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on Heterodox Microeconomics |
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Issue of 2019‒05‒27
seventeen papers chosen by Carlo D’Ippoliti Università degli Studi di Roma “La Sapienza” |
| By: | Faber, Malte; Frick, Marc |
| Abstract: | The aim of this paper is to contribute to an innovative agenda in the field of Environmental Economics. The paper focusses on a conceptual and political perspective on the interactions between nature and economy. Section 1 states that Environmental Economics has to consider three fields: nature, justice and the role of time. To operationalize this claim, we introduce fundamental concepts such as entropy, joint production, ignorance, evolution, absolute scarcity, responsibility and homo politicus and explain them in Section 2. These concepts are applied in Section 3 using a historical example, namely the soda-chlorine industry, extending over a period of about three centuries. The lessons taken from this economic, environmental and political evolution are outlined in Section 4. In Section 5, we apply the concept of responsibility to address political aspects dealt with when examining the interplay between nature and economy. In our outlook in Section 6, we argue that these concepts and further concepts do not form a hierarchically structured system. Instead they are conceived as a network of interdependent concepts that reference each other but also remain categorically distinct from one another. |
| Date: | 2019–02–14 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:awi:wpaper:0659&r=all |
| By: | Faber, Malte; Petersen, Thomas; Frick, Marc; Zahrnt, Dominik |
| Abstract: | MINE – Mapping the Interplay between Nature and Economy is a digital archive and visual map showing the intersection between nature and economy. By focusing on the interconnections between fundamental concepts e.g. of time, thermodynamics, evolution, responsibility and justice, a new concept of economic activity emerges within nature. This leads to new interpretations of current ecological, social and economic problems and, in addition, to an in-depth understanding of the modes of thought and policy needed to find sustainable solutions. On the most fundamental level, the dominant view of Mainstream Economics, which considers nature as part of the economy, Ecological Economics amends this view by the perspective that the economy in its physical side is seen as part of nature. Thus, Ecological Economics complements the strengths of Mainstream Economics on a practical level by interdisciplinary research highlighting, spots which do not receive the attention, by Mainstream Economics, they deserve. The research project that ultimately launched MINE began in the 1970s at the University of Heidelberg, conducted by an interdisciplinary group of scientists around Malte Faber, mainly economists, mathematicians, philosophers and physicists. It has contributed and can be broadly linked to the field of Ecological Economics. MINE digitally summarizes the experiences of this research and the accompanying policy-advising in Germany, the European Union, the US and China. It gives a web-based access to its publications and shapes new networks for scientists, students and practitioners. Following the Introduction (Section 1), this paper explains the MINE project (Section 2) and introduces our methodology (Section 3). In Section 4, we outline 15 concepts and heuristics for tackling the environmental problem. Finally, we provide an outlook for further work (Section 5). |
| Keywords: | Environmental Economics; Ecological Economics; History of Economic Thought; Homo Oeconomicus; Homo Politicus; Thermodynamics; Joint Production; Time; Irreversibility; Evolution; Ethics; Sustainability; Responsibility; Ignorance; Absolute and Relative Scarcity; Methodology; Interdisciplinarity |
| Date: | 2018–12–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:awi:wpaper:0658&r=all |
| By: | Lucilla Salvia (Department of Economics and Social Sciences, Sapienza University of Rome (IT).) |
| Abstract: | As in many other countries in the world, the Italian agricultural sector has witnessed a process of deep restructuring with the expansion of export-oriented production and the rise of global value chains in the agrifood sector. This paper argues that the new way of producing and delivering food, coupled with country-specific conditions, such as the structure of Italian agrarian capital, have created the room for new forms of exploitation, such as those based on seasonal migrant labour through practices of labour contracting and that sometimes amount to forms of 'modern slavery'. These new forms of exploitation are far from being exceptional. Although often associated with the territory control of Mafia organizations, this article argues that migrant labour exploitation through the labour contracting system is an integral feature of the contemporary agricultural production in Italy. This is shown through the case study of the fruit and vegetable production in the south area of Lazio region where firms can rely, through the role of labour contractors, on cheap and disposable migrant labour, especially Indian workers. |
