ES 443 - Behavioral Economics for the Environment (4 Cr.)

In today’s world, addressing environmental challenges is of paramount importance, and public attitudes significantly influence the political feasibility of passing legislation on environmental policy. Students explore the intersection of economics, psychology, and communication to understand, shape, and promote pro-environmental behaviors and attitudes. The principles of behavioral economics are used to examine the decision-making processes behind environmental choices, with the goal of equipping students with the tools to encourage sustainable actions in individuals and communities while recognizing the vital role that communication plays in public discourse related to environmental issues. Throughout this course, students will be exposed to social science research and methodology on human attitudes, behaviors, and decision-making with respect to environmental and climate policy. Special emphasis is placed on applying behavioral economics to sustainability, climate, energy, conservation, and other environmental issues, and students will use descriptive and inferential statistics to analyze human attitudes and behaviors in the context of environmental challenges. By the end of the course, students will apply their knowledge to design a pro-environmental “soft” behavioral intervention. Prerequisite: Prerequisites: ES 140 and Junior standing. Alternating Spring semesters.