WISO100277 Environmental economics

Type
course with continuous assessment
Semester hours
3
Lecturer (assistant)
Ofner, Raphael , Braito, Michael , Schmid, Erwin
Organisation
Sustainable Economic Development
Offered in
Wintersemester 2026/27
Languages of instruction
Deutsch
Content

The course introduces key concepts of environmental economics and examines the interactions between the economy and the environment in the context of sustainable development. It addresses externalities and other forms of market failure as causes of environmental problems, the game-theoretic analysis of individual and collective behaviour, the determination of socially efficient pollution regulation, and the functioning and comparability of environmental policy instruments such as environmental taxes, quantity restrictions and standards, as well as tradable pollution permits.

The aim is for students to develop an economic understanding of environmental problems and to participate competently in societal debates on sustainability.
Previous knowledge expected

Fundamentals in micro economics
Objective (expected results of study and acquired competences)

Upon successful completion of this module, students will be able to:
- systematically identify and describe environmental problems using economic concepts (e.g. externalities, market failure);
- explain key concepts, terms and analytical tools of environmental economics;
- describe the relationships between economic activities and environmental pollution as well as factors influencing individual and collective environmental behaviour, including free-riding;
- analyse behavioural decisions using game-theoretic approaches;
- calculate socially efficient pollution equilibria;
- explain the functioning of key environmental policy instruments (e.g. taxes, tradable permits and standards) and demonstrate their effects using basic calculations.
You can find more details like the schedule or information about exams on the course-page in BOKUonline.