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Democracy and climate change policies: Is history important?

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  • Fredriksson, Per G.
  • Neumayer, Eric

Abstract

This paper argues that it is countries' historical experience with democracy, the democratic capital stock, rather than current levels of democracy that determines current climate change policies. Empirical evidence using data starting as far back as year 1800 for 87 countries, which together are responsible for 93.7% of global carbon emissions, suggests that the democratic capital stock has an important and robust effect on climate change policies. A history of executive constraints is particularly important. The current level of democracy does not play a role once democratic capital has been accounted for.

Suggested Citation

  • Fredriksson, Per G. & Neumayer, Eric, 2013. "Democracy and climate change policies: Is history important?," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(C), pages 11-19.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecolec:v:95:y:2013:i:c:p:11-19
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2013.08.002
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Hany Abdel-Latif & Tapas Mishra & Anita Staneva, 2015. "Arab Countries Between Winter and Spring: Where Democracy Shock Goes Next!," Working Papers 954, Economic Research Forum, revised Oct 2015.
    2. Per G. Fredriksson & Eric Neumayer, 2016. "Corruption and Climate Change Policies: Do the Bad Old Days Matter?," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 63(2), pages 451-469, February.
    3. repec:spr:envpol:v:19:y:2017:i:2:d:10.1007_s10018-016-0162-5 is not listed on IDEAS
    4. Beland, Louis-Philippe & Boucher, Vincent, 2015. "Polluting politics," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 137(C), pages 176-181.
    5. Garmann, Sebastian, 2014. "Do government ideology and fragmentation matter for reducing CO2-emissions? Empirical evidence from OECD countries," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 105(C), pages 1-10.
    6. repec:eee:jcecon:v:46:y:2018:i:4:p:1370-1387 is not listed on IDEAS
    7. repec:bla:ecinqu:v:55:y:2017:i:3:p:1511-1537 is not listed on IDEAS
    8. Csereklyei, Zsuzsanna & Stern, David I., 2015. "Global energy use: Decoupling or convergence?," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 633-641.
    9. Mavisakalyan, Astghik & Tarverdi, Yashar & Weber, Clas, 2018. "Talking in the present, caring for the future: Language and environment," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 46(4), pages 1370-1387.
    10. repec:eee:rensus:v:80:y:2017:i:c:p:990-1016 is not listed on IDEAS
    11. James B. Ang & Per G. Fredriksson, 2017. "Statehood Experience, Legal Traditions, And Climate Change Policies," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 55(3), pages 1511-1537, July.
    12. Brännlund Runar & Karimu Amin & Söderholm Patrik, 2017. "Convergence in carbon dioxide emissions and the role of growth and institutions: a parametric and non-parametric analysis," Environmental Economics and Policy Studies, Springer;Society for Environmental Economics and Policy Studies - SEEPS, vol. 19(2), pages 359-390, April.
    13. Astghik Mavisakalyan & Yashar Tarverdi, 2017. "Gender and climate change: Do female parliamentarians make a difference?," Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre Working Paper series WP1704, Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre (BCEC), Curtin Business School.
    14. Joungseok Park, 2016. "How Democracy Matters: Evidence of Electoral Incentives for Environmental Policy," Working Papers 16-20, Department of Economics, Appalachian State University.
    15. Per Fredriksson & Jim Wollscheid, 2015. "Legal Origins and Climate Change Policies in Former Colonies," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 62(2), pages 309-327, October.
    16. Danny García Callejas, 2015. "Voting for the environment: the importance of Democracy and education in Latin America," Revista de Economía del Caribe 014782, Universidad del Norte.
    17. Joungseok Park, 2016. "Rational Skeptics: On the Strategic Communication of Scientific Data," Working Papers 16-19, Department of Economics, Appalachian State University.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    International public goods; Climate change; Environmental policy; Democracy; Democratic capital; Executive constraints;

    JEL classification:

    • Q54 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Climate; Natural Disasters and their Management; Global Warming
    • Q58 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Environmental Economics: Government Policy
    • H23 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Externalities; Redistributive Effects; Environmental Taxes and Subsidies
    • H87 - Public Economics - - Miscellaneous Issues - - - International Fiscal Issues; International Public Goods

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