Policy Sessions

EAERE 2024 will include fifteen high-level policy sessions, also streamed online. 

In-person and online registered are welcome to attend. 

Further details and the most updated status of policy sessions are available in the conference full programme.

Policy Session 1
Subsidies for the adoption of electric vehicles: effects, pitfalls and alternatives
Time: Tuesday, 02/July/2024 - 11:00am - 12:45pm

Organisers: Alexandros Dimitropoulos (PBL Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency) and Katalin Springel (HEC Montréal)

Electrification offers enormous potential for reductions of emissions of greenhouse gases and air pollutants from road transport and for focusing climate change mitigation efforts on stationary sources. Sales of electric vehicles (EVs) have been exponentially growing in the past years, with EVs reaching a 14% global market share in 2022.1 This growth has been spurred by public policy support, including increasingly stricter CO2 emissions standards, zero-emission vehicle mandates, and direct subsidies and incentives for EVs and charging infrastructure. While governments worldwide keep spending tens of billions EUR per year on subsidies and incentives for the adoption of new EVs, a number of questions emerge on the effects of this support:
1. To what extent have EV adoption subsidies been reaped by free-riders, who would have chosen electric vehicles even in the absence of such support?
2. What are the distributional effects of EV adoption subsidies? Given the high acquisition costs of electric vehicles, it is becoming increasingly clear that these subsidies are mostly received by high-income households. This limits the resources available to promote cost- effective investments in energy efficiency by lower-income households.
3. To what extent do EV adoption subsidies stimulate an increase in household car ownership and use, and thus a further transition away from active travel and public transport?
4. To what extent can spatially targeted EV charging station subsidies improve the efficiency of the EV charging market? The presence of entry complementarities across charging location, depending on how much firms internalize positive spillovers from entry, may warrant subsidy policies with location targeting or spatial restrictions as opposed to widely used uniform subsidies.
This Policy Session aims to provide answers to these questions, drawing on findings from the empirical and theoretical literature and from experiences with EV subsidies in several countries. The session will also discuss the dependence of the effects of EV subsidies on contextual factors – such as geomorphology, land use and public transport availability – as well as on other instruments of the policy mix implemented to reduce vehicle emissions, including excise duties on motor fuels and car taxes. Finally, the session will explore possible pathways for the phase out of subsidies for the adoption of new EVs and present alternative policy instruments facilitating the penetration of EVs in the used car market. It will also identify important knowledge gaps in the literature, and thus present opportunities for environmental and resource economists to do original and socially relevant research on policy support for the electrification of road transport.

Panelists

• Matteo Craglia (International Transport Forum, OECD, France)
• Alexandros Dimitropoulos (Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency, The Netherlands)
• Elisabeth Isaksen (Ragnar Frisch Centre for Economic Research, Norway)
• Mathias Reynaert (Toulouse School of Economics, France)
• Katalin Springel (HEC Montréal, Canada)
• Kurt van Dender (Centre for Tax Policy and Administration, OECD, France)

Policy Session 2
Climate policy for agriculture and land useland use change and forestry (LULUCF) in the European Union
Time: Tuesday, 02/July/2024 -11:00am - 12:45pm

Organizers: Artur Runge-Metzger (Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change) and Frank Convery (University College Dublin)

For the first time there are exciting developments underway in climate policy for agriculture and LULUCF for Europe. As this evolves, it will create very important opportunities for economists to contribute and help maximize the efficiency and effectiveness of what is emerging. This will be enhanced if it includes insights from other jurisdictions. This session aims to help our profession know in real time what is emerging in the EU and elsewhere in the hope that it will animate their engagement.
The EU policies enacted or imminent include: requirements by food and other firms to report their emissions, including Scope 3 (farm level) under the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (EU); the certification of carbon removals under the Union Certification Framework for Carbon Removals; helping ensure that consumers have credible information on the climate performance of firms, and creating legal sanctions for claims that prove to be spurious under the Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition Directive. The most significant policy under consideration is the creation of an emissions trading scheme for agriculture, following the publication of a report thereon commissioned by DG Clima (Trinomics, 2023) - Looking at how to mitigate emissions from agriculture - European Commission (europa.eu). At member state level, interesting developments include the French government’s “Label Bas Carbone”, Danish progress on carbon performance labelling of food and its biomethane programme, and progress by some dairy cooperatives in Ireland in paying farmers for performance.
Significant developments elsewhere include the implementation of performance-based policies – subsidies in California since 2015 and a proposed levy on emissions in New Zealand.
The Policy session will aim to provide: a basis for discussion of the policies already or about to be enacted (because this is evolving rapidly, the session will capture in real time what the reality is in July 1-4, 2024), with a main focus on emissions trading. It will also include some of the most interesting developments outside the EU.

