Sample Outlines

In general, all paper must contain these components.

• Title Page
• Table of Contents
• Introduction
• Body
  • The question: What is being researched
  • Pareto Optimality
  • Literature Review
  • Applying Pareto Optimality to the Question
• Policy Recommendations
• Conclusions

The three examples provided below are outlines provided in other classes during the last several years.

Sample 1

The Aswan Dam: Benefits vs. Problems

Outline:

• Introduction:
• Background: the idea and the early previous projects leading to the Aswan Dam: the idea of water control, the flooding concept in Egypt,
• General Information: location, size, …
• The politics behind the dam.
• Body:
• The functionality of the dam (how the dam works!)
• The expected benefits: drought protection(water reservoir), agriculture production, employment, hydroelectric power.
• The expected problems, their size and planned solutions.
• Pareto Optimality: presentation of the concept.
  • Graphical presentation.
  • Explanation in words.
  • Connecting Pareto Optimality to the Aswan Dam project. This is just a general connection at this point since you become more specific later.
• The actual benefits over the past 60 years (the expected benefits PLUS unexpected benefits such as: navigation & tourism, flood protection, and fishing). (make sure that these are categorized correctly. So, for example, all of the items which you mention are likely to be expected benefits. So categorize these into primary and secondary benefits. The textbook discusses the difference. Once you read that (measuring benefits chapter) it will be much clearer)
• The actual problems over the past 60 years. (Resettlement of thousands of people, loss of sediments and soil fertility, waterlogging and increase in soil salinity, coastal erosion, health impact, historical monuments, aquatic weeds, fishing in the Nile and the Mediterranean, brick industry, …)
• Applying the Aswan Dam project to the Pareto Optimality model.
• What has been done to solve the problems.
• What can be done to solve these problems.
• Conclusion
• Did Egypt have the right to build the Aswan Dam on the Nile although the Nile is a river that passes through 11 different countries?
• Benefits vs. negative impacts. Which ones are greater?
• The standards used to answer this question.
• If benefits are greater, how so? Was the dam the only way possible to achieve these benefits? Opportunity cost? Positive economics vs. normative economics.
• If negative impacts were greater, how so? Are they greater for the 10 Nile countries while they are smaller for Egypt?
• “Good job, Nasser” or “You should’ve known better”.

Sample 2

Outline: Term Paper: the United Arab Emirates (UAE)

• Introduction:
• Geographic location, area and climate
• Brief history of the area surrounding the UAE: Islam, Portuguese, European control.
• The oil effect on the UAE: extremely rapid development.
• The People:
• Ethnic Groups, social classes, religion, and citizens are minority, hierarchy, discrimination, extreme wealth.
• The Government:
• The formation of the UAE with its seven Emirates: factors behind the formation, political system, governance hierarchy, state power.
• The Economy:
• GDP, GDP per capita, labor force, unemployment, national debt.
• Natural resources.
• Exports and Imports.
• Infrastructure.
• Tourism.
• The new melting point.
• Millennium Goals:
• A discussion of each one of the eight millennium goals and how much progress the UAE has been making on each one of them. Use of the statistical indicators used by the UN. Analyze the country’s position in comparison to the rest of the world on each one of the MDGs.
• Conclusion for MDGs: briefly: what has been done well, what ought to be done in the future.
• Policy Recommendation:
• Political changes recommended for faster, long-lasting development.
• Social changes recommended for faster, long-lasting development.
• Economic changes recommended for faster, long-lasting development.
• Conclusion.

Sample 3

Term Paper Outline- The Belo Monte Dam Problem: An Economic Analysis

I. Introduction

II. Brief History of the Dam

A. Original Plans for the Belo Monte Dam Complex

1. Began in 1975- details of the project

2. Included a total of 6 dams along the river Xingu

3. Was very controversial and plans were suspended

B. Redesign of the plan presented in 2002 and the various environmental impact assessments

1. 2002 plan designed a version of the dam with a smaller reservoir and moved the proposed site further upstream to reduce flooding.

2. Different environmental impact assessments released in 2002 and then again in 2008- problems with the assessments (ignored obvious issues to favor the creation of the dams—problems with governmental pressure)

C. Discussion of the granting of licenses and the various court cases regarding the dam

1. Strong public debate about the effects on indigenous people and the environment—especially biodiversity in the areas around the dam

2. Explanation of court cases, passing the dam and then halting construction by various judges---again pressure from government (several judges forced to step down or no longer rule on environmental cases)

3. Current status of the dam

III. Theory

A. Hydroelectricity

1. How it works, logistics

2. Specifics of this particular dam, the amount of energy it will produce, how it will be dispersed to surrounding areas, etc.

