How EU trade policy can enhance climate action Options to boost low-carbon investment and address carbon leakage. CEPS Policy Priorities for 2019-2024, 23 September 2019

In her Political Guidelines, Commission President-elect Ursula von der Leyen sets climate neutrality as one of the central objectives of a proposed European Green Deal. EU member states are now discussing whether to formally agree on an objective for climate neutrality in 2050. Some have already set deadlines – Finland as early as 2035. This has triggered reflection on the adequate policy mix, notably with a view to making a business case for low-carbon innovation and investment while addressing carbon leakage. The Commission President-elect thinks that this will require a carbon border tax. To address the strategic need for a robust EU framework for low-carbon investment, we recommend that the European Commission i) investigates the economic, legal, and administrative viability and implementation timeline of carbon price adjustments at the border, ii) examines the possibility to extend the EU Emissions Trading System to include consumption of carbon intensive materials and iii) explores the potential of product standards to achieve the same aim. All these approaches have different advantages and shortcomings in terms of political acceptability, effectiveness and implications for the world trade system. To support partner countries in advancing climate action, both bilateral and multilateral measures should be prepared

WILLINGNESS TO PAY TO AVOID HEALTH RISKS FROM PESTICIDES, A CASE STUDY FROM NICARAGUA

A contingent valuation approach to assess the health effects of pesticides among Nicaraguan vegetable farmers is presented. Farmers' valuation of health is measured as willingness to pay (WTP) for low toxicity pesticides. Results show, that farmers are willing to spend about 28% of current pesticide expenditure for avoiding health risks. The validity of results is established in scope tests and a two-step regression model. WTP depends on farmers' experience with poisoning, income variables and pesticide exposure. The results can help in targeting of rural health policies and the design of programmes aiming to reduce negative effects of pesticides.health risks of pesticides, contingent valuation, Nicaragua, Health Economics and Policy,

The Pan-STARRS1 Photometric System

The Pan-STARRS1 survey is collecting multi-epoch, multi-color observations of the sky north of declination -30 deg to unprecedented depths. These data are being photometrically and astrometrically calibrated and will serve as a reference for many other purposes. In this paper we present our determination of the Pan-STARRS photometric system: gp1, rp1, ip1, zp1, yp1, and wp1. The Pan-STARRS photometric system is fundamentally based on the HST Calspec spectrophotometric observations, which in turn are fundamentally based on models of white dwarf atmospheres. We define the Pan-STARRS magnitude system, and describe in detail our measurement of the system passbands, including both the instrumental sensitivity and atmospheric transmission functions. Byproducts, including transformations to other photometric systems, galactic extinction, and stellar locus are also provided. We close with a discussion of remaining systematic errors.Comment: 39 pages, 9 figures, machine readable table of bandpasses, accepted for publication in Ap

Preferences, Norms and Constraints in farmers' agro-ecological choices. Case study using choice experiments survey in the Rhone River Delta, France

The aim of this paper is to elicit the sensitivity of farmers to payment for agro-environmental services in a context of strong ecological and policy constraints. We present results from a choice experiment survey performed among the whole population of agricultural decision-makers (104) in the Camargue area. Several econometric models have been estimated, the most significant being the Latent Classes one. Three classes have been identified, two of them representing farmers with strong committment to a specified technology (either very chemicals intensive or organic farming ), the main class encompassing farmers complying with the norms of the PGI « Riz de Camargue » . The estimated parameters of the utility function, together with the parameter of the monetary attribute provided the monetary value of each relevant agro-ecological attribute and the associated outcomes (average and risk yield). Outcomes of the choice experiments make a strong case for differentiating incentives for spreading environmental friendly technologies.

A Final Fantasy or eco-lifestyle : tapaustutkimus ympäristötoimijuudesta kahdessa videopelissä

