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on Resource Economics |
| By: | Antonio Gutiérrez-Lythgoe (University of Zaragoza); José María Labeaga (Institute of Employment, Digital Society and Sustainability (IEDIS)); José Alberto Molina (Departamento de Análisis Económico, Universidad de Zaragoza) |
| Abstract: | Energy price shocks pose complex challenges for climate policy, combining efficiency concerns with distributional tensions. We develop a micro-founded method to estimate the behavioral and environmental effects of energy price changes, combining household expenditure microdata, a structural demand system (EASI), and supply-use tables with production-based GHG inventories. The approach enables consistent attribution of emissions to household demand and captures heterogeneous responses across income groups. Applying the method to a national case study, we simulate price shocks in electricity, heating, and transport fuels. Results reveal asymmetrical and regressive impacts, especially for essential goods with low price elasticity. Emission effects are highly dependent on substitution patterns, with some shocks triggering rebound effects. A lump-sum transfer mitigates welfare losses for electricity and heating, but not for fuels. Comparing predicted and observed aggregate responses during recent crises highlights the limits of elasticity-based instruments in practice. Our findings underscore the need for flexible, context-sensitive compensation mechanisms in carbon pricing design and illustrate a transferable method applicable across national settings. |
| Keywords: | Energy prices, Distributional effects, Carbon pricing, VAT, Household welfare, EASI demand system |
| JEL: | D12 D63 H23 Q52 Q41 C52 |
| Date: | 2025–07–01 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:boc:bocoec:1091 |
| By: | Fabio Landini (University of Parma, Deptartment of Economics and Management); Davide Lunardon (Gran Sasso Science Institute); Alberto Marzucchi (Gran Sasso Science Institute) |
| Abstract: | We investigate the perceived meaning of green jobs. Theoretically, we extend the standard meaningful work framework, by introducing a social esteem component, which depends on both the green content of occupations and the socio-political awareness of environmental issues. To identify green jobs, we employ a task-based indicator based on ESCO data, which is then merged with individual-level data from the 2015 and 2021 waves of the European Working Conditions Survey. Moreover, we proxy the degree of environmental consciousness at the country level through the Environmental Policy Stringency index from the OECD. In line with our theoretical framework, we find that workers’ perceptions of meaningful work increase with the green content of their occupation and are amplified in countries exhibiting higher levels of environmental consciousness. These results highlight the role of social esteem, derived from the contribution to what is considered a socially valuable objective (i.e. the fight against climate change), in shaping the experience of meaningful work. To allow a more ‘causal’ interpretation of the results, we employ an instrumental variable approach which corroborates the main findings. |
| Keywords: | Meaningful work, Green jobs, Social esteem, EWCS, Green transition |
| Date: | 2025–07 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:srt:wpaper:0625 |
| By: | Kimberly A. Clausing (Peterson Institute for International Economics); Joseph Aldy (Harvard University); Dustin Tingley (Harvard University); Catherine Wolfram (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) |
| Abstract: | We explore the future of global climate cooperation in light of US withdrawal from global climate agreements and the reversal of US federal climate policy. At present, the free-rider problem hampers global collective action; the world needs better mechanisms to incentivize bolder climate policy. Toward this end, we suggest a heavy industry climate coalition. Countries would “join†the coalition by committing to apply a carbon fee (or an equivalent emissions trading system) to emissions-heavy industries, and they would couple that fee with a carbon border adjustment mechanism. We suggest a tiered pricing approach that would be sensitive to countries’ economic development levels to broaden coalition participation. The coalition would pair the carbon-pricing mechanism with other inducements for members, including market access, climate finance commitments, and technology transfer agreements. We estimate that a heavy industry climate coalition has the potential to reduce worldwide emissions substantially, acting as a stepping stone for further international climate cooperation. |
| Keywords: | Climate Policy, Carbon Pricing, Climate Cooperation, Carbon Border Adjustments, Decarbonization |
| JEL: | F18 H23 Q56 Q58 |
| Date: | 2025–07 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iie:wpaper:wp25-16 |