Ecological Economics Framework Research Articles

Las ecotecnias como factor de sustentabilidad. El caso de las biopiscinas municipales en la ciudad de Guadalajara

Ecotechnics constitute one of the fundamental elements for the construction of conditions for sustainability since they represent a viable option to successfully face the social, economic and environmental problems that characterize contemporary society. The article that is presented analyzes the case of biopools in the city of Guadalajara and has the objective of demonstrating, in the case study, their socio-environmental and economic viability. In particular, the economic and socio-environmental benefit is calculated, not only for the users of the swimming pool service, but also for the population, environmental health and government management. With the theoretical framework of ecological economics, we adapt the traditional cost-benefit model, incorporating non-market variables that allow a socio-environmental assessment of the implementation of eco-technology. The results obtained, the annual savings of $ 17,660,498 pesos and the consequent elimination of chemical contamination in the pools, allow us to conclude that, if applied, the proposed eco-technology would bring benefits not only for the users, but also for the population and the municipal government.

Opening the black box of economic processes: Ecological Economics from its biophysical foundation to a sustainable economic institution

The roots of Ecological Economics can be found at the very beginning of Classical Economics, where physical wellbeing was the object of research, instead of the allocation of resources. Although Neoclassical Economics abandoned this objective early on, other efforts to study the biophysical foundations of the economic processes persisted and were inherited by modern Ecological economists. The fundamental difference between Ecological Economic theory and Neoclassical Economic theory is that, Ecological economists attempt to open the black box of economic processes with modern scientific tools, while Neoclassical economists expand the black box without interest in the mechanisms inside. However, in the current Ecological Economics framework, the social sphere of discussion is dominated by translated mainstream versions of Ecological Economics, rather than its original biophysical form. In the next stage of its evolution, Ecological Economics must address such inconsistencies to provide institutional insights based on the biophysical foundations of the subject, to fully open the black box of how human society extracts material and energy from the ecosystem, transforms them into physical wealth, and distributes that physical wealth. Also it must provide policy implications on how to carve out a sustainable economic institution.

Mainstream economics toolkit within the ecological economics framework

Development of ecological economics was a response to the environmental crisis born by the economic growth. Ecological economics, in contrast to mainstream economics, is characterized by value pluralism and interdisciplinary approach that makes it hard to achieve methodological unanimity. This paper considers if the mainstream methods could be used to tackle environment problems effectively. To this purpose, the integrated macro model is proposed. It suggests that all environment externalities could be accounted in the existing production-consumption system. So using the new ideology based on ecological economics priorities and applying the toolkit of mainstream economics, we could transform the existing pricing system and provide effective institutional reforms to ensure sustainable development.

Ecology and Economics of Using Native Managed Bees for Almond Pollination.

Native managed bees can improve crop pollination, but a general framework for evaluating the associated economic costs and benefits has not been developed. We conducted a cost-benefit analysis to assess how managing blue orchard bees (Osmia lignaria Say [Hymenoptera: Megachildae]) alongside honey bees (Apis mellifera Linnaeus [Hymenoptera: Apidae]) can affect profits for almond growers in California. Specifically, we studied how adjusting three strategies can influence profits: (1) number of released O. lignaria bees, (2) density of artificial nest boxes, and (3) number of nest cavities (tubes) per box. We developed an ecological model for the effects of pollinator activity on almond yields, validated the model with published data, and then estimated changes in profits for different management strategies. Our model shows that almond yields increase with O. lignaria foraging density, even where honey bees are already in use. Our cost-benefit analysis shows that profit ranged from -US$1,800 to US$2,800/acre given different combinations of the three strategies. Adding nest boxes had the greatest effect; we predict an increase in profit between low and high nest box density strategies (2.5 and 10 boxes/acre). In fact, the number of released bees and the availability of nest tubes had relatively small effects in the high nest box density strategies. This suggests that growers could improve profits by simply adding more nest boxes with moderate number of tubes in each. Our approach can support grower decisions regarding integrated crop pollination and highlight the importance of a comprehensive ecological economic framework for assessing these decisions.

Fish Trade Liberalization Under 21st Century Trade Agreements: The CETA and Newfoundland and Labrador Fish and Seafood Industry