| Keywords: | labour contractors, caporalato, Italian agricultural sector, FFV value chain, labour exploitation. |
| JEL: | J61 J81 Q1 |
| Date: | 2019–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:saq:wpaper:2/19&r=all |
| By: | Ravi Prakash (MNNIT Allahabad - Motilal Nehru National Institute of Technology Allahabad); Pulkit Garg (National Institute of Food Technology Entrepreneurship and Management) |
| Abstract: | This paper presents a novel approach to measure the human development, progress and growth of any country. The authors have developed an alternative index to the conventional 'HDI', named as 'Composite Development Index (CDI)' and have also presented an original approach to evaluate it quantitatively. The CDI integrates all the three (social, economic and environmental) aspects of sustainable development, along with peace and happiness. As proposed, the CDI is based on four parameters, i.e. Inequality adjusted HDI (IHDI), Scaled Green Index, Scaled Peace Index and Scaled Happiness Index, evaluated from globally accepted standard databases. Hence, the CDI is much more comprehensive and rational than the conventional HDI or GDP. The CDI values have been evaluated quantitatively for 126 countries of the world. Further, comparative assessment of the CDI has been done with the HDI for all the 126 nations. The results obtained have been startling as no country was even able to have a CDI score of 0.8 on a scale of 0.1 to 1. Switzerland had the highest CDI of 0.767. A country like Norway with the highest HDI of 0.953 had a CDI of only 0.742. On the other hand, countries like Costa Rica, Romania and Uruguay are in the top 20 nations in the CDI Ranking, much ahead of the countries like United Kingdom, France, and USA. The CDI can act as a single point of reference for policy-makers, governments and other development agencies, as it presents a consolidated picture of a country's development. Future course of action on the basis of the concept of CDI are also proposed. It can be concluded that efforts to have a high CDI (in comparison to a high GDP or HDI only) will pave the way forward for sustainable development and holistic progress for all the countries of the world. JEL Classifications: 011, 015 Additional disciplines (besides field of economics reflected in JEL classifications): sociology; ecology and environment. |
| Keywords: | happiness,Human Development Index (HDI),peace,ecological footprint,Composite Development Index |
| Date: | 2019–03–30 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:journl:hal-02115225&r=all |
| By: | Parlow, Anton |
| Abstract: | Increasing female landownership or labor force participation are policies designed to empower women in developing countries. Yet, societies are diverse and I find that across language and ethnic groups not all Pakistani women benefit from these increased economic opportunities in their decision making. I even find negative impacts of labor force participation on empowerment for some groups. This can be explained by different gender expectations along these gendered institutions. |
| Keywords: | Women's Empowerment, Ethnicity, Identity |
| JEL: | J0 J01 O12 |
| Date: | 2018–04–23 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:93916&r=all |
| By: | Elton Beqiraj (Department of Economics and Law, Sapienza University of Rome (IT).); Lucrezia Fanti (National Institute for Public Policy Analysis (INAPP).); Luca Zamparelli (Department of Economics and Law, Sapienza University of Rome (IT).) |
| Abstract: | This paper looks at structural change as one additional source of decline in the wage share. First, we provide a decomposition of changes in aggregate wage shares into changes due to variations in output composition and in sectoral wage shares for nine OECD countries between 1977 and 2010. We show that the rise in the service sector is a relevant factor in explaining the fall of the wage share, at least for some countries. Next, we develop a two-sector Kaleckian growth model consisting of the service and manufacturing sectors. We assume that structural change is exogenous as it arises from a shift in consumers' preferences or in the saving rate. We show that, when mark-ups are relatively higher in the service sector, a shift in the sectoral composition of demand in favor of the service sector good generates a rise in the profit share. |
| Keywords: | structural change, functional income distribution, manufacturing, service. |
| JEL: | D33 E11 O14 |
| Date: | 2019–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:saq:wpaper:3/19&r=all |
| By: | Pilar Beneito (University of Valencia. ERI-CES); José Joaquin García-Gómez (University of Almeria) |
