I am currently a second year Ph.D. student at Aix-Marseille School of Economics supervised by Yann Bramoullé and Charles Figuières.
I am interested in how industrial lobbies manipulate the scientific process to create doubt, how this affects science, and how to mitigate the negative consequences.
My CV can be found here.
Aix-Marseille School of Economics
5-9 boulevard Bourdet
13001 Marseille, France
WORK IN PROGRESS
Diversion Research
with Yann Bramoullé and Charles Figuières (AMSE)Industrial lobbies often strategically fund scientific studies with the aim of diverting public attention from their responsibility for health or environmental problems, sowing doubt, and delaying regulatory action. We refer to this strategy as “diversion research.” To analyze the factors driving its use, we introduce a novel model examining firms’ incentives to fund academic research. The harmfulness of industrial activity is uncertain, but the government can implement regulations to maximize the expected social welfare as understood by scientists. Firms, acting collectively as a lobby, provide funding to influence the focus of scientific inquiry.
Our findings reveal that such lobbies are inclined to finance diversion research when the current scientific consensus does not strongly support the need for regulation. Surprisingly, however, when existing science signals the necessity of regulation, firms may still choose to sponsor research that investigates their own harmful impacts. This study underscores the critical importance of safeguarding academic freedom to prevent significant welfare losses caused by the strategic use of diversion research. One potential solution is to permit private funding while ensuring that its allocation is managed by an independent committee.(Draft available upon request)
presented at: 4th International Conference on Environmental Economics (LEO), 6th QMUL Economics and Finance Workshop (Queen Mary University of London), 9th Mediterranean Workshop in Economic Theory (ESC Rennes School of Business), 5th AMSE Summer School (AMSE), 23rd Louis-André Gérard-Varet (AMSE), 17th Meeting of the Society for Social Choice and Welfare (PSE), 75th European meeting of the Econometric Society (Erasmus School of Economics).
Seminars & conferences
2024
4th International Conference on Environmental Economics (LEO), 6th QMUL Economics and Finance Workshop (Queen Mary University of London), 9th Mediterranean Workshop in Economic Theory (ESC Rennes School of Business), 5th AMSE Summer School (AMSE), 23rd Louis-André Gérard-Varet (AMSE), 17th Meeting of the Society for Social Choice and Welfare (PSE), 75th European meeting of the Econometric Society (Erasmus School of Economics)