ANU - STUDYAT - Climate Change Policy Econ

Offered By:

Crawford School of Economics and Government

Academic Career:

Graduate Coursework

Course Subject:

Crawford School of Economics and Government

Offered in:

First Semester, 2010

Unit Value:

6 units

Course Description:

Climate change is a global problem the nature of which has never been seen before. How and whether a world of sovereign states can cooperate to the degree required to reduce the risks of climate change to manageable levels are questions of great global importance, but not ones where there is political or expert consensus around a particular way forward. Some approaches have been trialed. Many others have been proposed. All are debated.

This course will introduce students to international climate change policy. It will study the global growth of emissions, various approaches to estimating the damage of climate change and the cost of mitigation, the international framework for co-operation on climate change as it evolves (from Kyoto through Bali towards Copenhagen), and the economics and international politics of global public good provision. On this basis, the course will go on to analyze existing approaches and the main proposed international policy and institutional options for mitigating and adapting to climate change.

The lecturer for this course is Dr Stephen Howes, who was the Manager of the International Work Stream for the Garnaut Climate Change Review. He will aim to teach a course which will both expose students to the latest debates and developments in this area, and provide them with the policy tools to evaluate competing proposals.

Learning Outcomes:

Students will have:
i) an understanding of the main debates around international climate change policy;

ii) knowledge of the economic and political economy principles which can be used to assess the main options proposed to respond to climate change;
iii) the ability to compare and critique competing proposals.

Indicative Assessment:

Ministerial brief (20%); essay (40%); exam (40%)

Workload:

One two- hour lecture and one one-hour tutorial a week.

Recommended Courses:

Climate Change Vulnerability and Adaptation (could be taken before or concurrently with this course)

Prescribed Texts:

Architectures for Agreement: addressing global climate change in the post-Kyoto World edited by Joseph Aldy and Robert Stavins, 2007. Journal articles

Preliminary Reading:

Journal articles, UN documents and other reports

Indicative Reading List:

Aldy and Stavins.

Garnaut Review, Chapters 11-13 (www.garnautreview.org.au)

Technology Requirements:

Fast internet connection, Skype and webcam needed for distance students.

Majors/Specialisations:

Development Policy, Economic Policy, Environmental Law, Environmental Policy, International Policy, Policy Analysis, and Social Policy

Programs:

Graduate Certificate in Environmental Management and Development, Master of Public Policy, Master of Environment, Master of Environmental Management and Development, Master of Public Administration, Master of International and Development Economics, Master of Environmental and Resource Economics, and Master of Climate Change

Other Information:

Delivery Mode

On campus and distance education

Academic Contact:

Stephen Howes

Climate Change Policy Economics CRWF8006 - Details