AØKK08372U Seminar: Environmental Economics

Volume 2019/2020
Education

MSc programme in Economics

The seminar is primarily for students at the MSc of Economics

 

Dette seminar er en engelsk udgave af den tidligere seminar "Miljø-, ressource- og klimaøkonomi" (AØKK08103U), hvorved det ikke er tilladt at deltage på "AØKK08372U Seminar: Environmental Economics", hvis man har bestået seminaret "Miljø-, ressource- og klimaøkonomi" (AØKK08103U).

Content

The seminar gives students the opportunity to dig deeper into a topic of their own choice within the Economics of the Environment, Natural Resources and Climate Change. Students will gain experience in presenting an economic analysis in writing and orally and in commenting in a professional way on the presentations by other students.

 

Participants in the seminar pick a topic according to their area of particular interest. Here are some examples of topics (but note that students can pick another topic within Environmental Economics):

  • Sustainable development: Theory and empirical measurement
  • The debate on limits to growth
  • Ecological breakdowns: Theory and historical examples
  • Danish climate policy
  • EU climate policy
  • The European Emissions Trading System
  • Negotiating international climate agreements: Theory and practice
  • The choice of instruments in environmental policy
  • The discount rate controversy in the economics of climate policy
  • Integrated Assessment Models of climate change
  • Green certificates as an environmental policy instrument
  • Prospects and support for renewable energy
  • Energy policy and the future energy system
  • The transition to renewable energy in the transport sector
  • The role of agriculture in climate policy
  • The future of oil
  • Green tax reforms in theory and practice
  • Regulation of the fishery in the EU
  • Biodiversity and conservation of nature
  • The importance of ecosystem services for the economy
  • Valuation of environmental goods
  • The Green Net National Product
  • Global environmental problems and international environmental agreements
  • Bioenergy and the future provision of food and energy
Learning Outcome

Additional for the learning outcome specified in the Curriculum, the learning outcome of the seminar is for the student to be able to

Literature

A broad introduction to the economics of the Environment, Natural Resources and Climate Change may be found in the textbook by Nick Hanley, Jason F. Shogren and Ben White: Environmental Economics in Theory and Practice, Second Edition, Palgrave Macmillan, 2007.

BSc in Economics or similar
The seminar builds on the course Economics of the Environment, Natural Resources and Climate Change. However, even if a student has not followed this course, he/she can participate in the seminar if he/she has acquired some prior knowledge of Environmental Economics, for example by studying the textbook mentioned above.
Activities:
- Kick-off meeting
- Finding literatur and defining the project
- Writing process of the seminar paper
- Presentation of own project and paper
- Giving constructive feedback to another student´s paper
- Actively participating in discussions at the presentations and other meetings.

At the seminar the student is trained independently to
- identify and clarify a problem,
- seek and select relevant literatur,
- write a academic paper,
- present and discuss own paper with the other students at the seminar.

The aim of the presentations is, that the student uses the presentation as an opportunity to practice oral skills and to receive feedback. The presentations is not a part of the exam and will not be assessed.

There is no weekly teaching/lecturing and the student cannot expect guidance from the teacher. If the teacher gives a few introduction lectures or gives the opportunity for guidance, this as well as other expectations are clarified at the kickoff meeting.

Process:
It is strongly recommended that you think about and search for a topic before the semester begins, as there is only a few weeks from the kick-off meeting to the submission of the project description/ agreement paper.

Before the presentations, your nearly finished version of the seminar project paper must be uploaded in Absalon, as the opponents and the other seminar participants have to read and comment on the paper. It is important that you upload a paper that is so finalized as possible due to the fact that the value of feedback and comments at the presentation is strongly associated with the skill level of the seminar paper.

After the presentations, you can with a few corrections improve the seminar paper by including the feedback and comments emerged during the presentations. It is NOT intended that you rewrite or begin the writing of the full project AFTER the presentation has taken place.
Schedule:

Spring 2020:
• Kick-off meeting: Thursday 6th of February 8.15-10.00
• Deadline of submitting commitment paper: not later than March 1, 2020.
• Extra days of introducing teaching: Individual advisory meetings offered on request
• Upload of the pre-paper to Absalon: one week before the worshops.
• Presentations: one to three days during 1st to 22th of May.

All information regarding the seminar is communicated through Absalon including venue. So it is very important that you by yourself logon to Absalon and read the information already when you are registered at the seminar.
  • Category
  • Hours
  • Project work
  • 186
  • Seminar
  • 20
  • Total
  • 206
Oral
Individual
Collective
Peer feedback (Students give each other feedback)
Credit
7,5 ECTS
Type of assessment
Written assignment
- a seminar paper in English that meets the formal requirements for written papers stated in the curriculum and at KUNet for seminars.
_____
Exam registration requirements

Attendance in all  activities at the seminar as stated in the formal requrements in the  Curriculum  and at the KUNet for  Seminars (UK)  and  Seminars (DK) is required to participate in the exam.

_____

Aid
All aids allowed

for the seminar paper.

The supervisor defines the aids that must be used for the presentations.

___

Marking scale
7-point grading scale
Censorship form
External censorship
_____
Exam period

Regular exam:

Spring 2020:

Deadline for submitting the final seminar paper: June 2, 2020 before 10 AM

 

Exam information:

The seminar paper must be uploaded to the Digital Exam. More information will be available from the middle of the semester.

 

More information about examination, rules, aids etc. at Master (UK) and Master (DK ).

_____

Re-exam

Reexam information:

The reexam is a written seminar paper as stated in the Curriculum.

 

Deadline and more information is available at Seminars(UK) and Seminars(DK).

 

More information about reexam etc is available at Master(UK)andMaster(DK).

Criteria for exam assesment

Students are assessed on the extent to which they master the learning outcome for the seminar and can make use of the knowledge, skills and competencies listed in the learning outcomes in the Curriculum of the Master programme.

 

To receive the top grade, the student must with no or only a few minor weaknesses be able to demonstrate an excellent performance displaying a high level of command of all aspects of the relevant material.