Download Module Catalog Environment, Resources and Energy

ModuleCatalogEnvironment,ResourcesandEnergy
Coursesthatgivecreditforthespecialization“Environment,Resourcesand
Energy”intheMScinEconomics
Content
Prof. Manuel Frondel, Energy Economics and Applied Econometrics
Empirical Environmental, Resource and Energy Economics (5 ECTS)
Market- and Non-Market Valuation of Environmental Goods (5 ECTS)
Prof. Helmut Karl / Prof. Rüdiger Wink, Economic Policy
Environmental and Natural Resource Economics 2 (10 ECTS, lecture and seminar)
Energy Economics and Politics (10 ECTS, lecture and seminar)
Spatial Econometrics (10 ECTS, lecture and seminar)
Prof. Wilhelm Löwenstein, Development Economics
Cost-Benefit Analysis (5 ECTS)
Prof. Johann-Christian Pielow, Economic Law
Legal Aspects of Natural Resources, Environment and Infrastructure Policies (5 ECTS)
Prof. Jörg Schimmelpfennig, Microeconomics
Urban Economics (5 ECTS)
Prof. Manuel Frondel, Energy Economics and Applied Econometrics
Empirical Environmental, Resource and Energy Economics (5 ECTS)
The seminar will deal with major issues in environmental and resource economics. By enrolling in this
seminar, students can broaden their theoretical and empirical knowledge in this field. The seminar
intends to focus on important aspects of environmental and resource economics, in particular energy
economics, such as the modeling of production technologies and substitution relationships between
production factors like energy and capital. The focus of this seminar is on the application and scrutiny
of econometric models that build the counterpart to theoretical economic models.
Market- and Non-Market Valuation of Environmental Goods (5 ECTS)
The valuation of environmental goods and amenities is often complicated by the lack of market prices.
This seminar will deal with distinct empirical methods to estimate the value of environmental goods
and amenities. Methods to be covered include both market and non-market valuation methods, such as
hedonic pricing, contingent valuation and revealed preference methods to elicit willingness-to-pay.
Prof. Helmut Karl / Prof. Rüdiger Wink, Economic Policy
Environmental and Natural Resource Economics 2 (10 ECTS, lecture and seminar)
Environmental and Natural Resource Economics deals with the impact of the economy on the natural
environment. In particular we provide an analysis of the impact of pollution like greenhouse gas
emissions (e.g. climate change) and we evaluate the use of depletable and renewable resources. For
both cases we examine market failure and we discuss policy interventions which try to overcome the
inefficient and non-sustainable use of environmental and natural resources. Concerning environmental
economics, the course deals with risks and uncertainties in environmental policy and the analysis of
regional and locational competition in the field of environmental quality standards. The course
provides an analysis of the Hotelling’s rule regarding depletable resources and renewable resources
and gives an introduction into methods of dynamic maximization and optimal control theory. A
seminar studies in detail key aspects of the lecture. The aim of the seminar is to develop optimal
emission models for various environmental media (e.g., air, water, soil). The seminar corresponds with
the lecture. It deals with the economics of climate change, the optimal use of fishery resources, and the
economics of biodiversity and conservation.
Energy Economics and Politics (10 ECTS, lecture and seminar)
This course provides an advanced study of energy economics in theory and policy. The course starts
with an introduction concerning the scientific and technical basics of energy use. The main part of the
course is focused on the optimal use of energy, the analysis of the energy demand and supply on
power markets. In particular the markets for primary energy as well as electricity markets are in the
focus of the analysis. In this context the course deals with the regulation of the energy sector and
climate change policy. A seminar deals in detail with key aspects of the lecture concerning power
markets, market failure and regulation as well as power plant project economics.
Spatial Econometrics (10 ECTS, lecture and seminar)
The aim of this course is to develop and apply quantitative tools in order to analyze economic and
social phenomena with an explicit reference to spatial processes. Such research questions typically
arise in the context of regional and urban science but may also be relevant in business-related research.
The course starts from the theoretical basics of regression analysis by ordinary least squares and
subsequently augments the quantitative portfolio with further methods including panel data
econometrics as well as spatial econometric tools. Furthermore, different explorative methods for
empirical cluster analysis and descriptive spatial statistics are presented. The course is application-
oriented and is accompanied by a computer tutorial. Here an introduction to statistical software (Stata,
R) is given and regional datasets are analyzed. Empirical problem sets at hand include regional growth
and convergence, spatial interaction in terms of trade and migration as well as spatial hedonic house
price modeling and clustering of economic activity.
Prof. Wilhelm Löwenstein, Development Economics
Cost-Benefit Analysis (5 ECTS)
A change in the provision with public goods affects the well-being of people. This holds for changes
in environmental goods as well as for changes in public services as e.g. in the provision with health or
educational services or with infrastructure. This lecture is answering two basic questions: 1. Under
which circumstances can the resulting variations in well-being be measured in monetary terms?
Answers to this question are derived from microeconomic theory. 2. Which theory-based empirical
approaches are available to capture the damages that people feel being affected by an oil spill, the
advantages of nature conservation, the effects of the construction of a dam, or the impact of being
protected from natural hazard? These and related questions will be discussed within the lecture based
on real-world case studies. Prerequisites: Good knowledge of microeconomics and an interest in
combining microeconomic theory with empirical research.
Prof. Johann-Christian Pielow, Economic Law
Legal Aspects of Natural Resources, Environment and Infrastructure Policies (5 ECTS)
The seminar aims at illuminating the linkages between political or economic up-to-date-questions
concerning the exploitation and protection of natural resources, climate protection as well as so called
public (in particular: energy) infrastructures and the framework of the European and national law.
Recent decisions of the higher courts like the European Court of Justice or the (German) Federal
Constitutional Court (Bundesverfassungsgericht) will serve as points of reference in order to broaden
students’ knowledge on and allow them to analyze the interaction of law & economics. Prerequisites:
Basic knowledge of European and constitutional law & policy.
Prof. Jörg Schimmelpfennig, Microeconomics
Urban Economics (5 ECTS)
Topics discussed include real estate from both a macro- as well as microeconomic perspective, urban
land markets and Ricardian rents, urban housing markets, firm site selection, retail location, regional
macroeconomics, impact of local government, the history of land-use patterns and lock-in equilibria
and urban transportation planning and externalities.