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They are an important economic resource, and a source of food products, recreation, species habitat, and watershed protection, among many other services. Forests also may store large quantities of carbon. The threat of climate change therefore provides new impetus for forest management, in the form of forest carbon sequestration (FCS). FCS appears to be a relatively cheap way of reducing carbon in the atmosphere, relative to alternatives such as fuel switching. But FCS is not without problems. Economists' estimates of the cost-effectiveness of FCS are highly variable. Verification is difficult. And policy design is complex — not only because of the characteristics of forests themselves, but because of the limitations of current U.S. policy. Existing regulatory tools — predominantly the Clean Air Act — are largely incompatible in providing incentives for FCS. This paper explores the current state of FCS knowledge, including its policy context, and identifies an agenda for future research.

Global warming is becoming increasingly evident as greenhouse gas emissions increase worldwide and affect the environment, health and economy. Many Southeast Asian countries face this reality and hence they are concerned about setting and achieving an effective emission reduction strategy. As such, this study analyzes and compares emission reduction targets on selected Southeast Asian countries, including Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand, by using a long-run Regional Dynamic Integrated Model of the Climate and Economy (RdICME). This study considers the comparative outcomes of BAU (Business as Usual: base case) and INDC (Intended Nationally Determined Contributions) scenarios for the 40-year period from 2010 to 2050. According to BAU scenario, carbon emissions are projected to gradually increase in all countries; however, if Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand apply their INDC targets as agreed upon in the 2015 Paris Agreement, all three countries will experience significant emissions reductions after 2030. Specifically, by 2050, total emissions will be reduced by 33.88%, 42.50% and 41.68% in Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand, respectively, if the countries implement their INDCs. According to the INDC targets, all three countries will experience a net reduction of per capita emission intensity by 2030 and onwards; however, Malaysia is projected to face lower marginal damage costs whereas Indonesia and Thailand will face higher marginal damage costs for 2010–2050. This study also finds that the amount of planned investment for INDC emissions reduction is currently insufficient to achieve planned targets. The findings from this study would help country-specific policymakers to oversee the likely gaps to be fulfilled within 2030–2050.

Estimating the potential economic impacts of drought is increasingly prominent in policy discussions on resilience to future population and climate changes. We develop a scenario-based analytical framework for estimating the economic impacts of droughts under a range of assumed climate and policy conditions. The scenarios modeled take account of different assumptions regarding a drought event, including: the source of the drought (green or blue water), temporality, and critically, long-term and short-term policy-making choices. Applying the framework to the UK economy we estimate that, depending on the severity of the drought event and short-term policy choices, the impacts could range from 0.35% to 4.3% of total output in terms of total production. Different long-term policy choices could mitigate the impacts for drought events with similar severity and duration.

Hydrologic, climatic, regulatory and economic factors interact in complex ways to influence groundwater conditions. These relationships can be difficult to measure and model but are important for water management and for considering viable futures for regional economies. This paper proposes a strategy for an improved understanding of how groundwater levels reflect signals of regulatory, economic and climate factors. Most existing econometric studies of groundwater use focus on large-scale irrigated agriculture and urbanized areas in first world nations, where groundwater extraction data is available. In much of the world, groundwater extraction data are not available for individual farms and other water users. The goal of this study is to explore the responsiveness of groundwater levels (a more widely available measure of groundwater conditions) to regulatory, economic and climate signals in rural areas, using a growing body of remotely sensed land cover data. Pooled Ordinary Least Squares econometric models examine the effects of regulatory, climatic and economic factors on groundwater levels in rural Arizona. Groundwater regulations, recharge projects, housing units and irrigated acreage have statistically significant relationships to groundwater levels in the study areas. This approach can be valuable for understanding factors that influence groundwater conditions and which may be useful in managing groundwater use in widespread areas where groundwater extraction data is unavailable.

Climate change is the outstanding survival and ethical issue of our time, and requires urgent action if our descendants are to inherit a livable world. Substantial opportunities exist in the transition to a renewable economy provided through climate action. Reliable, relevant, and accessible information is key…

The Energy Efficiency Finance Task Group (EEFTG) aims to enhance capital flows for energy efficiency investments in the G20 countries and the European Union. Launched in 2015, EEFTG is an initiative of the International Partnership for Energy Efficiency Cooperation (?), an intergovernmental organization based in Paris, France. With the United Nations Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) as part of its secretariat, EEFTG’s mission is to support G20 economies to build robust, investment-grade policy and investment frameworks by engaging with financial institutions to help them build their capacity, instruments and interests in energy efficiency. In addition, EEFTG serves as a forum for G20 policymakers to share their most successful practices with each other and with members of the private and public finance community, industry, and international organizations.

