Research Fellows

Mineral Resources and the Salience of Ethnic Identities

Access to EnergyMathieu CouttenierPublicationsResearch areaResearch FellowsWorking papersComments Off on Mineral Resources and the Salience of Ethnic Identities

Our findings suggest a new dimension of the natural resource curse: the fragmentation of identities, between ethnic groups and nations.

The design flaw in Sustainability-Linked Bonds

We examine in this paper sustainability-linked bonds (SLBs) whose issuance now totals more than USD 200 bn. There is a structural design flaw in the SLB mechanism: setting a significant coupon step-up does not suit the issuer’s nor the investors’ interests, considering conditionality. This creates a no win situation for the issuer and investors alike and explains the “benign” use of SLBs by current market participants.

La transition écologique mérite un nouveau contrat social

Emmanuel CombetMacro-economical and societal challengesPolicy papersPublicationsResearch FellowsComments Off on La transition écologique mérite un nouveau contrat social

L’Europe subit depuis 2021 des chocs douloureux sur les prix des énergies qui résultent du cumul de plusieurs facteurs. Ce contexte d’énergie rare et chère est douloureux, mais il donne un signal politique et économique fort : il souligne l’importance de diversifier les approvisionnements pour assurer notre sécurité énergétique et l’intérêt d’une sobriété pour réduire nos besoins. 

Crop prices and deforestation in the tropics

Understanding the mechanisms of deforestation is necessary in order to slow or arrest its progress. To accomplish this requires rigorously estimating the demand for deforestation. We contribute to this endeavor by estimating the effect of crop prices on the demand for conversion of land from forest to agriculture in the tropics during the 21st century.

Coordination of sectoral climate policies and life-cycle emissions

The present paper addresses the issue of sectoral policy coordination, especially when Pigovian carbon pricing is unavailable. It analyzes the optimal allocation of mitigation effort among two vertically connected sectors, an upstream (e.g. electricity) and a downstream (e.g. transportation) one.

Les Futurs en transition : les scénarios

L’ADEME a souhaité soumettre au débat quatre chemins “types” cohérents qui présentent de manière volontairement contrastée des options économiques, techniques et de société pour atteindre la neutralité carbone en 2050. Ce travail a été conduit de 2019 à 2021 et n'est pas remis en cause par les conflits actuels majeurs, bien au contraire. 

Extending the limits of the abatement cost

The paper examines the relevant cost benefit framework for state agencies investigating the potential of local projects to mitigate climate change. We propose a new metric that incorporates into the analytical framework the dynamic interactions between the project and its continuation.

Quantifying GHG emissions enabled by capital and labor: Economic and gender inequalities in France

Antonin PottierMacro-economical and societal challengesPublicationsPublicationsResearch areaResearch FellowsComments Off on Quantifying GHG emissions enabled by capital and labor: Economic and gender inequalities in France

Many studies have investigated the carbon footprint of households. Here we open a new field by discussing the emissions that individuals enable by providing labor and capital to companies, using the framework of income-based (downstream) responsibility. Our results show that inequalities in emissions do not strongly interact with economic inequality. Yet they are gendered because women work disproportionately in low-carbon intensive industries such as healthcare. As a result, women contribute less to GHG emissions than their wage share would seem to indicate.

Over-allocation profits and competition issues in the steel industry

Maria Eugenia SaninPublicationsPublicationsResearch areaResearch FellowsSectoral PoliciesComments Off on Over-allocation profits and competition issues in the steel industry

Sectors that are considered to be subject to international competition under the European Emission Trading Scheme (EU-ETS) still benefit from free allocation of European Allowances (EUAs). Herein we study one of those beneficiaries: the crude steel industry. Our findings suggest the EU-ETS has failed to provide incentives for decarbonization in this sector.

There’s no price signal !

We address the long-standing challenge of adding optimal exploration to the classic Hotelling model of a non-renewable resource. We prove that a frontier of critical levels of proven reserves exists, above which exploration ceases, and below which it proceeds at infinite speed.