Panelists

• Frank J CONVERY, Adjunct Professor, University College, Dublin: Chair: Climate Policy for Ruminant Agriculture in Ireland blog -- UCD Earth Institute
• Christian HOLZLEITNER, Head of Unit: European Commission: Land Economy & Carbon Removals (CLIMA.C.3)
• Peter WEHRHEIM, Head of Unit: European Commission: Bioeconomy & Food Systems (RTD.B.2)
• Catherine GESLAIN-LANEELLE, Director: European Commission: Strategy & Policy analysis (AGRI.A)
• Gijs SCHILTHUIS, Head of Unit: European Commission: Policy perspectives (AGRI.A.1)
• Artur RUNGE-METZGER, Fellow, Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change, Berlin
• Britt GROOSMAN, Vice President, Climate Smart Agriculture, Environmental Defense Fund

Policy Session 3
The systematic collection of evidence on climate policies to inform policy design and implementation
Time: Tuesday, 02/July/2024 - 2:00pm - 3:45pm

Organizers: Tobias Kruse (OECD Economics Department) and Jan Minx (Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change - MCC)

In the face of the climate challenge, countries have implemented (or committed to implement) a large array of policies. These include pricing and non-pricing mitigation policies in addition to complementary policies such as job-transition programmes and industrial policies. Understanding what climate policies and policy packages work and in what circumstances is key to improving policy design and implementation, and accelerating countries’ emission reductions. It enables countries, regions and organisations to understand the effectiveness of their policies, to ensure that they are cost-effective, to learn from the experience of other countries, and to gain a better overall understanding of the scale of policy effort required to achieve climate goals. To date, the understanding and systematic collection of empirical evidence remains limited, in particular for policies other than carbon pricing. Only few countries carry out comprehensive evaluations of main climate-related policies, often using different methodological approaches. Systematically synthesizing the fast-growing scientific literature that evaluates existing climate policies can provide a basis for accelerated learning on climate policies and help bridge gaps between research and policy making needs.

Moderator: Toon Vandyck, OECD

Panelists

• Tobias Kruse, OECD
• Jan Minx, MCC
• Elisa Lanzi, OECD
• Thomas Stoerk, National Bank of Belgium
• Jurgen Salay, Senior Expert at the EC DG CLIMA
• Claire Gavard, Economist at EC DG CLIMA

Policy Session 4
Carbon pricing at a crossroads
Time: Tuesday, 02/July/2024 - 2:00pm - 3:45pm

Organizers: Assia Elgouacem (Acting Head of the Tax and Environment Unit, OECD) and Kurt Van Dender (Acting Head of Tax Policy and Statistics Division, OECD)

Countries’ climate change mitigation policies differ in ambition and in the approaches taken. Different national contexts – be it economical, social, historical or political – result in asymmetric policy responses, which are not necessarily coordinated. This can result in carbon leakage and result in competitiveness concerns. In an interconnected world, addressing the global issue of climate change while trying to limit adverse spillovers of uncoordinated and asymmetric policies hence goes beyond climate policy to also account for food and energy security, growth and trade.
In this context, international responses to climate change are evolving. Border carbon adjustments (BCAs) have come to the forefront as a policy tool to address carbon leakage, with the European Union phasing in its carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) as it phases out free allocation of tradeable emission permits. Several countries are considering the introduction of carbon prices and border adjustment measures, partly in response to this. For instance, the United Kingdom is looking to introduce a carbon tariff that would mirror the EU CBAM, and the United States and Canada are also considering some form of a BCA. Emissions trading systems are being considered or introduced worldwide (e.g., in Argentina, Turkey, Japan, Indonesia, Brazil, Egypt...). Increasing the price of carbon emissions is one approach to mitigation, supporting low carbon options is another. The United States Inflation Reduction Act is one example. Finally, international coordination initiatives such as climate clubs (e.g., the G7 climate club) have also been launched.
This session centres around the following questions:
What are the key design elements and political economy considerations for the success of carbon pricing mechanisms in an international context, and how can these features effectively address challenges such as free- riding?
How far would you argue that such approaches can take us towards harmonised carbon prices?