| Abstract: | What role did women play during industrialization? Interpretations of this key period of our history have been largely based on analyses of male work. In this paper, we offer evidence of the effects of women's involvement in the industrialization process that took place in Alcoy, Spain, over the period 1860-1914. Using data drawn from historical sources, we analyse labour-force participation rates and wage series for women and men in the textile industry and three other sectors of activity (education, health and low-skill services). We then connect the gender pay gaps with life expectancy indicators. Our results suggest that women's contribution to household income might have favoured the female life-expectancy advantage, an effect that seems to have been channelled through a reduction in the relative mortality rates of female infants and girls, at the expense of a higher mortality rate of working-age women. |
| Keywords: | Industrialization, gender wage gap, female mortality advantage |
| JEL: | J16 J31 N33 O14 |
| Date: | 2019–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:dbe:wpaper:0119&r=all |
| By: | Gérard de La Paix Bayiha (UMR Innovation - Innovation et Développement dans l'Agriculture et l'Alimentation - CIRAD - Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement - INRA - Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique - Montpellier SupAgro - Centre international d'études supérieures en sciences agronomiques - Montpellier SupAgro - Institut national d’études supérieures agronomiques de Montpellier); Ludovic Temple (UMR Innovation - Innovation et Développement dans l'Agriculture et l'Alimentation - CIRAD - Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement - INRA - Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique - Montpellier SupAgro - Centre international d'études supérieures en sciences agronomiques - Montpellier SupAgro - Institut national d’études supérieures agronomiques de Montpellier); Syndhia Mathé (UMR Innovation - Innovation et Développement dans l'Agriculture et l'Alimentation - CIRAD - Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement - INRA - Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique - Montpellier SupAgro - Centre international d'études supérieures en sciences agronomiques - Montpellier SupAgro - Institut national d’études supérieures agronomiques de Montpellier); Thomas Nesme (ISPA - Interactions Sol Plante Atmosphère - INRA - Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique - Bordeaux Sciences Agro - Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Sciences Agronomiques de Bordeaux-Aquitaine) |
| Abstract: | Dans un contexte de controverse sur la capacité des modèles agricoles à répondre conjointement aux enjeux alimentaires, environnementaux et de développement en Afrique, nous analysons les conditions de viabilité d'une agriculture à caractère biologique au Cameroun. La démarche mobilise une enquête par entretiens semi-directifs auprès des acteurs engagés dans les filières de production biologique et une mise en débat des connaissances générées lors d'ateliers participatifs multi-acteurs. Elle met en interaction les connaissances scientifiques, entrepreneuriales et techniques. Les résultats mettent en exergue trois types d'agriculture biologique : l'un certifié suivant les cahiers des charges internationaux ; le deuxième hybride, du fait de sa nature entrepreneuriale et sans certification ; et le troisième, « naturel sans certification », qui renvoie aux pratiques traditionnelles à faible usage d'intrants. En utilisant le cadre d'analyse de la théorie des transitions multi-niveaux, ces trois types permettent de définir des trajectoires possibles d'évolution de l'agriculture biologique au Cameroun. Mots clés : agriculture biologique / modèle agricole d'innovation / filière / Cameroun Abstract-Typology and perspective of evolution of organic farming in Cameroon. In a context of controversy over the capacity of agricultural models to respond jointly to food, environmental and development issues in Africa, we analyze the conditions of viability of organic farming in Cameroon. The approach mobilizes a survey through semi-structured interviews with stakeholders involved in the organic production sectors and a discussion of the knowledge generated during multi-stakeholder participatory workshops. The approach brings together scientific, entrepreneurial and technical knowledge. The results highlight three types of organic farming: one type certified according to international specifications; the second, hybrid because of its entrepreneurial nature and without certification; and the third, "natural without certification", that refers to traditional practices, with low use of inputs. Using the framework of analysis of the multi-level transition theory, these three types make it possible to define possible trajectories for the evolution of organic agriculture in Cameroon. |
| Date: | 2019 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:journl:hal-02097784&r=all |
| By: | Antônio Marcos de Queiroz (PPE/FACE-UFG); Cleidinaldo de Jesus Barbosa (PPE/FACE-UFG); Edson Roberto Vieira (PPE/FACE-UFG); Sabrina Faria de Queiroz (PPE/FACE-UFG) |
