Economists and the climate

Abstract

To date, environmental economists have been very engaged with questions surrounding climate change while interest from mainstream economics has been moderate. Economists have been quite unanimous in their recommendation to focus climate policy on pricing carbon. This is an important point, often under-appreciated by other disciplines. Still, the message may have been oversimplified and exaggerated. In global policy, carbon pricing has not reached its full potential. The climate problem is complex and interrelated with several other problems. The existence of multiple market failures and serious problems of policy acceptance complicate policy design. Many other, more sophisticated economic messages have also been drowned out. We discuss the role of economists as researchers as well as teachers and communicators to policy makers, ultimately encouraging economists to deepen their engagement in solutions to climate change.