Environmental Economics and Policy
Please see the Agricultural and Resource Economics Department for program and degree requirements.
ENVECON C1/ECON C3 Introduction to Environmental Economics and Policy 4 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: Mathematics 32.
Introduction to microeconomics with emphasis on resource, agricultural, and environmental issues.
Students will receive 2 units of credit for 1 after taking Economics 1.
ENVECON 39D Freshman/Sophomore Seminar 1.5 - 4 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: The grading option will be decided by the instructor when the class is offered.
Hours and format: Seminar format.
Prerequisites: Priority given to freshmen and sophomores.
Freshman and sophomore seminars offer lower division students the opportunity to explore an intellectual topic with a faculty member and a group of peers in a small-seminar setting. These seminars are offered in all campus departments; topics vary from department to department and from semester to semester.
Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
ENVECON 100 Microeconomic Theory with Application to Natural Resources 4 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: C1 or Economics 1 or C3 and Mathematics 16A or consent of instructor.
Covers the basic microeconomic tools for further study of natural resource problems. Theory of consumption, production, theory of the firm, industrial organization, general equilibrium, public goods and externalities. Applications to agriculture and natural resources.
Students will receive 2 units of credit for Economics 100A, Economics 101A, or Undergraduate Business Administration 110 after taking 100. Instructor: Ligon and Rausser
ENVECON C101/ECON C125 Environmental Economics 4 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: 100, Mathematics 16A-16B, or Economics 100A or 101A.
Theories of externalities and public goods applied to pollution and environmental policy. Trade-off between production and environmental amenities. Assessing nonmarket value of environmental amenities. Remediation and clean-up policies. Environment and development. Biodiversity management.
Instructor: Zilberman
ENVECON C102 Natural Resource Economics 4 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Fall
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: 100, or Economics 100A or 100B.
Introduction to the economics of natural resources. Land and the concept of economic rent. Models of optimal depletion of nonrenewable resources and optimal use of renewable resources. Application to energy, forests, fisheries, water, and climate change. Resources, growth, and sustainability.
Instructor: Sunding
ENVECON C115/ESPM C104 Modeling and Management of Biological Resources 4 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy; Environ Sci, Policy, and Management
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Fall
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of lecture, 1 hour of discussion, and ad-hoc laboratories.
Models of population growth, chaos, life tables, and Leslie matrix theory. Harvesting and exploitation theory. Methods for analyzing population interactions, predation, competition. Fisheries, forest stands, and insect pest management. Genetic aspects of population management. Mathematical theory based on simple difference and ordinary differential equations. Use of simulation packages on microcomputers (previous experience with computers not required).
Instructor: Getz
ENVECON C118/IAS C118 Introductory Applied Econometrics 4 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy; International and Area Studies
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Fall
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
Formulation of a research hypothesis and definition of an empirical strategy. Regression analysis with cross-sectional and time-series data; econometric methods for the analysis of qualitative information; hypothesis testing. The techniques of statistical and econometric analysis are developed through applications to a set of case studies and real data in the fields of environmental, resource, and international development economics. Students learn the use of a statistical software for economic data analysis.
Instructor: Sadoulet
ENVECON 131 Globalization and the Natural Environment 3 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Fall
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: Intermediate micro-economic theory or consent of instructor.
An examination of the environmental effects of globalization. How has increased international trade, the integration of factor markets, and the adoption of international agreements affected the environment? Case studies include the environmental impact of GATT/WTO and NAFTA. Multi-disciplinary approach examines the actual laws and institutions and the economic theories of globalization, in addition to the empirical evidence of globalization's environmental effects.
Instructor: Karp
ENVECON 140AC Economics of Race, Agriculture, and the Environment 3 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Fall
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 2 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: 1, or one lower division course in a social science, or consent of instructor.
This course examines whether and how economic processes explain shifting formations of race and differential experiences among racial groups in U.S. agricultural and environmental systems. It approaches economic processes as organizing dynamics of racial differentiation and integration, and uses comparative experience among different racial and ethnic groups as sources of evidence against which economic theories of differentiation and integration can be tested.
Satisfies the American Cultures requirement
Instructor: Romm
ENVECON 142 Industrial Organization with Applications to Agriculture and Natural Resources 4 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of lecture and 1 hour of discussion per week.
Prerequisites: Environmental Economics and Policy 100 or Economics 100A or 101A.
