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on Resource Economics |
| By: | Alberto Chong (Georgia State University and Universidad del Pacifico); Marco Chong (Cornell University) |
| Abstract: | We examine whether a society's orientation toward individualism causally influences per capita carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. We conceptualize the link through a collective action framework: because atmospheric quality is a global public good, its provision requires coordinated restraint, and cultural individualism, which places primacy on personal autonomy over group norms, is predicted to erode precisely the internalization of collective costs that pro-environmental behavior demands. We show that a one-point increase in Hofstede's individualism index is associated with an increase of approximately 0.04 metric tons of CO2 per capita. Endogeneity is addressed using blood-type genetic distance and confirm our results. |
| Date: | 2026–06 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ays:ispwps:paper2620 |
| By: | Alberto Chong (Georgia State University and Universidad del Pacifico); Erica Louis Mtenga (Department of Economics, University of Dar es Salaam and Environment for Development (EfD)) |
| Abstract: | We focus on the role of double taxation treaties on environmental quality, to our knowledge the first empirical study to do so. Tax treaties are primarily implemented to remove double taxation, which helps promote international trade and investment. However, they are also aimed to address tax evasion and avoidance, which tends to have the opposite effect. As a result, the environmental impact is unclear. Specifically, we exploit the variation in the effective dates of the United States tax treaties with emerging countries between 1990 to 2014 by applying difference-in-differences methods. We find that tax treaties significantly help reduce carbon dioxide emissions in emerging markets. This appears to be driven by the reduction in investments in pollution-intensive industries after tax treaty enactments. |
| Date: | 2026–06 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ays:ispwps:paper2621 |
| By: | Liu, Jingshi (Joyce) (Bayes Business School, City St. George's, University of London); Tatavarthy, Aruna Divya (Dept. of Business and Management Science, Norwegian School of Economics) |
| Abstract: | In this research we uncover a tidy=sustainable association, which informs consumers’ evaluations and decisions. Across ten studies (N=2700), we find that consumers judge tidy (versus untidy) places, as well as objects within those places, to be more sustainable. We posit that consumers develop this learnt association because of the link through the multi-faceted concept of minimalism, which encompasses aspects related to aesthetics (as represented in spatial tidiness) and consumption (with impact sustainability outcomes). Supporting this mechanism, we show that spatial tidiness increases perceptions of minimalistic consumption practices—where consumers perceive tidy spaces as reflecting reduced number of possessions and mindful consumption—which in turn increases sustainability evaluations. Importantly, we show that the tidy=sustainable association operates bidirectionally, is amplified among consumers with higher minimalism values, and has downstream consequences on purchase, recommendation, and joint consumption decisions. |
| Keywords: | Sustainability; household; minimalism; aesthetics; consumption |
| JEL: | D10 H31 Q56 |
| Date: | 2026–05–22 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:nhhfms:2026_005 |
| By: | Marie Sciaccitano (Université Côte d'Azur, CNRS, GREDEG, France); Lionel Nesta (Université Côte d'Azur, CNRS, GREDEG, France; OFCE, Sciences Po Paris, France; SKEMA Business School, France) |
| Abstract: | We examine how income growth reshapes the composition of household consumption between green and non-green goods across countries. Using harmonized data on Environmental Goods and Services (EGS) for 138 countries over 1995–2015, we measure green consumption as expenditure on goods and services explicitly designed to prevent or reduce environmental degradation and estimate a non-linear environmental Engel curve. Green consumption behaves as a luxury at low income levels but progressively transitions toward a necessity as income rises. We further show that income elasticities of green consumption are systematically higher than those of non-green consumption, revealing income-driven composition effects in the consumption basket. These non-homothetic demand patterns imply that income growth systematically shifts household expenditure toward or away from goods intended to reduce environmental pressures, with important policy implications. Applying our estimates to a stylized Climate Fund redistribution, we show that accounting for heterogeneous income elasticities changes its predicted outcome. Relative to the homothetic benchmark with unit elasticities, the response of global green consumption remains limited, whereas the increase in global non-green consumption is substantially larger. |
| Keywords: | Measurement of green consumption, income elasticities, environmental Engel curve, luxury & necessity goods and services, climate policy |
| JEL: | E01 E21 Q5 |
| Date: | 2026–05 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:gre:wpaper:2026-15 |