Panelists

• Jos Delbeke, European University Institute
• Assia Elgouacem, Acting Head of the Tax and Environment Unit, OECD
• Alice Pirlot, Geneva Graduate Institute
• Kurt Van Dender, Acting Head of Tax Policy and Statistics Division, OECD
• Simon Black, Economist, International Monetary Fund
• Emilia Skork, Manager Fiscal Policy and Sustainable Growth, World Bank
• Eddy Bekkers, World Trade Organization

Policy Session 5

Physical climate change impacts: implications for the work and price stability mandates of central banks
Time: Tuesday, 02/July/2024 - 4:15pm - 6:00pm

Organizers: Friderike Kuik (European Central Bank), Max Kotz (Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research) and Thomas Stoerk (National Bank of Belgium & London School of Economics)

Climate economics has progressed substantially over the last decades. Developments in methods and available data have led considerable improvements in economic estimates of the physical impacts of climate change. These estimates have been widely used to inform the social cost of carbon, in particular to support the demand within US climate policy for figures which reflect the latest science. However, the implications of physical climate change impacts for the work and mandates of central banks are at an earlier stage of assessment.
Central banks have started work on incorporating climate change considerations into their mission of keeping prices stable and banks safe. In the context of central banks’ price stability mandate, key questions relate to how climate economics can help quantify the macroeconomic impacts of physical climate change, including its impacts on inflation.
A limited number of research contributions has started to answer these questions in a quantitative way. Simultaneously, within central banks, workstreams have started to bridge the gap between climate economic research and macroeconomic climate analysis. This session aims to present results from both endeavours, with the following outline:
--Introduce the themes central banks are grappling with regarding physical climate change impacts and their primary mandate [Thomas Stoerk, National Bank of Belgium & LSE]
--Showcase two recent research contributions on the effects of climate change on inflation:
1. Kotz, Kuik, Lis, Nickel, 2024: Global warming and heat extremes to enhance inflationary pressures (accepted for publication in Nature Communications Earth & Environment; also see ECB working paper) [Max Kotz, Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research]
2. Gautier, Grosse Steffen, Marx, Vertier, 2023: Decomposing the Inflation Response to Weather-Related Disasters (Banque de France Working Paper) [Christoph Grosse Steffen, Banque de France]
--Introduce how central banks process estimates from research literature, by presenting the recent report of the NGFS workstream on Monetary Policy [Miles Parker, European Central Bank]
--Highlight how central banks can take the estimates from research literature to use in policy-making [Friderike Kuik, European Central Bank]
The session will thus provide examples and discussion for environmental economists regarding:
--What kind of evidence would help central banks quantify which physical climate impacts are relevant to their primary mandate?
--How can the climate economics community adapt and sharpen their existing toolkit to ensure that knowledge which already exists within climate economics is adequately translated to useful output for central banks and financial regulators?

Chair: Simon Dietz (London School of Economics)

Speakers

• Thomas Stoerk, National Bank of Belgium & London School of Economics
• Max Kotz, Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research
• Christoph Grosse Steffen, Banque de France
• Miles Parker, European Central Bank
• Friderike Kuik, European Central Bank

Policy Session 6
WCEREA Policy Session Climate Change, Land-Use, and Biodiversity: Economic Perspectives
Time: Tuesday, 02/July/2024 - 4:15pm - 6:00pm

Organizers: Simone Borghesi (European University Institute, University of Siena) and Phoebe Koundouri (Athens University of Economics and Business, Denmark Technical University)

As we find ourselves at a critical juncture, ever closer to global tipping points, this panel aims to identify key strategies for long-term biodiversity and land use policies that may be in line with current and future climate policies.