Both classical (Ricardo) and neo-classical (Heckscher-Ohlin) theories of international trade assume that free trade results in welfare gains for all involved. A more recent literature dedicated to liberalization of trade in renewable resources finds that welfare effects depend on certain factors, such as the country's status as importer or exporter, the state of the renewable resource stocks and the size of the country on the world market (Chichilnisky, 1993; Brander and Taylor, 1997a; Emami and Johnston, 2000, Hannesson, 2000), or remain theoretically indeterminate and require empirical analysis (Nielsen, 2009).Fish trade liberalization is provided in the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) concluded by the Canadian Government in 2013 with the European Union (EU). This new type of “21st century” trade agreement challenges both the conventional theory of international trade and renewable resource-based sectors of economic activity such as fish and seafood by opening them up to industrial-type international competition and integration. The paper uses the theoretical framework of ecological economics (Costanza et al., 2015) to demonstrate that the declining Newfoundland and Labrador (NL) fish and seafood industry is not ready to participate gainfully in implementation of the CETA. It also uses the concept of “policy space” (Rodrik 2007, Pauwelyn 2008) to recommend some policy changes that can prepare the NL fish and seafood sector for competitive and beneficial participation in the CETA. Restructuring the fish and seafood sector with a focus on small scale, elimination of harmful subsidies and redirecting them to achieve lower costs of operation, better trained labor force, and more just and sustainable supply/marketing networks, will make it fit to benefit from the gains from trade and to contribute to a more equitable distribution of the benefits of the fishery to the fishers and local communities.

Is there a Natural Capital? A Critique of the Ecological Economics Approach

The aim of the paper is to discuss the theoretical foundations of the natural capital concept within the ecological economics framework. The paper does not contest the need to recognize the contribution of ecosystems services to human well-being and social output, nor the issue of the economic evaluation of this contribution. What it intends to question is the reason why nature and natural resources are subsumed into the category of capital; in other words the suitability of the analogy proposed and developed mainly by Costanza and Daly. The paper argues that in this way a monistic distortion (by which everything is considered capital) is introduced and the reciprocal independence among factors of production as sources of value is eliminated. The paper also demonstrates that this view can be traced back to the economics of Irving Fisher, one of the most representative thinkers of the “marginalist revolution” in America.

Modeling governance and water pollution using the institutional ecological economic framework

This paper investigates the effect of governance on levels of water pollution for all industrial activities as well as by some specific industry category in a sample of OECD economies. Using an institutional ecological economic conceptual framework, the effects of several measures of governance are empirically examined. Our findings reveal that the rule of law, regulatory quality, control of corruption, government effectiveness and voice and accountability are negatively and statistically significantly correlated with water pollution across all industrial activities as well as specific industry groups. We conclude that governance matters for mitigating industrial water pollution. This novel paper adds to the existing literature on industrial water pollution by developing a modeling approach that empirically examines questions that have so far not been explored in institutional ecological economics and demonstrates the importance of the framework for addressing real life ecological problems that are common across the world. Policy implications are drawn.

IT for green and green IT: A proposed typology of eco-innovation

This article is in support of the development of an ecological economic framework. It discusses, from an interdisciplinary perspective, the increasing use of green IT and their applications (IT for green). IT and sustainable development have had a concomitant rise and reach. The future world emerging from their respective interpretations enables, in both cases, a shift from today's questionable industrial capitalism towards post-industrial capitalism. This paper addresses the following questions: What is known about green IT and IT for green? Are smart solutions (buildings, energy grids, transport) always beneficial to an ecological economy? And, if so, in what ways? In the first part of this article, we analyse the economic, social and environmental impact of IT and argue for the need for green applications of green IT in order to achieve sustainable outcomes. The second part focuses on the managerial dimension of eco-innovation theory and presents one of the distinctive features of green applications of green IT: the collective organisation of innovation. A typology of eco-innovation aimed at reconciling IT development and green growth is then proposed explicitly addressing four kinds of changes towards sustainable development: technological, social, institutional and organisational innovation.

A New Economic Framework for Tourism Decision Making

In this article it is argued that the conventional approach of conducting either a micro- or macro-economic analysis in tourism is incongruent with emerging concerns of the modern tourism system which require economic analysis that explicitly considers community as a unit of analysis. This article thus proposes an ecological economics framework for analyzing economic decision making in tourism. This approach assumes that tourism brings costs and benefits to a society with differential effects. Communities are proximate to the benefits or costs of tourism, including externalities or negative impacts which are often associated with tourism growth. Extensions of micro economic models are proposed as an alternative framework for addressing dynamic decision making and tradeoffs in resource use. This is consistent with evolving trends in tourism demand for sustainable products or destinations, and provides important insights into the inherent tradeoffs that tourism stakeholders may need to make in the post modern ‘triple bottom line accounting’ tourism industry.

An ecological economics framework for assessing environmental flows: the case of inter-basin water transfers in Lesotho

This paper used the Lesotho Highlands Water Project (LHWP) that transfers water from the Orange River Basin in Lesotho to the Vaal River Basin in South Africa as a case study to show how environmental sustainability aspects can be integrated into economic development planning. Using the Ecological Social Accounting Matrix (ESAM) for Lesotho that integrates ecological implications of the LHWP with economic benefits of the project, the paper analysed the impact of lost ecological services downstream the LHWP dams in Lesotho on the well-being of households directly affected by the project (riparians) and the general economy of the country. The results revealed that despite significant economic benefits, the project has unintended impacts on ecological resources and services with resultant deleterious well-being implications for riparians. The results from the ESAM analysis indicated that not only the income of riparians is likely to suffer, but also that of other households and social groups, as well as the general economy of Lesotho. While results of the ESAM analysis did not indicate large income impacts on the economy at large, they were significant for riparians. The importance of integrating ecological consequences into impact assessment of IBWT before such transfers can be implemented to ensure sustainable development and considering economy-wide impacts associated with IBWT was proven necessary for a holistic impact assessment of IBWT.