| Abstract: | The objective of this work will be to revisit the ideas from the orthodox authors, Lewis, Nurkse and Rostow, from the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (CEPAL) and from Celso Furtado about development and underdevelopment. The first authors who discussed the themes mentioned above had a liberal approach to analysis, linking the concept of development with that of economic growth, while the CEPAL and Furtadian analysis began to consider historical, structural and, above all, social aspects within a perspective of Latin American countries. The original of Cepal thought emerged as an alternative line of discussion of development from the point of view of its own elements that were incorporated into Furtadian thought. The paper does not pretend to exhaust such discussion on such a broad theme, but rather to try to link the theme, showing the main characteristics of each line of thought |
| Keywords: | Development, underdevelopment, orthodoxy, Cepal, Celso Furtado |
| JEL: | O1 O10 |
| Date: | 2018–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ufb:wpaper:076&r=all |
| By: | Breno Nahuel Freneau (PPE/FACE-UFG); Sérgio Fornazier Meyrelles Filho (PPE/FACE-UFG) |
| Abstract: | This paper aims to expose and present a collection of some of the major empirical evidences reported by the Bhaduri-Marglin distribution and growth literature. Furthermore, some of the critical aspects of this literature are probed, namely, the recurrent empirical regularities, the distinct econometric methodologies employed and the difficulties faced by said literature. First, an arrangement of the results produced by a portion of this literature, referred to as the single equation literature and characterized by the use of single equation econometric methods, is presented and discussed. In this perspective, it is possible to observe an evidential trend towards the wage-led nature of economic growth. These conclusions change slightly in favor of the profit-led alignment, once elements of trade are introduced. However, this switch is not enough to overturn the wage-led predominance of results. Meanwhile, the multiple equation portion of the literature, so named since it employs multiple equation econometric approaches, rose out of the need to tackle potential endogeneity issues not accounted for by the single equation studies. In this scope, evidential results are still scarce, given that multiple equation models are defined by their complexity in application. On the other hand, reported results of multiple equation studies do not reinforce the unequivocal wage-led trend detected by the single equation literature. |
| Keywords: | Economic growth, Income distribution, Empirical studies |
| JEL: | O10 O15 O47 |
| Date: | 2018–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ufb:wpaper:074&r=all |
| By: | Breno Nahuel Freneau (PPE/FACE-UFG); Sérgio Fornazier Meyrelles Filho (PPE/FACE-UFG) |
| Abstract: | This paper seeks to explore and present, through a synthesis of economic theory, some of the major approaches to the study of income distribution in the context of macroeconomic growth. The starting point is a survey of the classical economic school of thought, classified between the Ricardian and Marxian schools, which predicts a causality from income distribution towards economic growth. The role of a profit squeezing trend upon long term stagnation theorized by the classics is highlighted. Next, the characteristics of the Harrod-Domar model are studied, as well as its main concern, the problem of Harrodian instability. This problem refers to a discrepancy between the equilibrium rate of growth and the rates effectively determined by the factors of production. The importance of this topic lies in the fact that it is approached differently by subsequent authors discussed. Following, some of the elements of neoclassical income distribution and economic growth are discussed, in light of the Harrodian problem. In this sense, distribution is related to the neoclassical pricing system, meanwhile growth is explained by the accumulation of factors of production, according to a production function defined by full factor substitutability. This encumbers the use of the neoclassical structure to support any hypothesis of a relationship between distribution and growth, since these variables are determined in different models and are, therefore, exogenous to one another. On the other hand, post-Keynesian approaches are emphasized, once they predict a relationship between distribution and growth by endogeneizing the equilibrium rate of growth originally introduced by the Harrod-Domar model. These schools of economic thought, cathegorized as Kaldorian-Robinsonian and Kaleckian-Steindlian, being this last one also sorted among the Rowthorn-Dutt and Bhaduri-Marglin models, are finally presented. |
| Keywords: | History of economic thought, Income distribution, Economic growth |
| JEL: | B10 O15 O40 |
| Date: | 2018–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ufb:wpaper:073&r=all |
| By: | Pierre Baudry (GSRL - Groupe Sociétés, Religions, Laïcités - EPHE - École pratique des hautes études - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Université de Tours, PSL - PSL Research University) |
