim, A. Hamdouch, A. Hawthorne, W. Hoogendyk, F. Karanfil, T. Jobert, B. Laperche, N. Lazaric, P. Le Masne, N. Levratto, P. Matagne, V. Oltra, D. Patelis, A. Sengès, D. Uzunidis, L. Yacoub Further information 'This book talks about a genuine greening of the economy: from the most theoretical aspects, e.g. the genealogy of ecological economics, to the most practical. The two most prominent conclusions are, for me: this greening cannot be achieved by companies alone, but can only be the result of different kinds of innovation: technological, organizational, institutional and lifestyle changes. The changes must be implemented at all levels, from the firm to international governance.' - Dominique Bourg, University of Lausanne, Switzerland

ENVIRONMENTAL ECONOMICS FOR NON-ECONOMISTS Techniques and Policies for Sustainable Development 2nd Edition by John Asafu-Adjaye (The University of Queensland, Australia) Table of Contents (57k) Preface (77k) Chapter 1: Introduction (222k) Chapter 2: Incorporating the Environment into the Economic System: Introduction to Ecological Economics (1,444k) Chapter 5: Environmental Valuation (1,449k) Environmental economics, which used to be on the periphery of the economics discipline, is fast becoming mainstream as concern for the environment grows. Practitioners in other disciplines (e.g. engineering, science, natural resource management, social sciences) are increasingly faced with environmental problems that have an economic component. This invaluable book fills an important gap in the literature by teaching both economists and non-economists how to use economic tools to address environmental problems. The book is divided into three parts. Part I introduces theoretical concepts, including chapters on ecological economics and basic microeconomics for the non-specialist. Part II introduces tools for environmental policy analysis, while Part III discusses global environmental issues. The material is presented in an engaging manner with extensive use of graphs and diagrams to explain the key concepts. Exercises and an extensive bibliography are provided at the end of each chapter.   Contents: Introduction to Environmental Economics: Theoretical Foundations: Incorporating the Environment into the Economic System: Introduction to Ecological Economics How Markets are Supposed to Work Why Markets 'Fail' Tools for Environmental Policy Analysis: Environmental Valuation Cost-Benefit Analysis Cost-Effectiveness Analysis, Impact Analysis, and Stakeholder Analysis Multi-Criteria Analysis Global Environmental Issues: Population Growth, Resource Use and the Environment Economic Growth and the Environment Sustainable Development Green Accounting and Measurement of Genuine

A GLOBAL ECONOMY AND DEVELOPMENT EVENT Green Growth and International Cooperation Climate Change, Environment, Global Environment, Sustainable Development, Environmental Regulation Save Register Share Facebook inShare StumbleUpon E-mail Print EVENT SUMMARY As the world grapples with global environmental concerns, such as climate change and sustainable development, countries are finding ways to pursue green growth. Green growth pathways would combine sustainable resource use with the pursuit of economic growth, job creation and poverty alleviation, through expanding green innovation, technologies and markets. However, the environmental challenges facing the international community cannot be addressed without cooperation among global actors. In order for real green growth and sustainable development to be achieved, both international and domestic action must support it. Event Information When Tuesday, March 27, 2012 9:30 AM to 11:00 AM Where Falk Auditorium The Brookings Institution 1775 Massachusetts Ave., NW Washington, DC Map Event Materials Reuters/Aly Song Contact: Brookings Office of Communications Email: events@brookings.edu Phone: 202.797.6105 RELATED CONTENT Top 10 Global Economic Challenges Facing America's 44th President The Brookings Institution October 2008 From Copenhagen to Cancun: Time to Scale Up from the Bottom Up Katherine Sierra The National Journal December 03, 2010 Improving the Effectiveness of Climate Finance: Key Lessons Katherine Sierra, Miriam Chaum, Chris Faris, Gernot Wagner, Barbara Buchner, Angela Falconer, Chiara Trabacchi and Jessica Brown The Brookings Institution, the Environmental Defense Fund, the Climate Policy Initiative, and the Overseas Development Institute November 23, 2011 More Related Content » On March 27, Global Economy and Development at Brookings will host a discussion on the intersection of green growth and international cooperation. Panelists will include: Rachel Kyte, vice president of Sustainable Development at

