Abstract: This paper studies the distortionary effects of land-use regulations that preserve farmland from urban sprawl. I exploit a major policy restricting farm-to-urban land conversion in China -- the Farmland Red Line Policy -- to provide causal evidence on the negative impact of land-use regulation on local development, measured by GDP and population growth. To understand the aggregate impact of the policy, I develop a quantitative spatial equilibrium model that features endogenous land-use decisions. The calibrated model reveals a 7% loss in workers' welfare due to the policy. Furthermore, a cap-and-trade platform that allows local regions to exchange farmland preservation requirements can eliminate 60% of workers' welfare costs. The results suggest that fast-growing economies need to design land-use policies carefully, as the welfare costs of poorly designed policies can be substantial.

Abstract: This paper examines the impact of transportation infrastructure development, designed exclusively to enhance the integration of domestic markets, on a country's export performance. By leveraging the expansion of China's high-speed rail (HSR) as a quasi-natural experiment, we provide robust evidence that enhanced within-sector integration resulting from this infrastructure development significantly boosts firms' export performance. This impact is observed through increased export sales and volume, expanded market reach, and improved product quality. Our findings are consistent with the notion that HSR connections facilitate knowledge spillovers among exporters, aiding them to overcome information barriers and thereby improving foreign market access. Importantly, we address potential confounding factors, showing that the findings remain robust when accounting for alternative channels like supplier and customer access, and labor market pooling effects. This study underscores the pivotal role of domestic transportation infrastructure in mitigating information frictions and driving a country's international market integration. 

Abstract: We study the impacts of transportation infrastructure improvements on forest loss in Uganda between 2008 and 2021, leveraging a large-scale national road upgrade program. We combine high-resolution panel data on deforestation with changes in travel times to major markets resulting from road improvements. Exploiting quasi-random variation in the timing of project completion to isolate unanticipated market access shocks, we find that improved market access led to increased local forest loss. These effects are not driven by agriculture, mining, or construction. Instead, deforestation is driven by rural charcoal producers who clear trees to supply high-price urban markets. Our results highlight the important role that natural resource access and forest-product price differentials can play in shaping the general equilibrium effects of transportation infrastructure investments. 

Abstract: Sub-Saharan Africa is urbanizing, but a significant portion of the urban population still works in agriculture. We argue that this is because smaller cities are isolated from national markets and trade. We test this claim using individual panel data and Uganda's doubling of paved roads, which improved remote areas' market access. We find that market access causes workers to quit family farms for specialized paid employment. Effects concentrate in peripheral areas, households with comparative advantage in off-farm work, and reflect off-farm opportunities rather than a reduced demand for farm output. We also find that market access leads remote households to simplify farming techniques and scale back farming. Findings are consistent with reliable transport enabling trade with major markets, creating opportunities to specialize according to comparative advantage.

Abstract: Reconstructing the existing housing stock is a critical yet understudied approach to expanding affordable housing. This paper investigates the causal impact of invisible densification - the conversion of living rooms into additional bedrooms - facilitated by the largest PropTech rental platform in Beijing. Exploiting a natural experiment and employing an instrumental variable strategy, we find that a 1% increase in the share of remodeled units leads to a 0.9% decline in bedroom rents, a 0.5% decline in rents for non-remodeled rental units, and a 2.2% reduction in apartment sale prices. To evaluate welfare impacts, we develop a structural model that incorporates tenants' heterogeneous preferences for public amenities and analyzes the distributional effects of remodeling. Results reveal that disadvantaged groups exhibit stronger preferences for remodeled housing, whereas residents in buildings with such units experience negative externalities. Counterfactual analyses quantify the welfare consequences of these externalities and explore how alternative spatial allocations of remodeling could improve affordability.