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Climate Change and the Representative Agent

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  • Richard Howarth

Abstract

The artifice of an infinitely-lived representative agent iscommonly invoked to balance the present costs and future benefitsof climate stabilization policies. Since actual economies arepopulated by overlapping generations of finite-lived persons,this approach begs important questions of welfare aggregation.This paper compares the results of representative agent andoverlapping generations models that are numerically calibratedbased on standard assumptions regarding climate--economyinteractions. Under two social choice rules -- Pareto efficiencyand classical utilitarianism -- the models generate closelysimilar simulation results. In the absence of policies toredistribute income between present and future generations,efficient rates of carbon dioxide emissions abatement rise from15 to 20% between the years 2000 and 2105. Under classicalutilitarianism, in contrast, optimal control rates rise from 48 to 79% this same period. Copyright Kluwer Academic Publishers 2000

Suggested Citation

  • Richard Howarth, 2000. "Climate Change and the Representative Agent," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 15(2), pages 135-148, February.
  • Handle: RePEc:kap:enreec:v:15:y:2000:i:2:p:135-148
    DOI: 10.1023/A:1008361812597
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    Cited by:

    1. Maik T. Schneider & Christian Traeger & Ralph Winkler, 2010. "Trading Off Generations: Infinitely-Lived Agent Versus OLG," Diskussionsschriften dp1007, Universitaet Bern, Departement Volkswirtschaft.
    2. repec:ebl:ecbull:v:17:y:2004:i:7:p:1-11 is not listed on IDEAS
    3. Escapa García, Marta & Ansuategui Cobo, José Alberto & Pérez, Azucena, 2003. "International and Intergenerational Dimensions of Climate Change: North-South Cooperation in an Overlapping Generations Framework," IKERLANAK 2003-06, Universidad del País Vasco - Departamento de Fundamentos del Análisis Económico I.
    4. Satoshi Nakano & Kazuhiko Nishimura, 2016. "Optimal Population in a Finite Horizon," Papers 1608.01535, arXiv.org, revised Jan 2018.
    5. Alberto Ansuategi & Marta Escapa, 2004. "Is international cooperation on climate change good for the environment?," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 17(7), pages 1-11.
    6. Ansuategui Cobo, José Alberto & Escapa García, Marta & Pérez, Azucena, 2003. "International and Intergenerational Dimensions of Climate Change: North-South Cooperation in an Overlapping Generations Framework," IKERLANAK 6370, Universidad del País Vasco - Departamento de Fundamentos del Análisis Económico I.
    7. Schneider, Maik T. & Traeger, Christian P. & Winkler, Ralph, 2012. "Trading off generations: Equity, discounting, and climate change," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 56(8), pages 1621-1644.
    8. Kavuncu, Yusuf Okan & Knabb, Shawn D., 2001. "An Intergenerational Cost-Benefit Analysis of Climate Change," University of California at Santa Barbara, Economics Working Paper Series qt72v881dd, Department of Economics, UC Santa Barbara.
    9. Leila Davis & Peter Skott, 2011. "Positional goods, climate change and the social returns to investment," UMASS Amherst Economics Working Papers 2011-24, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Department of Economics.

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