{"id":175083,"date":"2021-02-10T20:25:00","date_gmt":"2021-02-10T17:25:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/opinion-its-about-time-that-economists-gave-nature-its-due\/"},"modified":"2021-02-10T20:25:00","modified_gmt":"2021-02-10T17:25:00","slug":"opinion-its-about-time-that-economists-gave-nature-its-due","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/opinion-its-about-time-that-economists-gave-nature-its-due\/","title":{"rendered":"#\n  Opinion: It\u2019s about time that economists gave nature its due"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a3c559810508\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a3c559810508\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/opinion-its-about-time-that-economists-gave-nature-its-due\/#If_we_deplete_or_irreversibly_degrade_natural_resources_the_economic_consequences_affect_all_of_us_and_future_generations\" >If we deplete or irreversibly degrade natural resources, the economic consequences affect all of us and future generations<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-6' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-6'><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-6' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-6'><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-6' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-6'><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-6' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-6'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/opinion-its-about-time-that-economists-gave-nature-its-due\/#Smith_and_Ricardo_knew\" >Smith and Ricardo knew<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-6'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/opinion-its-about-time-that-economists-gave-nature-its-due\/#Natural_capital\" >Natural capital<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-6'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/opinion-its-about-time-that-economists-gave-nature-its-due\/#Measuring_the_value_of_nature\" >Measuring the value of nature<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-6'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/opinion-its-about-time-that-economists-gave-nature-its-due\/#More_on_nature_and_economics\" >More on nature and economics:<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-4'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/opinion-its-about-time-that-economists-gave-nature-its-due\/#Diane_Coyle\" >Diane Coyle<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<p>&#8220;<strong>#<br \/>\n  Opinion: It\u2019s about time that economists gave nature its due<br \/>\n<\/strong>&#8221;<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"article__subhead\" itemprop=\"alternativeHeadline\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"If_we_deplete_or_irreversibly_degrade_natural_resources_the_economic_consequences_affect_all_of_us_and_future_generations\"><\/span>\n  If we deplete or irreversibly degrade natural resources, the economic consequences affect all of us and future generations<br \/>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p><\/p>\n<div class=\"column column--full article__content\">\n<div id=\"js-article__body\" class=\"article__body article-wrap at16-col16 barrons-article-wrap\" itemprop=\"articleBody\" data-sbid=\"WP-MKTW-0000161683\">\n<div class=\"barrons-article-ad-wrapper\">\n<div data-track=\"barrons-article-ad-wrap\" class=\"barrons-article-ad sticky_item\">\n<div class=\"barrons-main-article-ad-target sticky_target body_ad\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>       CAMBRIDGE, U.K. (Project Syndicate)\u2013\u201cThis land is your land,\u201d\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=wxiMrvDbq3s\" class=\"icon none\">sang<\/a>\u00a0the American folk singer Woody Guthrie, listing the redwood forests, wheat fields, and golden valleys of the United States. Guthrie was making a moral claim that everyone should be able to share in the riches of the land. <\/p>\n<p> But his song also highlights the economic truth that the use of natural resources affects everyone. In particular, if we deplete or irreversibly degrade them, the economic consequences affect all of us and future generations.<\/p>\n<div class=\"paywall\">\n<h6><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Smith_and_Ricardo_knew\"><\/span>Smith and Ricardo knew<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h6>\n<p> Human economic activity makes extensive use of the ecosystem services that nature provides. Classical economists such as Adam Smith and David Ricardo, who wrote at a time when agriculture accounted for a much greater share of the economy than it does today, were well aware that human activity occurred within the natural world and relied on nature\u2019s bounty. They always included land in their analyses. But modern economics has largely excluded nature from definitions and measurements of the economy.<\/p>\n<div data-layout=\"inline\n                \" data-layout-mobile=\"\" class=\"\n          media-object\n          type-InsetPullQuote\n            inline\n    scope-web|mobileapps\n  article__inset\n          article__inset--type-InsetPullQuote\n            article__inset--inline\n  \"><\/p>\n<div class=\"wsj-article-pullquote article__inset__pullquote \">\n<p class=\"pullquote-content article__inset__pullquote__quote\">\n        <span class=\"l-qt article__inset__pullquote__mark--left\">\u201c<\/span><br \/>\n        Dasgupta argues that we should regard a country\u2019s natural assets as no less a part of its productive capital than assets such as broadband, bridges, or the skills base.