Environmental Economics

Course Information

Course sections: AEM 4510, AEM 5510, ECON 3865

Professor: Ivan Rudik (ir229)

This page provides the general course syllabus. See Canvas for the current course schedule, teaching team, office hours, assignment deadlines, exam logistics, and announcements.

Prerequisites: MATH 1110, and AEM 2600 or ECON 3030.

Course description: This class focuses on the role of the environment in the theory and practice of economics. It uses microeconomic analysis at the intermediate level and incorporates real-world examples. It examines market failures, externalities, benefit-cost analysis, non-market valuation techniques, cost-effective policy instruments, financial instruments, and recent applied work on the economics of the environment.

Course requirements: Students are expected to prepare for class, do the readings, and complete all problem sets and prelims.

Readings and Lecture Slides

• Markets and the Environment by Keohane and Olmstead is required.
• Other readings are papers linked on the course topics and lecture slides page, or freely available through the Cornell library or Google Scholar.
• Causal Inference: The Mixtape by Cunningham is free and useful for background on the econometric techniques used in readings in the second half of the course, or for students interested in environmental economics research.

See Assignments and Grading for assessment weights, submission instructions, and grading policies.

Other Policies

Attendance: Class attendance is not explicitly required but is highly recommended.

Integrity of credit: I expect every student to abide by the Cornell University Code of Academic Integrity. I strongly encourage collaboration, but each student is responsible for following the rules in this syllabus and the Code of Academic Integrity. Any student found to have violated the stated policies on an assignment will receive a zero on that assignment. Violations may result in failure of the course.

Learning Outcomes

As a result of participating in class, you will be able to:

• Discuss the design and effect of environmental policy in theory and real-world practice. AEM 5510 also covers the consequences of environmental policy in second-best environments.
• Use survey and revealed preference methods to value the environment.
• Explain how financial instruments provide information about the environment. AEM 5510 also covers how green financial instruments work.
• Explain how economists measure the economic costs of environmental change.

Students with Disabilities

Your access in this course is important to me. Request your accommodation letter early, or as soon as you become registered with Student Disability Services (SDS), so that there is adequate time to arrange approved academic accommodations. Once SDS approves your letter, it will be emailed to you and me.

For testing accommodations, request your approved accommodation for this course and complete an Exam Request Form for each exam through the SDS student portal as soon as possible. Failure to do so may prevent you from using your accommodation. See Canvas and SDS communications for current testing arrangements.

SDS communicates accommodated exam times and locations. Direct questions about those logistics to sds-testing@cornell.edu. If you experience access barriers involving printed content, graphics, online materials, or communication, contact me or SDS right away. For other academic accommodations, follow up with me to discuss the necessary arrangements.