Organization and performance of agricultural and resource markets. Conduct of firms within those markets, such as price competition, product differentiation, predatory pricing, vertical integration, dealer networks and advertising. The role of public policy in the markets. Case studies include oil cartel OPEC, agricultural cooperatives, vertical integration of food processors and franchising of fast-food chains. Discussion sections cover empirical applications of theory presented during lectures for current environmental and agricultural policies.
Instructor: Villas-Boas
ENVECON 143 Economics of Innovation and Intellectual Property 3 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Fall
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: 100 or Economics 100A or 101A.
This course addresses the economics of research and incentives for innovation including intellectual property rights. Topics include the standard modern economics of invention; modern intellectual property rights; innovation examples from agriculture, energy, pharmaceuticals, software, and electronics; the roles of the public and private sectors; innovation and market structure; the needs of the poor; and global intellectual property negotiations.
Instructor: Wright
ENVECON 145 Health and Environmental Economic Policy 3 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Fall
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: Intermediate microeconomics, 100, Economics 100 or 101A, and some statistics.
This course introduces students to key issues and findings in the field of health and environmental economics. The first half of the course focuses on the theoreticl and statistical frameworks used to analyze instances of market failure in the provision of health and environmental goods. The second half focuses on policy-relevant empirical findings in the field.
Instructor: Anderson
ENVECON 147 Regulation of Energy and the Environment 4 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: Intermediate microeconomic theory and calculus.
This is an applied economics course on government regulation of energy with an emphasis on policies that seek to mitigate the impact of energy production and consumption on the environment. The course is designed to help students make connections between economic concepts and real world regulatory policy questions and issues.
Instructor: Fowlie
ENVECON C151/ECON C171 Economic Development 4 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 6 hours of Lecture and 2 hours of Discussion per week for 8 weeks. 8 hours of Lecture and 2 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Prerequisites: 100, Economics 100A or 101A.
Problems of underdevelopment and poverty, policy issues, and development strategy.
Instructor: de Janvry
ENVECON 152 Advanced Topics in Development and International Trade 3 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Fall
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 2 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: 100 or Economics 100A.
This course discusses recent efforts to understand behavior and institutions in village economies, with particular attention paid to the importance of risk. Economic analysis of savings, consumption, insurance, production, trade, welfare distribution and institutions of villages in developing countries. Roughly equal parts of theory, evidence, and policy.
Instructor: Magruder
ENVECON 153 Population, Environment, and Development 3 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 2 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: Intermediate microeconomic theory or consent of instructor.
This course takes an interdisciplinary approach to the complex interactions between population, environmental change, and economic development, including the leading theories for understanding these interactions. The origins and history of current debates are discussed as well as some of the major issues stemming from these debates, such as immigration, international trade, family planning policies and concerns over the global commons. Specific natural resources and services like fresh water, food supply, and forest cover are analyzed as case studies. Policy options for sustainable development are discussed.
ENVECON 154 Economics of Poverty and Technology 3 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: Intermediate microeconomics.
Introduction to the economic framework underlying the use of technology to address rural poverty in developing countries. Analyzes the path of technology development from innovation and design to the adoption and use of technology in rural economies. Focuses on technologies related to agricultural production, processing, market access, value chains, and climate change.
Instructor: Boettiger
ENVECON 161 Advanced Topics in Environmental and Resource Economics 4 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Fall
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: 100 or Economics 100A or Economics 101A; 101 recommended.
The roots of environmental and resource economics. Theories of land and resource rent. Models of optimal use of renewable and nonrenewable resources with applications to energy and timber. Balancing environmental and extractive values. Resources, growth, and sustainability. Special topic: the problem of global climate change.
ENVECON 162 Economics of Water Resources 3 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 2 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
Prerequisites: 100 or Economics 100A or 101A; 101 recommended.
Urban demand for water; water supply and economic growth; water utility economics; irrigation demand; large water projects; economic impacts of surface water law and institutions; economics of salinity and drainage; economics of groundwater management.
ENVECON C175/IAS C175 The Economics of Climate Change 4 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy; International and Area Studies
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 7.5 hours of Lecture and 2.5 hours of Discussion per week for 6 weeks.
Prerequisites: 106, 107, Economics 1, or equivalent.
The course will start with a brief introduction and evaluation of the scientific aspects behind climate change. Economic models will be developed to analyze the impacts of climate change and provide and critique existing and proposed policy tools. Specific topics studied are impacts on water resources and agriculture, economic evaluation of impacts, optimal control of greenhouse gases, benefit cost analysis, international treaty formation, discounting, uncertainty, irreversibility, and extreme events.