<br \/>\n        <span class=\"r-qt article__inset__pullquote__mark--right\">\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>       Today, of course, the risks posed by climate change are attracting more attention, including from\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/hbr.org\/2019\/05\/the-investor-revolution\" class=\"icon none\">investors<\/a>. But many other aspects of nature\u2019s role in economic activity have been overlooked until now.<\/p>\n<p> For example, the money farmers earn from selling their crops counts toward gross domestic product, but there is no accounting for the services of the bees that pollinate the crops, or for the quality of the soil\u2014that is, until the bees die or the soil loses its fertility, causing yields to fall. Nor do conventional economic statistics incorporate the services provided by clean air, or the negative impact of pollution. But the link between COVID-19 mortality and respiratory disease has made the latter cost clear, even seen through the very narrow lens of reduced human capital and future earnings.<\/p>\n<h6><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Natural_capital\"><\/span>Natural capital<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h6>\n<p>A recent landmark\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gov.uk\/government\/publications\/final-report-the-economics-of-biodiversity-the-dasgupta-review\" class=\"icon none\">independent review<\/a>\u00a0of the economics of biodiversity, commissioned by the U.K. Treasury and carried out by my Cambridge colleague\u00a0Partha Dasgupta, makes a powerful case for restoring nature to economic analysis. Dasgupta argues that we should regard a country\u2019s natural assets as no less a part of its productive capital than assets such as broadband, bridges, or the skills base.<\/p>\n<p>The job of economic policy makers should thus be to manage a country\u2019s\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.project-syndicate.org\/commentary\/build-back-better-national-investment-natural-social-capital-by-diane-coyle-2020-12\" class=\"icon none\">entire portfolio of assets<\/a>\u00a0in order to deliver a positive return for society. This means taking into account the depreciation of individual assets, including important species and ecosystems, and the complementarities between them.<\/p>\n<p>Under such a framework, a government taking a long-term portfolio <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>roach might decide not to build flood defenses from costly, energy-intensive, and unsightly concrete, and instead make a lower-cost investment in tree planting upstream and wetland preservation downstream. Likewise, farmers are well aware of the loss of biodiversity and the\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.epa.gov\/pollinator-protection\/colony-collapse-disorder\" class=\"icon none\">depletion of bee populations<\/a>, but perhaps less aware of the negative consequences such as\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nrcs.usda.gov\/wps\/portal\/nrcs\/detail\/national\/technical\/nra\/rca\/?cid=nrcs143_014198\" class=\"icon none\">poorer soil quality<\/a>\u00a0and less productive crops, which result in greater dependence on chemical fertilizers and more dead bees, in an accelerating downward spiral. <\/p>\n<div data-layout=\"inline\n                \" data-layout-mobile=\"\" class=\"\n          media-object\n          type-InsetPullQuote\n            inline\n    scope-web|mobileapps\n  article__inset\n          article__inset--type-InsetPullQuote\n            article__inset--inline\n  \"><\/p>\n<div class=\"wsj-article-pullquote article__inset__pullquote \">\n<p class=\"pullquote-content article__inset__pullquote__quote\">\n        <span class=\"l-qt article__inset__pullquote__mark--left\">\u201c<\/span><br \/>\n        The job of economic policy makers should thus be to manage a country\u2019s\u00a0entire portfolio of assets\u00a0in order to deliver a positive return for society.<br \/>\n        <span class=\"r-qt article__inset__pullquote__mark--right\">\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>       The encroachment of human activity on wilder natural areas is also contributing to the spread of zoonotic diseases such as Ebola and COVID-19, at huge cost to societies, economies, and governments.<\/p>\n<p> There is some hope that economic analysis and policy will rediscover nature before the damage to the services we get from it\u2014and thus to everybody\u2019s standard of living\u2014becomes irreparable. Now that investors have understood the risks that climate change poses to their returns, they will find it easier to see the importance of biodiversity or clean oceans and air as well. <\/p>\n<div id=\"cx-membership-tile\"><\/div>\n<h6><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Measuring_the_value_of_nature\"><\/span>Measuring the value of nature<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h6>\n<p>Significantly, it was the U.K.\u2019s hardheaded treasury, and not the cuddly Department for Environment, Food &amp; Rural Affairs, that commissioned the Dasgupta Review. But compiling the statistics needed to capture nature\u2019s services to the economy will be crucial.