Summary: Economic growth requires increasing economic output, which can deplete resources and cause environmental degradation. Problems such as climate change and air/water pollution are examples of this. The question for economists and society is whether the damage to the planet is justified by the benefits of higher incomes. We will begin to study that tradeoff today.
Inquiry Question: How does economic growth affect the environment?
You should have replied to two of your classmates on Flipgrid, agreeing with one and disagreeing with the other.
Lecture: Lecture on the relationship between economic growth and the environment. We will watch these videos. I will explain and answer questions.
The Malthusian Argument (5:54)
Environmental Economics (7:11) - Negative externalities and collective action problems
Read: This page and Sections 20.1-20.11 of Core Economics (Economics of the Environment). Make at least two annotations using hypothes.is. One should be an annotation that relates to today's inquiry question. The other should be a link to an article that relates to a passage in the reading.
Required: Finish the reading and annotations if you did not complete that in class.
Optional: Listen to this podcast. Focus on this question as you listen: How does economic growth affect the environment?
Bjorn Lomborg, President of the Copenhagen Consensus Center, talks about the costs and benefits of attacking climate change with EconTalk host Russ Roberts. Lomborg argues that we should always be aware of tradeoffs and effectiveness when assessing policies to reduce global warming. He advocates for realistic solutions that consider the potential to improve human life in other ways. He is skeptical of the potential to move away from fossil fuels and argues that geo-engineering and adaptation may be the most effective ways to cope with climate change.