Green Growth and Trade Trade, Sustainable Development, Environment, Environmental Regulation Save Register Share Facebook inShare 1 StumbleUpon E-mail Print EVENT SUMMARY Green economic growth and sustainability have risen considerably on the world agenda in recent years. Now more than ever, it is important to assess the impact of trade policy on green growth initiatives, and how new trade policies can help to encourage environmentally sustainable economic growth around the world. Event Information When Tuesday, March 20, 2012 10:30 AM to 12:00 PM Where Falk Auditorium The Brookings Institution 1775 Massachusetts Ave., NW Washington, DC Map Event Materials Reuters/Thierry Gouegnon Contact: Brookings Office of Communications Email: events@brookings.edu Phone: 202.797.6105 RELATED CONTENT Top 10 Global Economic Challenges Facing America's 44th President The Brookings Institution October 2008 CO2 Controls Are a Bad Idea, 'Voluntary' or Not Fred L. Smith and Robert W. Crandall The Wall Street Journal July 31, 2001 Green Growth and International Cooperation More Related Content » On March 20, Global Economy and Development at Brookings will host a discussion on how U.S. and international trade policy has the capacity to shape green growth. Panelists will include Bill Reinsch, president of the National Foreign Trade Council; Mark Linscott, assistant U.S. trade representative for Environment and Natural Resources; Robert Howse, Lloyd C. Nelson professor of International Law at the New York University Law School; and Vesile Kulaçoğlu, director of Trade and Environment division at the World Trade Organization. Vice President Kemal Derviş, director of Global Economy and Development, will provide introductory remarks and Brookings Fellow Joshua Meltzer will moderate the discussion.

An oft repeated myth is that Los Angeles is located in the desert. Not true I'm afraid. Las Vegas is built in a desert, as are eastern California cities such as Lancaster or Barstow, but Los Angeles was and is no desert in the strict sense of the word. With an average annual precipitation of 15 inches the city receives almost four times as much rainfall as Las Vegas. Los Angeles is semi-arid in terms of climate, but early accounts suggest many areas were even more verdant than the annual precipitation would indicate. The early Spanish and subsequent Mexican and American accounts suggest that it was anything like a desert when the region was first encountered by Europeans. This is because there were appreciable areas of the Los Angeles basin where artesian waters, sourced from the surrounding hills and mountains, fed springs or kept groundwater levels high during the dry summer months. This produced green woodlands, shrublands and grasslands described in early European accounts. Those conditions helped the region support native peoples such as the Gabrielino/Tongva, Chumash and Fernandeño/Tataviam for many millennia prior to European arrival.   The potential for productive farms and pastures was an inducement for European settlement and until the mid 1950's Los Angeles was one of the highest producing agricultural counties in the nation. El Pueblo de Nuestra Señora la Reina de los Ángeles (modern Los Angeles) was founded by the Spanish inland on the banks of the Rio Porciúncula (modern Los Angeles River) because this site in the middle of the basin provided ample permanent water fed by surrounding hills and mountains. The natural and agricultural landscapes of Los Angeles are now largely paved over or otherwise erased.   Driving through the lush precincts of Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, Las Feliz or the UCLA campus one might accept the alternative myth that the region is a lush tropical realm of fig trees, palms, citrus trees, birds of paradise plants and b

Working papers Who Should Bear the Cost of China's Carbon Emissions Embodied in Goods for Exports?, ZhongXiang Zhang East-West Center, September 2011, CCEP Working Paper 1114 Financing Adaptation to Climate-Induced Retreat from Coastal Inundation and Erosion, Leo Dobes and Bruce Chapman, September 2011, CCEP Working Paper 1113 Australia's carbon pricing strategies in a global context, Harry Clarke and Robert Waschik, August 2011, CCEP Working Paper 1112 Where in the world is it cheapest to cut carbon emissions? Ranking countries by total and marginal cost of abatement, David I. Stern, John C. V. Pezzey, and N. Ross Lambie, August 2011, CCEP Working Paper 1111 Five perspectives on an emerging market: Challenges with clean tech private equity, Eric R. W. Knight, August 2011, CCEP Working Paper 1110 Green fiscal policy and climate mitigation in Indonesia, Budy P. Resosudarmo and Abdurohman, August 2011, CCEP Working Paper 1109 Challenges in mitigating Indonesia's CO2 emission: The importance of managing fossil fuel combustion, Budy P. Resosudarmo, Frank Jotzo, Arief A, Yusuf, and Ditya A. Nurdianto, August 2011, CCEP Working Paper 1108 Nordhaus, Stern, and Garnaut: The changing case for climate change mitigation, Stephen Howes, Frank Jotzo, and Paul Wyrwoll, July 2011, CCEP Working Paper 1107 How many jobs is 23,510, really? Recasting the mining job loss debate, Bruce Chapman and Kiatanantha Lounkaew, July 2011, CCEP Working Paper 1106 Price floors in emissions trading to reduce policy related investment risks: An Australian view, Frank Jotzo and Steve Hatfield-Dodds, May 2011, CCEP Working Paper 1105 Carbon pricing that builds consensus and reduces Australia's emissions: Managing uncertainties using a rising fixed price evolving to emissions trading, Frank Jotzo, March 2011, CCEP Working Paper 1104 Inequality, communication and the avoidance of disastrous climate change, Alessandro Tavoni, Astrid Dannenberg, Giorgos Kallis and Andreas Löschel, March 2011,

