An Economist's Guide to Environmentalism
A Toolkit for Understanding and Solving Ecological Problems
An Economist's Guide to Environmentalism
A Toolkit for Understanding and Solving Ecological Problems
Payment for this pre-order will be taken when the item becomes available
- Delivery and returns info
-
Free UK delivery on orders £30 or over
Description
Explains how economics can be used to solve an array of environmental issues from endangered species to global warming.
Many species are threatened with extinction and landscapes are being destroyed. Water is becoming increasingly scarce, harming ecological systems and human societies. Perhaps the most pressing environmental problem is human-caused climate change. What causes these problems, and what can we do about them?
In An Economist's Guide to Environmentalism, Jordan K. Lofthouse demonstrates how the field of economics can explain the rise of environmental problems and offers a framework to evaluate the vast array of potential solutions. Lofthouse assembles a “toolkit” of easy-to-understand economic concepts and then applies those tools to a variety of environmental problems. These tools include incentives, constraints, trade-offs, unintended consequences, institutional analysis, and more. The examples in this book highlight how environmental issues often stem from poorly defined or poorly enforced property rights.
Lofthouse argues for novel solutions such as assigning property rights to wildlife on the verge of extinction, private approaches to land conservation, and the implementation of water markets. Addressing global-scale problems like climate change requires the innovative and entrepreneurial discoveries of many different people in governments, markets, and civil society. Readers of this book will discover new opportunities and a refreshing, practical approach to protecting the planet through the insights of economics.
Table of Contents
Introduction: Economics and Environmentalism
Part I: An Economic Toolbox
Chapter 1: Rational Choice Theory
Chapter 2: Tradeoffs and Opportunity Costs
Chapter 3: Marginalism
Chapter 4: Institutions
Chapter 5: Property Rights
Chapter 6: The Entrepreneurial Market Process
Chapter 7: Supply and Demand
Chapter 8: Unintended Consequences
Chapter 9: Public Choice Theory
Chapter 10: Polycentric Governance
Part II: Applying Economic Tools to Environmental Problems
Chapter 11: Positive-Sum Versus Negative-Sum Environmentalism
Chapter 12: Species Conservation
Chapter 13: Land Conservations
Chapter 14: Water Scarcity and Water Markets
Chapter 15: Climate Change
Conclusion
Notes
Select Bibliography
Index
About the Author
Product details

Published | 16 Oct 2025 |
---|---|
Format | Hardback |
Edition | 1st |
Extent | 248 |
ISBN | 9781538189856 |
Imprint | Bloomsbury Academic |
Illustrations | 8 bw illus |
Dimensions | 229 x 152 mm |
Publisher | Bloomsbury Publishing |