Gone are the days in which climate change and carbon policies sat as distinct from those on biodiversity, once the remit only of conservationists, zoologists, and botanists.
Policymakers and researchers alike, building on the recent COP and Biodiversity conferences, have turned their attention towards policy mechanisms that seek to support both the climate and nature. From healthcare to urban planning, offsets to indigenous rights, and climate change to nutrition, land use and biodiversity are increasingly recognised for their centrality to the most pressing environmental and social issues.
However, despite this recognition, activities and policies such as critical raw material extraction, carbon offsets, agricultural expansion, and urbanisation are putting ecosystems and communities at risk.
Integrated policy approaches, therefore, come with the responsibility to tackle head-on the complexity that underpins truly equitable and sustainable policies, in the face of tipping points in land use, global temperatures, and species extinction.
The proposed session will examine how to combine the urgent need to fight climate change with the longevity and equity of biodiversity and land use policy.
The session is organised by the World Council of Environmental and Resource Economists Association, and in collaboration with the other world associations of environmental and resource economists (AAERE, AERE, AFAERE, LAERE, AARES). Similar sessions on the same topic will take place in the Annual Conferences of all the associations listed above. This will provide a global view on what makes climate, biodiversity and land use policy most effective, for as many as possible, and for as long as possible.

Chair: Simone Borghesi (EAERE President, European University Institute and University of Siena)

Speakers

• Ben Groom, University of Exeter and Dragon Capital Chair in Biodiversity Economics
• Gianni Guastella, Università Cattolica, Brescia
• Phoebe Koundouri, Athens University of Economics and Business, Denmark Technical University
• Ruslana Rachel Palatnik, The Max Stern Yezreel Valley College and NRERC- Natural Resource and Environmental Research Center, University of Haifa

Policy Session 7
Addressing the triple planetary crisis of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution
Time: Wednesday, 03/July/2024 - 11:00am - 12:45pm

Organizers: Damien Dussaux (OECD) and Toon Vandyck (OECD)

This session will revolve around the triple planetary crisis of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution and will cover a number of items. The session will start by introducing the main challenges of the triple planetary crisis and of policy responses to address it. Research gaps in the area of environmental and natural resources economics to inform policy responses will then be highlighted. Following these introductory items, the main biophysical interlinkages between climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution, their economic drivers and consequences will be emphasized. Then, interactions across policies introduced to respond to each crisis separately will be discussed, notably synergies and trade-off across policies. Finally, the session will conclude by describing economic modelling approaches that are used to quantify the interactions between environmental and economic systems and measure the impact of various policy scenarios.

Speakers

• Damien Dussaux, OECD
• Toon Vandyck, OECD
• Shardul Agrawala, OECD
• Stephen White, European Commission
• Martin Quaas, University of Leipzig and Head of the Biodiversity Economics Group at the German Center for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig
• Mireille Chiroleu-Assouline, Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne
• Elke Stehfest, PBL Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency

Policy Session 8
Integrating carbon removals into climate policy governance
Time: Wednesday, 03/July/2024 - 11:00am - 12:45pm

Organized by Resources for the Future (RFF) and European Institute on Economics and the Environment (EIEE)

As achieving Paris Agreement limits on temperature increase continues to be challenging, there is growing interest in both the US and EU (and elsewhere) in deployment of technologies for “engineered” as well as nature-based carbon dioxide removal (CDR) from the atmosphere. The need for substantial CDR in the latter half of the 21st century is documented in the IPCC Sixth Assessment Report and the Special Report on achieving a 1.5°C temperature increase. Yet, an international panel of experts coordinated by Oxford University concluded in a late 2022 report that no countries have adequately developed policy frameworks for a large scaling-up of CDR.
Interest in CDR in the EU derives from a proposal for a net 90% reduction in GHG emissions by 2040, and from the emissions cap in the EU ETS falling to zero by 2039 (with potential liquidity issues in the ETS before then). The EU has already proposed a legal mechanism for the certification of removals. In the US, in contrast, the emphasis has been on tax breaks (e.g., the Inflation Reduction Act) and government financing of RD&D to propel further maturation of engineered CDR technologies and some initial commercial-scale investments. Debates in both the EU and US have also addressed the need for certain “enabling regulations” to accomplish transmission and long-term storage of CO2; the integration of CDR into existing regulations for GHG reduction, including design of cost-effective policy mechanisms; and issues of both distributional equity and environmental justice in the energy transition. This last issue, which is often overlooked, includes the implications of CDR for local air quality if traditional industrial patterns continue, as well as implications for continuing use of, versus phasing out of, fossil fuels.
Funded by the European Union under Grant Agreement no. 101081521- UPTAKE - Bridging current knowledge gaps to enable the UPTAKE of carbon dioxide. Views and opinions expressed are, however, those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or CINEA. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.