Sustainable Agriculture: Economic Aspects

Sustainable agriculture synthesizes a variety of concepts associated with agricultural practices and their socio-economic impacts. In this article, some-requirements, for the development of sustainable-agriculture in Lithuania are analysed within the ecological economics framework. First, sustainable agriculture is discussed within the context of environmental economics. After this more theoretical part, the Common Agricultural Policy reforms, trends of sustainable agriculture in EU and requirements for the development of sustainable agriculture in Lithuania are elaborated.

Applying a Holistic Approach to Agricultural Sustainability Research: A Methodological Synthesis of Ecological Economics and System Dynamics

This paper advocates a holistic approach to the study of agricultural sustainability. Alternative approaches to sustainability must address both methods of analysis and policy-making. However, current agricultural research and practice suffer from the lack of appropriate analytical framework and policy-making tool to substantiate the notion of sustainable agricultural development. To narrow the gap between the rhetoric and the practice of agricultural sustainability, it is urgent to seek alternative approaches that can provide effective information and at the same time, facilitate improved policy-making processes. An ecological economics framework, which recognises the fundamental interdependence of human-natural interactions, is proposed for the transdisciplinary analysis of agricultural policy. A system dynamics modelling approach, which attempts to help decision-makers identify the knowledge gap and select a preferred course of action among several feasible alternatives, is regarded as a workable template from which the necessary transdisciplinary analysis is articulated and the gained insight is integrated into the policy-making process. It is highlighted in this paper that the methodological synthesis of the transdisciplinary analytical framework of ecological economics and the computer precision of system dynamics modelling may offer a holistic approach for effective policy analysis and improved policy-making towards the realisation of agricultural sustainability.

Economics Weak and Strong: Ecological Economics and Human Survival

Mounting evidence suggests that the human impact on the planet is reaching the point where the Earth's ecosystems will not be able to support the level of human occupation. The global economy also seems to be generating income disparities that threaten the social stability of even the most developed economies. Although both these trends are rooted in the operation of the global market economy, standard economics has surprisingly little to offer in the way of policies that might allow us to survive the twenty-first century with our current social and environmental systems intact. This article examines our current predicament from the point of view of neoclassical welfare economics and the alternative framework of ecological economics. We argue that ecological economics, by placing the study of economics squarely within human society and ecosystems, can lead the way to make economics both scientifically credible and policy relevant.

Changes in the United Kingdom's natural relations in terms of society's metabolism and land-use from 1850 to the present day

In this paper we present our understanding of how society and nature have interacted in the course of history in terms of society's metabolic interchange with the biophysical environment. Presenting a theoretical model, we begin by focusing on the interface between society and nature (society's natural relations) as conceptualized by the idea of metabolism, which draws upon Marxist theory complemented by a systems approach. The concept of metabolism portrays society as a system, which has to establish and maintain a permanent throughput of energy and matter to produce and maintain society's material components. The amount of resource flow is operationalized by using material and energy flow accounting methods. Empirically, these methods are applied to the UK's economy in a time-series approach from 1850 to the present day. We discuss different aggregates of inputs such as domestic material extraction, foreign trade of materials, energy input and, additionally, give an account of land-use change. Obviously, these changing natural relations are linked to socio-economic activities. Hence, we make a first attempt to discuss different periods of socio-economic development by drawing from a regulation approach and try to link them to physical indicators such as direct material and energy input and domestic material consumption (DMC). Thereby, we hope to contribute to a historical understanding of socio-economically driven environmental change within the framework of ecological economics.

Recreational user management of parks: an ecological economic framework

Recreational users are one of the major causes of ecosystem damage in publicly owned parks. To ensure the sustainability of these ecosystems, the damage impact of recreational users must be managed. A constrained park management goal is proposed that allows recreational users to pursue welfare derived from park experiences, subject to non-declining ecosystem health and equity of access. Four guiding principles (adaptable community control, quantity constraints, equity of access, and least cost policy mix) are used to provide a framework for recreational user management in three groups of park ecosystem. The funding of recreational user management is explored. Classifying park ecosystems into three groups, it was found that non-market mechanisms alone are suitable in Group 1 park ecosystems, with market mechanisms being of increasing importance in Group 2 and Group 3 park ecosystems.