Tämä pro-gradu keskittyy tekemään tutkimusta ympäristötoimijuudesta kahdessa eri videopelissä, The Sims 4 Eco Lifestyle ja Final Fantasy VII Remake. Tutkimuskysymykset pyrkivät vastaamaan kysymyksiin siitä, millä tavoin pelaaja pystyy toimimaan ympäristötoimijana näissä kahdessa pelissä, ja mitkä ovat huomattavimmat eroavaisuudet pelien välillä. Tutkimus on tehty käyttäen laadullista kahden tapauksen tapaustutkimusta käyttäen apuna lähilukua. Lähiluvun avulla kahdeksan eri toimijuustyyppiä, jotka yhdessä muodostavat tutkimuksen typologian, on analysoitu luotettavien vastauksien saamiseksi. Tutkimuksen aineisto on kerätty pelaamalla kumpikin peli läpi ja tekemällä muistiinpanoja lähiluvun tekniikkaa noudattaen. Tämän jälkeen muistiinpanot analysoitiin eri toimijuustyyppien avulla. Tuloksista on nähtävillä selkeää päällekkäisyyttä toimijuuksien välillä. Johtopäätöksenä voikin vetää, että kun tällaista päällekkäisyyttä ilmenee, pystyy pelaaja käyttämään ympäristötoimijuutta paremmin. Toimijuuksien eri tyypit täydentävät toisiaan, mikä mahdollistaa mahdollisen pelistä oppimisen paremmin. Isoimpana erona pelien välillä oli selkeästi se, että The Sims 4 Eco Lifestyle tarjosi enemmän monipuolisia ympäristötoimijuuden mahdollisuuksia pelin sisällä. Aiemmat tutkimukset ympäristöteemaisista peleistä ovat yleisimmin keskittyneet opettavaisiin peleihin (serious games) eikä niinkään viihteellisiin peleihin. Videopelit tarjoavat paljon mahdollisuuksia ihmisten motivoimiseen ympäristöasioiden saralla, varsinkin, jos pelaajatoimijuutta hyödynnetään oikein ja riittävän tehokkaasti. Se tarjoaa pelaajille mahdollisuuden tehdä merkittäviä valintoja. Jos nämä valinnat on kehitetty hyvin, pelaaja pääsee näkemään pelissä tekojensa seuraukset, mikä voi parhaassa tapauksessa johtaa positiiviseen oppimiseen. Tässä tapauksessa pelin sisäinen ympäristötoimijuus voitaisiin siirtää koskemaan myös tosielämän ympäristötoimijuutta. Koska nykyiset videopelit on kehitetty entistä immersiivisimmiksi ja niiden sisäiset ympäristöt entistä realistisimmiksi, olisi mahdollista ajatella, että virtuaalista ympäristöä ei tarvitsisikaan erottaa niin rajusti tosielämän ympäristöstä. Tästä syystä nykyaikaisset pelit, kuten The Sims 4 Eco Lifestyle ja Final Fantasy VII Remake, voisivat toimia esimerkkeinä siitä, miten ympäristötoimijuutta peleissä voitaisiin hyödyntää laajemmassa käytössä.The focus of this thesis is on environmental agency in two different video games, The Sims 4 Eco Lifestyle and Final Fantasy VII Remake. The research questions aim to answer how the player can act as an environmental agent in these two games and what are the key differences between these games. The study is executed in a form of qualitative two-case case study with the help of close reading. With close reading eight different types of agencies that form the typology of this study, will be analysed in order to answer the research questions. The data for this thesis was collected by playing both games and taking notes by following close reading. The notes were then analysed with the different types of agencies. The results showed clear overlapping of the types of agencies, and it could be said that environmental agency can be used better in the game when the overlapping is happening. The agencies complemented each other and made the possible learning process in the game more fulfilling. The main difference between the game seems to be that The Sims 4 Eco Lifestyle as a life simulation game offers more diverse possibilities for environmental player agency. The studies about environmental games are mainly focused on serious games and not so much on commercial games. Video games hold great potential to engage people in environmental things especially with the help of player agency. It offers the player the ability to make meaningful choices and if they are structure well, the player can see the consequences of their agency which serves as an effective feedback which could lead to positive learning. In this case, the environmental agency in the game could be transformed into real-life environmental agency. As video games have become more immersive and their environments more realistic, it could be worth considering that separating virtual environment from the real-life one might not be necessary anymore. Therefore, games like The Sims 4 Eco Lifestyle and Final Fantasy VII Remake could serve as an example of how environmental agency within them could be harnessed into wider use

Is Ethical Money Financially Smart?

Little is known about how investors select socially responsible investment (SRI) funds.Investors in SRI funds may care more about social or ethical issues in their investment decisions than about fund performance.This paper studies the money-flows into and out of the SRI funds around the world.We find that ethical money chases past returns.In contrast to conventional funds' investors, SRI investors care less about the funds' riskiness and fees.Funds characterized by shareholder activism and by in-house SRI research attract more stable investors. Membership of a large SRI fund family creates higher flow volatility due to the lower fees to reallocate money within the fund family.SRI funds receiving most of the money-inflows perform worse in the future, which is consistent with theories of decreasing returns to scale in the mutual fund industry.Finally, funds employing a higher number of SRI screens to model their investment universe receive larger money-inflows and perform better in the future than focused funds.money-flows;ethical funds;socially responsible investing;persistence in performance;investment screens;corporate governance screens;SRI

Celebrating Economies of Change: Brave Visions for Inclusive Futures

This issue has been inspired by a path-breaking conference held by the Canadian Society for Ecologi-cal Economics (CANSEE), which took place this past May 2019 in Waterloo, Ontario. Entitled Engaging Economies of Change, the conference aimed to ex-pand existing research networks in the economy-environment nexus by building connections beyond the academy in order to meaningfully engage with the practicalities of building and implementing change. This issue captures the rich content shared during the event, as well as descriptions of the pro-cesses and efforts made to create a welcoming and respectful space where academics and community activists could build alliances and discuss common challenges. The conference organizers – all graduate students and activists themselves -- called this ‘building a brave space’.This research was supported by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canad

Leveraging Change: Increasing Access to Arts Education in Rural Areas

In 2015, Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA) received funding in the first round of collective impact grants from the National Endowment for the Arts to launch the pilot initiative, Leveraging Change: Improving Access to Arts Education in Rural Areas. The authors conducted research which included a literature review and interviews with arts education leaders in rural areas. Using the research compiled through this process, a pilot convening was held in western Massachusetts' Berkshire County to activate ideas, stimulate the exchange of information, and generate cross-sector collaboration focused on strengthening support for arts education in the region. This working paper is a summary of the research results and insights gleaned from this pilot initiative

Scaling Success: Lessons from Adaptation Pilots in the Rainfed Regions of India

"Scaling Success" examines how agricultural communities are adapting to the challenges posed by climate change through the lens of India's rainfed agriculture regions. Rainfed agriculture currently occupies 58 percent of India's cultivated land and accounts for up to 40 percent of its total food production. However, these regions face potential production losses of more than $200 billion USD in rice, wheat, and maize by 2050 due to the effects of climate change. Unless action is taken soon at a large scale, farmers will see sharp decreases in revenue and yields.Rainfed regions across the globe have been an important focus for the first generation of adaptation projects, but to date, few have achieved a scale that can be truly transformational. Drawing on lessons learnt from 21 case studies of rainfed agriculture interventions, the report provides guidance on how to design, fund and support adaptation projects that can achieve scale