Speakers

• Massimo Tavoni, European Institute for Environmental Economics (EIEE)
• Åsa Löfgren, University of Gothenburg
• Eve Tamme, Climate Principles
• Michael A. Toman, Resources for the Future (RFF)

Policy Session 9
European Investment Bank session on Climate Finance
Time: Wednesday, 03/July/2024 - 11:00am - 12:45pm

Organizers: Edward Calthrop (European Investment Bank), Johan Eyckmans (KU Leuven) and Jos Delbeke (Florence School of Regulation, European University Institute)

The transition to a carbon-neutral society is a complex task that requires a coordinated effort by governments, businesses, NGOs and citizens. It requires rebuilding a lot of society’s infrastructure to foster energy efficiency, to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and to adapt to climate change consequences. As this rebuild will take time and is costly, finance will play a crucial role in this transition. In this policy session, we will explore how private and public financial institutions can contribute to the transition to a carbon-neutral economy. We will look at the challenges and opportunities for public and private banks and for private capital and equity markets. A central question will be what role governments and regulators should play to direct enough funds towards the fundamental rebuild of society’s infrastructure.

Speakers

• Christian Gollier, Toulouse School of Economics
• Edward Calthrop, European Investment Bank
• Jos Delbeke, Florence School of Regulation, European University Institute
• Rick Van der Ploeg, University of Oxford
• Fotios Kalantzis, European Investment Bank

Policy Session 10
Just transition: challenges of occupational and sectorial reallocation
Time: Wednesday, 03/July/2024 - 2:00pm - 3:45pm

Organizers: Xavier Labandeira (University of Vigo, ECOBAS and EAERE Policy Outreach Committee), Alessia Casamassima (Florence School of Regulation, European University Institute) and Simone Borghesi (Florence School of Regulation, European University Institute, University of Siena)

With the European Green New Deal, the ecological transition became an ineluctable priority. It is crucial due to climate change, pollution, and resource depletion, although concerns arise about how to ensure no one is left behind. In particular, carbon-intensive regions face the need for restructuring, leading to risks of significant job losses and reduced economic activity.
To address this challenge, The European Union introduced the Just Transition Mechanism (JTM) in January 2020, with the Just Transition Fund (JTF) as its funding component. The JTM is a set of strategies that aim to mitigate the impact of the just transition on regions, industries and workers. The cornerstone of this mechanism is the Territorial Just Transition Plans (TJTPs), presented by the countries or regions that will face the challenges of just transition. All Members States are required to present these plans in order to have access to the JTF, identifying the main strategies that they aspire to develop for the transition process until 2030, coherent with the objectives of the National Energy and Climate Plans.
The JTF serves as a financial instrument to assist energy-intensive and mining regions most impacted by the adverse effects of the energy transition. Its goal is also to alleviate the unequal distribution of costs, ensuring strategic support for those facing the most significant challenges in the transition. The JTF can play a crucial role in balancing the economic impacts of the transition, preventing job destruction in affected regions and ensuring reskilling for new sectors.
The need to create this mechanism stems from the fact that the transition has a direct impact on society and individuals' lives. Historical instances of significant restructuring have demonstrated that entire regions may reverse into poverty without adequate support. If not handled properly, these consequences may result in considerable regional inequality, leading to an unfair situation for the areas whose economy relies on heavy industries. Moreover, there is still a lack of understanding about the actual functioning and impacts of and mechanisms for occupational and sectorial reallocation, and the definition of indicators to monitor these initiatives.
The criticalities of the JTF prompt us to questions that we intend to address in the session:
1. How do the JTM and JTF ensure that the transition is inclusive and socially just for workers and communities affected by the shift away from fossil fuels?
2. How does the Just Transition Mechanism address the social and economic challenges faced by regions heavily dependent on fossil fuel industries or other environmentally harmful activities? What are the strengths and weaknesses of the JTM?
3. How will green reskilling work and which sectors will be involved first?
4. Which indicators may be important to monitor the development of JTM?
5. How do TTJPs interact with existing labour market policies and initiatives at the regional or national levels?
The session organized by the EAERE POC, in collaboration with the European University Institute under the ongoing CAPABLE project, intends to discuss the challenges posed by the possible reforms described above. In line with the aim of the EAERE POC (i.e. providing advice and support to EU policymakers and institutions in designing policy interventions), particular attention will be devoted to the most suitable policies that should be implemented to make these reforms feasible and effective.
The event intends to continue the series of policy dialogues carried out by the Policy Outreach Committee since 2019 in collaboration with the European University Institute at the State of the Union in Florence and at the past EAERE Annual Conferences.