B. Sustainable Development

1. Define and explain the concept of sustainable development

2. How the dam would contribute to sustainable development- will the dam be a sustainable way of producing energy for Brazil?

a) the Drought Problem- dam does not work if there isn’t enough water

b) the Energy shortage problem in Brazil- will the dam really help?

C. Benefits of the Dam

1. If it is successful, it will create a significant amount of energy for the country

a) Discussion of the blackout problems- energy shortages- dam could solve these issues

b) the dam could be a more reliable energy source

2. Creation of new jobs and the economic benefits related therein (the growth of local economies, benefits to individuals, etc.)

3. Will the dam help this area to reach a point of sustainable development?

4. Fewer emissions by fossil fuels if Brazil begins to use the dam for energy (?) (Is the use of hydroelectricity going to make Brazil more ‘green’?)

D. Costs of the Dam

1. Specific labor and capital costs to build the dam and provide necessary maintenance- funded by Brazil’s National Development Bank

2. Damage to surrounding Ecosystems

a) the Flooding problem- disruption of the water table

b) threats to biodiversity of species in the area

3. May not be a very reliable source

a) the problem with droughts/ not having enough water to turn the turbines

b) difficulty of maintaining the long power distribution lines

4. Societal impacts

a) displacement of local tribes where the flooding will wipe out their land

b) effects on surrounding tribes that rely on the river for their livelihoods- economic impacts on trade for those tribes that can no longer use the river as a form of transportation/ water source/ food source-creating the dam without the consent of the tribes it affects goes against Brazil’s constitution

c) health risks to the rural population- e.g. the occurrence of water related diseases in places they were not seen prior to the dam’s creation

d) worldwide protests against the dam- protests by local tribes, environmentalist challenges, legal challenges (because building the dam without consent of local tribes goes against Brazil national law), celebrity support by the director of Avatar and others

E. The Problem of the Commons (?)

1. Explanation of the problem that arises with public goods

2. Describe and explain the problem of the commons with the river Xingu as a resource—indigenous people v those needing the additional electricity

3. How will the dam effect the public good problem with this resource—will people demand more energy because they know that this dam isfunctioning? Problem of the commons, inaccurate estimations of demand

F. Pareto Optimality/ Allocative efficiency

1. Explanation of Pareto optimality and the condition for achieving it (discussion of net social welfare, marginal social cost and marginal social benefit, etc.)

2. Discussion of the demand and supply of energy in Brazil and the shortage problem—explanation of how Brazil’s economy needs to adjust to reach a point of allocative efficiency (not how to reach that point, just what needs to adjust, either less demand or more supply)

G. Externalities

1. Explanation of what externalities are

2. Identification of the externalities involved with the energy problem in Brazil

3. Externalities that may arise from the creation of the dam that will potentially change the point of allocative efficiency

IV. Policy

A. Consideration of Costs and Benefits of the Belo Monte Dam (brief summary of costs and benefits outlined in the theory section)

1. Who all will be affected if the dam is created?

2. Who all will be affected if the dam is not created?

B. What alternatives exist in terms of energy sources if the dam is not created?

1. Work to reduce overall energy use in Brazil

a) Costs of this option

i. Time issue- it will take a while to get people to use less energy

ii. Good in theory, bad in practice- What incentive will people have to use less energy? May have to create some kind of incentive (costs associated with incentive structure)

b) Benefits of this option

i. Do not have to expand energy sources as much- lessen overall demand for energy

ii. Relatively simple solution, low cost involved (except the possible cost of incentive structure)

iii. Avoid political and societal issues associated with the creation of the dam

2. Seek ways of making existing energy sources more efficient

a) Costs of this option

i. would require significant amounts of research- costs of labor and capital would be extensive

ii. would take a long time to research, approve, and implement

iii. the new options may have equally problematic costs associated with them as with the dam

b) Benefits of this option

i. can simply build on existing energy sources

ii. job creation for researchers etc. that help implement the changes

iii. avoid political and societal issues associated with the creation of the dam

V. Conclusion- Recommendation to Brazilian Government

A. Build the dam or not build the dam

B. Why this option is the most economically sound decision

a) Maximization of Net Social Welfare

b) Best possible option for reaching allocative efficiency