Antes del diluvio, el ecosocialismo, la apuesta política actual Autor(es): Löwy, Michael Löwy, Michael. Nació en Brasil en 1938, hijo de inmigrantes judíos vieneses. Se graduó en Ciencias Sociales en la Universidad de San Pablo en 1960, y se doctoró en la Sorbona, bajo la dirección de Lucien Goldmann, en 1964. Vive en París desde 1969. Es director de investigación emérito en el Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (Centro Nacional de Investigación Científica); fue profesor en la École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales (Escuela de Altos Estudios en Ciencias Sociales). Sus obras han sido publicadas en 24 idiomas. Entre sus libros más recientes se encuentran Redención y utopía. El judaísmo libertario en Europa central (1988); Rebelión y melancolía. El romanticismo como contracorriente de la modernidad (1992); Walter Benjamin: aviso de incendio (2001); Kafka, soñador insumiso (2004); Sociologías y religión. Aproximaciones insólitas (2009); Ediciones Herramienta y El Colectivo publicaron, en 2010, su libro La teoría de la revolución en el joven Marx. Es miembro del consejo editor de la Revista Herramienta, donde ha realizado numerosas contribuciones. El ecosocialismo es una corriente política basada en una constatación esencial: la protección de los equilibrios ecológicos del planeta, la preservación de un medio favorable para las especies vivientes -incluida la nuestra- son incompatibles con la lógica expansiva y destructiva del sistema capitalista. La búsqueda del "crecimiento" bajo la égida del capital nos conduce, en efecto, a corto plazo -los próximos decenios-, a una catástrofe sin precedentes en la historia de la humanidad: el calentamiento global. James Hanson, climatólogo de la NASA, uno de los mayores especialistas mundiales en la cuestión del cambio climático -la administración Bush había intentado impedir, en vano, impedirle que hiciera públicos sus diagnósticos-, escribe esto en el p

Nature's Coming Revolution A Review of Joel Kovel's The Enemy of Nature A Review of Joel Kovel's The Enemy of Nature by TED DACE The Enemy of Nature: The End of Capitalism or the End of the World? by Joel Kovel Zed Books For Joel Kovel the revolution is only a matter of time. Marx was right: Capitalism cannot help but prepare the stew in which it will roast. But the old man got one thing wrong. The ultimate antagonist of capital is not labor but nature. If Marx made a fetish of capital's propensity to generate too much wealth to be profitably re-invested, Kovel does the same in regard to planetary ecosystem crackup. Instead of periodic economic downturn catapulting the proletariat into History, it's the shattering of life-essential natural processes that's destined to set off socialist (make that ecosocialist) revolution. Professor Kovel, who ran to the left of Ralph Nader for the Green Party nod in 2000, wastes no time making the case that capitalism, by its very nature, cannot help but destroy the integrity and well-being of what we call "nature." No need for yet another inventory of disturbances in the environment, our bodies, and our psychic balance. The enemy of nature is not oil or pesticides or factories or bulldozers but capital, "that ubiquitous, all-powerful and greatly misunderstood dynamo that drives our society." While traditionally the marketplace is a means of exchanging goods for money so as to purchase other goods, under capitalism it becomes a way of accumulating money. Reversing the natural order, the merchant starts off with money and buys the product of someone else's labor, then turns around and sells it at a markup. As long as the laborer is poor and the buyer rich, the trader makes a profit. What gives a commodity value is not what we do with it, like using bricks to build houses or shoes to walk home in, but the price it commands in trade. In contrast to "use value," a quality that belongs to any given item intrinsically, "exc

GreenOrder, an LRN Advisory Group, is a strategy and management consulting firm that helps companies gain competitive advantage through environmental innovation.