Instructors: Aufhammer, Fisher
ENVECON C180/ENE,RES C180 Ecological Economics in Historical Context 3 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy; Energy and Resources Group
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks.
Economists through history have explored economic and environmental interactions, physical limits to growth, what constitutes the good life, and how economic justice can be assured. Yet economists continue to use measures and models that simplify these issues and promote bad outcomes. Ecological economics responds to this tension between the desire for simplicity and the multiple perspectives needed to understand complexity in order to move toward sustainable, fulfilling, just economies.
Instructor: Norgaard
ENVECON C181 International Trade 4 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and Zero to 1 hour of Discussion per week for 15 weeks. 6 hours of Lecture and 2 hours of Discussion per week for 8 weeks.
Prerequisites: 100A-100B or 101A-101B.
The theory of international trade and its applications to tariff protection. This course is equivalent to UGBA 118; students will not receive credit for both courses.
ENVECON C183/ESPM C183 Forest Ecosystem Management 4 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy; Environ Sci, Policy, and Management
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 3 hours of Lecture and 3 hours of Laboratory per week for 15 weeks.
Introduces students to concepts and quantitative tools needed for the sustainable management of multi-use forest ecosystems. Topics covered include: estimation of ecological, economic, and social values: construction of dynamic forest models, methods for optimal decision-making, and development of forest management plans. Application to current issues in temperate and tropical forest management are discussed. Quantitative, analytical, and communication skills are emphasized. Oral presentation required.
Instructor: Potts
ENVECON 195 Senior Thesis 4 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: Individual meetings with faculty sponsor.
Prerequisites: Senior standing in Environmental Economics and Policy and consent of instructor.
Writing of a thesis under the direction of member(s) of the faculty. Subject must be approved by faculty sponsor.
Course may be repeated for credit. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
ENVECON 196 Senior Research Seminar 4 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Term course may be offered: Spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: 2 hours of presentation and discussion of research projects per week.
Prerequisites: Student must be a senior with at least a 3.6 GPA in the Environmental Economics and Policy major.
This course is intended as a capstone experience for undergraduates in the major coordinated by one faculty member with participation by others. Following presentations by faculty on researchable topics in their areas of expertise, students will develop ideas for a research paper and discuss in subsequent seminar sessions. Approximately the last five weeks of the semester will be devoted to student presentations of papers either already completed or in progress, and discussion by seminar participants and faculty.
Instructor: Fisher
ENVECON H196 Honors Research 4 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall and spring
Grading: Letter grade.
Hours and format: Individual research or meetings with faculty sponsor(s).
Prerequisites: Upper division standing. Eligibility restrictions related to GPA and unit accumulation. Open only to Environmental Economics and Policy majors in the College of Natural Resources.
Supervised independent honors research specific to aspects of environmental economics and policy, followed by a oral presentation and a written report.
Course may be repeated for credit. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes.
ENVECON 197 Field Study in Environmental Economics and Policy 1 - 3 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Offered for pass/not pass grade only.
Hours and format: Independent study. Minimum of 3 hours of work per week per unit of credit.
Prerequisites: Consent of instructor.
Supervised experience in off-campus organizations relevant to specific aspects of environmental economics and policy. Regular individual meetings with faculty sponsor and written reports required.
Course may be repeated for credit. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes. Enrollment is restricted; see the Introduction to Courses and Curricula section of this catalog.
ENVECON 198 Directed Group Studies for Advanced Undergraduates 1 - 3 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Offered for pass/not pass grade only.
Hours and format: Meetings to be arranged.
Prerequisites: Consent of instructor.
Group study of selected topic or topics in Environmental Economics and Policy.
Course may be repeated for credit. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes. Enrollment is restricted; see the Introduction to Courses and Curricula section of this catalog.
ENVECON 199 Supervised Independent Study and Research 1 - 4 Units
Department: Environmental Economics and Policy
Course level: Undergraduate
Terms course may be offered: Fall, spring and summer
Grading: Offered for pass/not pass grade only.
Hours and format: Independent meetings.
Prerequisites: Upper division standing and consent of instructor.
Enrollment restrictions apply. Open to qualified upper division students wishing to pursue special study and directed research under the direction of a member of the staff.
Course may be repeated for credit. Course may be repeated for credit when topic changes. Enrollment is restricted; see the Introduction to Courses and Curricula section of this catalog.
Print this page.
The PDF will include all information unique to this page.
All pages in Academic Catalog.