| Abstract: | Abstract: Mercantilism is certainly one of the oldest concepts of political economy. However, its use to describe pre-liberal and pre-industrial Western capitalism has been highly disputed due to the apparent vagueness of its definition. This paper tackles this issue by developing a historical vision of mercantilism, which rests on a heuristic ideal-type. My goal is to developed mercantilism as a complementary concept to Kindelberger's of Hegemonic Stability Theory. The pro-free-trade ‘benevolent hegemon' goes hand in hand with mercantilist states, which need a high level of good export and capital import. The question is then to understand two forms of mercantilism: I call the first one ‘early capitalism', which is typical for developing countries, while ‘late mercantilism' is to be found among aging and developed countries, which maintain a mercantilist policy. Empirically, I focus on Germany's economy since 1945 to illustrate and test this conceptual distinction. I intend to show that West Germany has been an ‘early mercantilist' power and benefited from the much-needed help by the USA after WWII, while it appears more and more as ‘late mercantilist' power since the 2000s. This empirical case shall help illustrate my general framework and shed light on the structural reasons for the disputes over trade between Berlin and Washington under Donald Trump. |
| Keywords: | Keywords: Mercantilism,Hegemonic stability theory,free trade,Kindelberger,Merkel,Trump,USA,Germany,capitalism |
| Date: | 2019–04–27 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:journl:hal-02105531&r=all |
| By: | Ettore Gallo (Department of Economics, New School for Social Research) |
| Abstract: | This paper reviews and empirically tests the validity and policy conclusions of the Sraffian Supermultiplier model (SSM) and the modified Neo-Kaleckian model after the inclusion of autonomous components of aggregate demand. First, we theoretically assess whether the SSM may constitute a complex variant of the Neo-Kaleckian model. In this sense, it is shown that results compatible with the SSM can be obtained by implementing a set of mechanisms in a modified Neo-Kaleckian model. Second, the paper empirically tests the main implications of the models in the Euro Area, based on Eurostat data. In particular, the discussion outlines the short and long-run relation between autonomous demand and output, by testing cointegration and causality with a VECM model. Moreover, the role accounted by both theories to the rate of capacity utilization is empirically assessed, through a time-series estimation of the Sraffian and Neo-Kaleckian investment functions. While confirming the theoretical relation between autonomous demand and output in the long run, the results show that capacity utilization still plays a key role in the short-run adjustment mechanism. Therefore, admitting that Keynesian results may hold even after the traverse, our work suggests to be Kaleckian in the short run and Sraffian in the long run. |
| Keywords: | Distribution, effective demand, Eurozone, growth, Neo-Kaleckian, Sraffian, Supermultiplier |
| JEL: | B51 E11 E12 O41 O47 O52 |
| Date: | 2019–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:new:wpaper:1904&r=all |
| By: | Jacques Fontanel (CESICE - Centre d'études sur la sécurité internationale et les coopérations européennes - UPMF - Université Pierre Mendès France - Grenoble 2 - UGA - Université Grenoble Alpes) |
| Abstract: | The United States obtained the leadership on the market economy and capitalism at the end of the World War I, which will give birth, with the USSR, to an antagonistic economic system. In spite of the economic crisis of 1929, the World War II is going to give in Washington the opportunity to reorganize the global economy and to be the undisputed political, economic, military and moral leader of the western developed countries in the face of the planned economy of Soviet Union. After the collapse of this one, the period 1990-2014 is going to be marked by the passage of the hyperpower of the end of the XXth century in the emergence of world economic, political and moral crisis situations favored by the financial speculation, the international debts or the debates on climate change, but also supported by the rise of a confrontational international terrorism and armed conflicts. At the time D. Trump settled in the White House, the Washington leadership is in question because several constituent lines of American power, collecting less the support of its allies and the globalized economic system led to expansion new inequalities which become important in social protest and social factors. |
| Abstract: | Les États-Unis ont obtenu le leadership sur l'économie de marché et le capitalisme à la fin de la Première guerre mondiale, laquelle accouchera, avec l'URSS, d'un système économique antagonique. Malgré la crise économique de 1929, la deuxième guerre mondiale va donner à Washington l'occasion de réorganiser l'économie mondiale et d'être le leader politique, économique, militaire et moral incontesté des pays développés occidentaux face à l'économie planifiée de l'Union Soviétique. Après l'effondrement de celle-ci, la période 1990-2014 va être marquée par le passage de l'hyperpuissance de la fin du XXe siècle à l'émergence de situations de crises économiques, politiques et morales mondiales favorisées par la spéculation financière, l'endettement international ou les débats sur le changement de climat, mais aussi soutenues par l'essor d'un terrorisme international contestataire des valeurs libérales et les conflits armés. Au moment où D. Trump s'installe à la Maison Blanche, le leadership de Washington est en question car plusieurs axes constitutifs de la puissance américaine, ne recueillent plus l'adhésion de ses alliés et le système économique globalisé conduit à l'essor de nouvelles inégalités qui deviennent des facteurs importants de contestation sociale et sociétale. |