Speakers

• Xavier Labandeira, University of Vigo, ECOBAS and EAERE Policy Outreach Committee
• Simone Borghesi, EAERE President, European University Institute and University of Siena
• Iva Zverinova, Charles University
• Ilaria Dibattista, Florence School of Regulation, European University Institute and University of Siena
• Aldo Ravazzi, Italian Ministry of Environment & Energy Security and EAERE Policy Outreach Committee
• Tadhg O'Briain, DG Energy, European Commission

Policy Session 11
Is there a future for hybrid EAERE conferences?
Time: Wednesday, 03/July/2024 - 2:00pm - 3:45pm

Organized by the EAERE Committee for the Sustainability of EAERE Conferences

EAERE conferences are very popular with slightly more than 700 participants in Rimini 2022 and Cyprus 2023. Conference organizers are increasingly struggling to accommodate such a large group of participants on-site. The capacity constraint raises questions about inclusiveness and openness to all environmental and resource economists. Moreover, awareness of the significant environmental footprint of our conference is still growing as we obtain more information regarding this issue. To address these challenges, the idea of transitioning to a truly hybrid event format has gained traction within the EAERE community. A hybrid conference combines physical and virtual attendance options, offering numerous potential benefits such as expanding the conference's reach, adapting to the evolving needs of the audience, reducing travel costs, and enhancing scheduling flexibility. Yet, the financial and practical implementation of organizing hybrid conferences brings its own set of complexities and considerations.
The aim of this session is therefore to bring together members of our association and the extended scientific community to draw insights from our speakers’ experiences and to discuss the desirability of further embracing our efforts to make the EAERE conference a truly hybrid event.

Moderator: Simon Jean, EAERE committee for the sustainability of EAERE conferences

Speakers

• Alessio D’Amato, Economia Tor Vergata
• Claudia Kemfert, DIW Berlin
• Annalisa Ponchia, AIM Group
• Simona Robagliati, AIM Group
• Marlène De Bank, The Shift Project

Policy Session 12
Using standardised economic valuation of environmental stressors to support environmental policies, recent developments, opportunities, and risks
Time: Wednesday, 03/July/2024 - 4:15pm - 6:00pm

Organizers: Stefan Åström (Anthesis AB), Gildas Apperé (Université d’Angers), Ståle Navrud (Norwegian University of Life Sciences), Mike Holland (EMRC), Simone Schucht (INERIS) and Daniel Herrera (Université Paris Dauphine)

