For such a fractious discipline, there has been remarkable agreement among economists concerning the first-best climate policy. Ever since the writings of Nordhaus (1977), d’Arge (1979), and Schelling (1992), it has been widely accepted that climate change is, on balance, a negative externality and that greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions should be priced, preferably taxed. Although there continues to be a vigorous debate about climate targets in the long-term (Stern et al. 2006; Nordhaus 2013), most economists agree that a sensible climate policy starts modestly and then accelerates (Wigley, Richels, and Edmonds 1996’ Goulder and Mathai 2000). Despite this general agreement on the need to reduce GHG emissions, the debate among economists about climate change has been unusually bitter, perhaps as a reflection of the wider polarization of climate research and climate policy. In particular, estimates of the marginal impact of climate change vary so widely that the initial carbon price is more a matter of politics than economics.
| Students profile/age of the student: | 4-14 years old |
| Materials needed: | plain papers and pencils, colored markers, beamer or screen(if possible), table for drawing |
| Skills and competencies to be developed | critical thinking, content knowledge, teamwork, listening skills, observation skills, visualization skills |