| Keywords: | Capitalism,American Leadership,War,Social inequalities,Protectionism,Power,Innovation,Dollar,Economic policy,Economy of market,Environment,Debt,Financial crises,Puissance,Protectionnisme,Politique économique,Leadership américain,Inégalités sociales,Guerre,Environnement,Endettement,Economie de marché,Crises financières,Capitalisme |
| Date: | 2017–07–22 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:journl:hal-02092002&r=all |
| By: | David Kiefer, Ivan Mendieta-Munoz, Codrina Rada, Rudiger von Arnim |
| Abstract: | This paper contributes to the literature on secular stagnation by estimating a measure of potential output growth for the post-war US economy derived from a novel model specification that allows for the cyclical interactions between income distribution, represented by the trajectory of the labor share of income, and economic activity, as measured by capacity utilization. The results obtained show that potential output growth exhibits a gradual decline that predates the Great Recession and follows the downward trajectory of the labor share of income, thus suggesting the existence of an important long-run relationship between income distribution and output growth in the USA. |
| Keywords: | Potential output growth, capacity utilization, income distribution, labor share, US economy. |
| JEL: | B50 E12 E25 O40 |
| Date: | 2019 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:uta:papers:2019_05&r=all |
| By: | Giovanni Dosi; Marco Grazzi; Daniele Moschella; Gary Pisano; Federico Tamagni |
| Abstract: | Firm growth is an essential feature of market economies, shaping together macroeconomic performance and the evolution of industry structures. As a potential indicator of organizational 'fitness' within a competitive environment, firm growth is also a central concern to both the practice and theory of business strategy. Despite both its theoretical and practical importance, though, growth remains a poorly understood property of firms. While previous studies have documented the highly skewed nature of firm growth rates, we know far less about the persistence of growth rates over long-periods of time. For instance, do 'fast growers' tend to maintain their relative growth rates advantages over long-periods or is superior growth a transitory phenomenon? Is, as predicted by evolutionary and capability based theories of the firm, the process of firm growth path-dependent or is it more akin to a random walk? The answers to these questions are central to building a robust theory of firm growth. This paper attempts to address this gap in our empirical knowledge of firm growth using a dataset that spans 50 years, which allows the abandonment of the assumption, common to all incumbent studies, that the stochastic paths of all firms stem from the same generating process. These exploratory results indicate that growth rate persistence is there and my be even substantial for some firms, but it is rare. We also study the links between the micro- properties of firm growth within sectors and the patterns of aggregate growth of these same sectors. Indeed, we find circumstantial but widespread evidence that heterogeneity across firms correlates with industry dynamism. |
| Keywords: | Firm growth; Persistence; Industrial Dynamics; Firm heterogeneity |
| Date: | 2019–05–17 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ssa:lemwps:2019/13&r=all |
| By: | Yannis Dafermos; Maria Nikolaidi |
| Abstract: | Fiscal policy has a strong role to play in the transition to an ecologically sustainable economy. This paper critically discusses the way that green fiscal policy has been analysed in both conventional and post-Keynesian approaches. It then uses a recently developed post-Keynesian ecological macroeconomic model in order to provide a comparative evaluation of three different types of green fiscal policy: carbon taxes, green subsidies and green public investment. We show that (i) carbon taxes reduce global warming but increase financial risks due to their adverse effects on the profitability of firms and credit availability; (ii) green subsidies and green public investment improve ecological efficiency, but their positive environmental impact is partially offset by their macroeconomic rebound effects; and (iii) a green fiscal policy mix derives better outcomes than isolated policies. Directions for future heterodox macroeconomic research on the links between fiscal policy and ecological sustainability are suggested. |
| Keywords: | post-Keynesian economics, ecological economics, green fiscal policy, stock-flow consistent modelling |
| JEL: | E12 E62 Q54 Q57 |
| Date: | 2019–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pke:wpaper:pkwp1912&r=all |