Economic Development, Climate Change, and the Environment

This book comes at a time when the world is confronted by one of the greatest challenges—the problem of environmental degradation. A collection of articles by renowned economists, scientists, and environmentalists, this book shows that while the state of the environment is intricately linked to economic development, the matter is in fact far more complex. One of the best-known connections is the Environmental Kuznet’s Curve hypothesis, the limitations of which, both empirically and theoretically, are dealt with in the early part of the book. This is followed by a discussion on the shortcomings of the Kyoto Protocol and the particular problem of green house gasses. The other issues covered are: the negative contribution of environmental pollution; trade liberalization and its impact on the environment of developing countries, both in the short- and long term; alternative energy sources.