In the EU and in several EU Member States, there are requirements for making socioeconomic impact assessments before public policy and investment proposals. In the EU these requirements are found in EU Regulation No. 1293/2013 and 1303/2013. However, it is still often the case that decisions are made without being informed by socioeconomic and health impact assessments.
The development of methods to economically value the impacts of environmental stressors has enabled increased consideration of well-being-related issues in environmental and other policies. The development has however branched out over different scientific disciplines, and there is now substantial variance in the economic metrics produced for later economic valuation of environmental stressors. Health metrics such as disability- adjusted life years (DALY), quality-adjusted life years (QALY), statistical life, life-years lost, specific health endpoints outcomes and subjective wellbeing are all metrics available to assess physical/psychological effects of environmental stressors. Health economists and public health policy makers tend to use economic valuation of QALYs and/or DALYs, while environmental and risk economists tend to use for environmental health policies the value of statistical life (VSL), value of life years lost (VOLY), or value of specific morbidity outcomes (infertility, diabetes, myocardial infarction, etc.). Some are highlighting the need to value the effects of policies on subjective wellbeing. The current situation for policy makers is rather confusing and the relationship between the different metrics is opaque, which likely leads to inconsistencies in public policies. Further, for some environmental stressors, there are already today several standardised models and tools available. These tools however often provide a low degree of freedom for the user to analyse different options, and also need to be more user friendly. Quite often, these standardised models are not used in policy impact assessments.
With the low uptake of models in impact assessments, the limited use of economic valuations of environmental stressors, as well as the disciplinary variations in which economic metrics are used for such valuations, there is a strong need for streamlining guidelines and methodologies across disciplines and purposes. The current situation is such that the medical profession or health institutions might decide to grant access to expensive medical treatments based on a high value of quality-adjusted-life-years, whilst mobility policies reducing pollution and noise might be rejected based on the value of affected numbers of life-years. These discrepancies put various countries and the European Union at risk of sub-optimally allocating public resources.
The EU-funded project VALESOR aims to make major contributions to the scientific and policy efforts to accommodate economic values of environmental stressors more homogenously in policy making, planning, and investments. The environmental stressors of concern for VALESOR are chemical stressors, such as chemicals and pollutants transmitted via environmental media (inhalation, ingestion, and dermal contact vectors), and exposure through manufactured materials.
The proposed policy session will address and discuss data and methodological challenges related to the development and policy use of standardised tools for economic assessments of damages from environmental stressors. The presentations and discussions will use the results and objectives of the EU research programme VALESOR as basis. VALESOR started in January 2023 and is a three-year project. We will also invite researchers from the other research projects within the Meteor cluster for their perspectives.
We foresee that the policy session will start with a five-minute presentation of the VALESOR project, followed by four main topics for presentation and discussion and a session wrap-up. The session will be chaired by Stefan Åström. We foresee the use of panel discussions constituted of EAERE conference participants in our academic and policy network.

Speakers

• Stefan Åström, Anthesis AB
• Ståle Navrud, Norwegian University of LifeSciences
• Mike Holland, EMRC
• Simone Schucht, INERIS

Policy Session 13
Building an Inclusive Future: Strategies for Equity and Social Change for Sustainable Society
Time: Wednesday, 03/July/2024 - 4:15pm - 6:00pm

Organized by the DEI Executive Committee

The objective of the proposed policy session is to foster an environment that values and promotes diversity, equity, and inclusion within its policy framework. The session may have critical discussions on equity and fairness, inclusion, policy development and implementation, measuring the impact, intersectionality, cultural competence, challenges, and a way forward related to the DEI policies/ laws prevalent in countries, organizations, industries, and or fields. A comprehensive DEI approach involves recognizing and addressing the intersectionality between social equity, environmental justice, and sustainability. Such a session aims to promote dialogue, share insights into global perspectives and experiences, and encourage participants to take meaningful actions to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion within their respective spheres of influence.

Speakers

• Massimiliano Mazzanti, Unife – SEEDS and CERCIS Research Center
• Vijaya Gupta, Indian Institute of Management (IIM) and University College London
• Ebun Akinsete, ATHENA RC
• Paola Valbonesi, University of Padova
• Conrad Landis, Athens University of Economics and Business
• Sibananda Senapati, Chandragupt Institute of Management
• Phoebe Koundouri, Athens University of Economics and Business, Denmark Technical University

Policy Session 14
The forthcoming 7th IPCC Assessment Report. What role is there for environmental economists?
Time: Thursday, 04/July/2024 - 11:00am - 12:45pm

Organizers: Simone Borghesi (European University Institute, University of Siena), Phoebe Koundouri (Athens University of Economics and Business, Denmark Technical University), Xavier Labandeira (University of Vigo, ECOBAS and EAERE Policy Outreach Committee),  and Philippe Tulkens (European Commission)

The session aims at discussing modalities and strategies to stimulate more economic research to be embedded in the IPCC 7th Assessment Cycle and more in general in IPCC processes, including covering research innovation gaps.