In response to the sustainability challenges that the Los Angeles region is facing due to the climate crisis and an increasing population, UCLA launched the first university-led Grand Challenge in 2013 — the Sustainable LA Grand Challenge, thriving in a hotter Los Angeles. The long-term goals of this Grand Challenge are to transition Los Angeles County to 100% renewable energy, 100% local water, and enhanced ecosystem health by the year 2050. UCLA is leading this effort by coordinating research across disciplines, educating and training students to be the next-generation of problem solvers, and engaging stakeholders to create policy recommendations, technology breakthroughs, and partnerships that result in scalable urban sustainability solutions. Los Angeles County’s diversity in sustainability challenges, landscapes, and cultures make solutions implemented in Los Angeles relevant for megacities across the globe.

Faith communities can be important moral constituencies for action on climate change. The Faith Alliance for Climate Solutions (FACS) is a grassroots advocacy movement in Northern Virginia that motivates concrete actions by members of more than 75 diverse congregations to move the region to zero carbon emissions by 2050. We organize the concern that people of all faith traditions have toward care for creation into focused advocacy and leadership by example. FACS, a 501(c)(3) non-partisan organization, mobilizes clergy and lay members of Catholic, Hindu, Muslim, mainline and evangelical Protestant, Jewish, Sikh, Friends, Unitarian Universalist, and Buddhist faith communities, as well as people unaffiliated with specific faith traditions. We are creating practical, replicable models of local interfaith grassroots organizations that work locally to build healthy, resilient, and thriving communities in which environmentally sound choices become the default, first choices of individuals, corporations, and the public sector.

This chapter describes how economic models are used to answer questions about policy changes, specifically in the context of a carbon fee-and-dividend system. A carbon fee-and-dividend is a price on carbon dioxide emissions that returns the revenues gained to ordinary households in the form of a monthly check. The chapter describes, in nontechnical terms, the economic models and modeling processes involved and how they are similar and different from climate models…

Mental health issues can emerge at any age, with incidence particularly common in childhood and young adulthood. The personal and economic consequences can last the life-course, and spillover into family and wider community impacts. Mental health issues are among the most challenging of all illnesses because of the breadth, durability, and complexity of impact.

We describe prevalence, mortality and disability, and discuss challenges arising in the mental health field, each with economic implications. We report expenditure levels, and we discuss issues that arise in financing mental health interventions. Numerous methodological and practical challenges arise when conducting economic evaluation in the mental health field. We describe how evidence from cost-effectiveness and other analyses contribute to better resource utilization decisions.

Throughout the chapter, we argue how most mental health problems are complicated, and have many negative and often distressing consequences for the individuals who are unwell, their families, and the wider society. This complexity often makes them expensive, and the durability and wide sphere of impact add to the economic consequences. Given the pervasive scarcity of resources, decision-makers must think through the economic case for strategies or treatments that might address mental health needs.

This chapter examined historical occurrence of natural disasters, policy frameworks related to disasters, implementation arrangements and challenges, national and household resources to natural disasters in Malawi. It is found that Malawi has an updated national disaster risk reduction (DRR) policy that is coordinated by the Department of Disaster Risk management and Affairs within the Office of President and Cabinet. The policy is linked to various related sectoral policies and to national growth and development strategy. There are various committees established at various levels that deliberate on issues related to disaster risk reduction and management. At national level, priority areas have been identified. In addition, the chapter concluded that household strategies such as crop diversification, irrigation farming and income generating activities have positive and significant contribution on reducing disaster risk to household food production and let alone welfare.

An expansion of inbound tourism increases the demand for locally produced non-traded goods and services, thereby raising the relative prices of them. In the short run, the increase in tourism can bring benefits in terms of raising tax revenues, increasing sectoral employment and improving environmental quality. Nonetheless, in the long run, costs for the increase in tourism may arise. A tourism boom can cause ‘Dutch Disease’ in lowering capital formation of the non-tourism sectors. Moreover, the expansion of tourism can reduce foreign reserves of the economy. Therefore, how to balance the short-run benefits versus long-run costs is of concern to policy makers in attracting international tourists to the economy.

The 1906 Convention and the 1944 Treaty establish the distribution of surface water of the Rio Grande (RG), Colorado, and Tijuana Rivers between the United States and Mexico. Neither of these treaties addresses groundwater management. Only Minute 242 to the 1944 Treaty, regulates salinity for groundwater. Specifically, Minute 242.5 establishes that there is a lack of “conclusion by the Governments of the United States and Mexico for a comprehensive agreement on groundwater in the border areas.” The lack of regulation has contributed to overdraft and degradation of the water quality in several aquifers along the US–Mexico border. Recommendations for an institutional and legal framework under an umbrella agreement, addressing water bank as allocation tool, attempt to fill the legal vacuum of international and interstate groundwater management in the US–Mexico border region. In addition, these recommendations can be adapted to other transboundary basins around the world.