<\/p>\n<p>This is a work in progress. The United Nations has\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/seea.un.org\/home\/Natural-Capital-Accounting-Project\" class=\"icon none\">defined standards<\/a>\u00a0for the measurement of natural capital. And the\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/unstats.un.org\/unsd\/statcom\/51st-session\/documents\/BG-Item3d-NationalAccounts-E.pdf\" class=\"icon none\">ongoing process<\/a>\u00a0of revising the definitions used to measure GDP and other economic statistics is an opportunity to bring ecosystem services inside the so-called \u201cproduction boundary\u201d that separates what is counted as the economy from everything else.<\/p>\n<p>The pandemic is driving home many lessons, including the old but important one that money is a poor measure of value. \u201cEssential workers\u201d from hospital porters to delivery drivers are often\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.brookings.edu\/research\/the-covid-19-hazard-continues-but-the-hazard-pay-does-not-why-americas-frontline-workers-need-a-raise\/\" class=\"icon none\">among the lowest paid<\/a>. Anyone currently supervising school lessons at home or doing extra cooking during lockdowns will have a fresh appreciation of the value of\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.weforum.org\/agenda\/2020\/12\/covid-women-workload-domestic-caring\/\" class=\"icon none\">unpaid work in the home<\/a>. And the value people place on access to a public park\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.escoe.ac.uk\/publications\/free-goods-and-economic-welfare-escoe-dp-2020-18\/\" class=\"icon none\">has jumped<\/a>\u00a0since March 2020. <\/p>\n<p>Similarly, because much of the value we get from nature currently is not measured, much less paid for, economists ignore it.<\/p>\n<p>That is no longer sustainable (an often-used word with profound implications, because what is not sustainable can never be sustained). Humanity\u2019s relationship with nature will inevitably change in the coming years, and economic policy makers must influence how it changes. Ignorance is no defense.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Diane Coyle, professor of public policy at the University of Cambridge, is the author, most recently, of\u00a0\u201c<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/press.princeton.edu\/books\/hardcover\/9780691179261\/markets-state-and-people\" class=\"icon none\">Markets, State, and People: Economics for Public Policy<\/a>.<\/em><\/strong>\u201c<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>This commentary was published with permission of <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.project-syndicate.org\" class=\"icon none\">Project Syndicate<\/a>\u2014<a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.project-syndicate.org\/commentary\/making-nature-part-of-economic-analysis-and-policy-by-diane-coyle-2021-02\" class=\"icon none\">Restoring Nature to Economics<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<h6><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"More_on_nature_and_economics\"><\/span>More on nature and economics:<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h6>\n<p>We deserve an economy that provides jobs, public health and a sustainable environment<\/p>\n<p>To boost the economy, let\u2019s first change how we measure the economy<\/p>\n<p>Jared Diamond explains how COVID-19 might change the world\u2014for the better<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p><\/p>\n<div class=\"byline article__byline\">\n<p>      <span>By<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"author  hasMenu\" data-scrim='{\"type\":\"author\",\"header\":\"Diane Coyle \",\"subhead\":\"The Wall Street Journal\",\"list\":[]}' itemscope itemprop=\"author\" itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/Person\">\n<h4 itemprop=\"name\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Diane_Coyle\"><\/span>Diane Coyle <span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h4>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News<\/a> articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/news\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.marketwatch.com\/news\/story.asp?guid=%7B21005575-02D4-D4B5-4572-D277933F8B36%7D&#038;siteid=rss&#038;rss=1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;# Opinion: It\u2019s about time that economists gave nature its due &#8221; If we deplete or irreversibly degrade natural resources, the economic consequences affect all of us and future generations CAMBRIDGE, U.K. (Project Syndicate)\u2013\u201cThis land is your land,\u201d\u00a0sang\u00a0the American folk singer Woody Guthrie, listing the redwood forests, wheat fields, and golden valleys of the United&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":175084,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[70897],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-175083","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/175083","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=175083"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/175083\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/175084"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=175083"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=175083"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=175083"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}