Chair: Simone Borghesi (EAERE President, European University Institute and University of Siena)

Speakers:

• Jos Delbeke, EAERE Policy Outreach Committee and European University Institute
• Phoebe Koundouri,  Athens University of Economics and Business and Denmark Technical University
• Xavier Labandeira, EAERE Policy Outreach Committee and University of Vigo
• Jan Minx, MCC Berlin 
• Massimo Tavoni, Politecnico di Milano and CMCC
• Philippe Tulkens, EU Commission - DG  Research and Innovation

Policy Session 15
The EU’s green transition: Understanding and managing the skills and employment effects in transforming sectors
Time: Thursday, 04/July/2024 - 2:00pm - 3:45pm

Organized by Camille Van Der Vorst (European Commission, JRC)

The EU's green transition has already triggered significant changes in the European economy that also affect labour markets and social outcomes. How does the shift towards more renewable energy, the electrification of road transport, the change of consumption bundles and habits, and the decarbonisation of industry (including through circular economy strategies), impact employment in the linked sectors? What kind of changes are there for the number and types of workers per sector, or in the job-content, tasks, and required skills? While previous work has focussed mostly on shrinking sectors, in recent years, labour and skill shortages in some key sectors of the transition have emerged.
Where are these shortages located and how can they be addressed? This policy session will help to answer those questions. The session will focus on the sectors under transformation (e.g. construction, electricity supply, etc.) and the associated changes and gaps in employment and skills. In the next step, the session will then discuss how the EU should use policies to best manage the transition risks for labour markets while unlocking the potential of green jobs and skills. Within the context of these policy developments, dialogue between policy-makers and researchers can help identify potential challenges and measure the effects of different policies. The session will consist of brief presentations by the panellists, followed by a roundtable discussion where policy-makers and researchers get a chance to engage.
The roundtable discussion will cover three main topics:
First, the discussion will touch upon the characteristics of the labour market in the sectors that will be most affected by the green transition. What kind of possibilities and limitations for labour mobility are there in these sectors (e.g. the geographical location of industries, workers' age, access to training, etc.)?
Secondly, the speakers will delve into the changes that may occur in these transforming sectors as well as in the larger European labour market. The green transition will cause shifts to happen in the demand for different skillsets and this will lead to new opportunities as well as challenges. Moreover, these challenges related to the green transition may also interact with the digital transition, the other transition that is currently transforming the EU economy.
When these transitions lead to labour mobility, the impact of moving will diverge across different types of workers. Hence, we also discuss the distributional consequences of labour mobility.
Thirdly, the discussion will focus on how policies can support the labour market during the green transition. Policy-makers and researchers will get a chance to exchange on which tools and research methods are available to anticipate changes in the demand for employment and skills. This discussion will elucidate the main challenges in applying these methods to analyse the impact of the energy transition on jobs. Moreover, as skills shortages might provide bottlenecks for the green transition, the session will explore how policies could address these potential shortages. Through the illustration of best practice examples, speakers will highlight the importance of comprehensive skills governance, fostering stakeholder collaboration, skills anticipation, and the role of vocational education and training (VET) in addressing current and future skill challenges. Because of the importance of ensuring that the transition towards net zero is also feasible and fair, the session will close by discussing which labour market policies can complement climate action.

Speakers

• Camille Van Der Vorst, European Commission, JRC
• Stelina Chatzichristou, CEDEFOP
• Linda Kunertova, European Commission, DG EMPL
• Giovanni Marin, University of Urbino Carlo Bo
• Toon Vandyck, OECD
• Elena Verdolini, University of Brescia, CMCC EIEE
• Francesco Vona, University of Milan and FEEM