IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/kap/enreec/v10y1997i1p27-40.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Overlapping Generations or Infinitely-Lived Agents: Intergenerational Altruism and the Economics of Global Warming

Author

Listed:
  • GUNTER Stephan
  • GEORG MÜLLER-FÜRSTENBERGER
  • PASCAL Previdoli

Abstract

Do we need an overlapping generations model for the economics of global warming? To answer this question, an infinitely-lived agent (ILA) approach and an overlapping generations (OLG) model are contrasted. ILA and OLG can be viewed as polar representations of intergenerational altruism. With ILA an immortal agent acts through his investment/savings decisions as trustee on the behalf of the future generations. With OLG, agents need not behave altruistic. They simply save during working years and dissave completely during retirement. Nevertheless, ILA and OLG must not differ in their implication for greenhouse policy. Greenhouse gas abatement is a straightforward alternative to physical capital formation and, even without altruism, each age cohort has an incentive to provide current abatement in order to reduce future damages attributable to climate change. Indeed, under reasonable assumptions and parameter values, our simulations reveal such an invariance result. Provided carbon taxes are the only policy tool and tax revenues are recycled through socially mandated rules, projections of economic growth, climate change and energy consumption are only insignificantly affected by the choice of approach. Copyright Kluwer Academic Publishers 1997

Suggested Citation

  • GUNTER Stephan & GEORG MÜLLER-FÜRSTENBERGER & PASCAL Previdoli, 1997. "Overlapping Generations or Infinitely-Lived Agents: Intergenerational Altruism and the Economics of Global Warming," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 10(1), pages 27-40, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:enreec:v:10:y:1997:i:1:p:27-40
    DOI: 10.1023/A:1026479106896
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1023/A:1026479106896
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1023/A:1026479106896?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Nordhaus, William D, 1991. "To Slow or Not to Slow: The Economics of the Greenhouse Effect," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 101(407), pages 920-937, July.
    2. Howarth, Richard B & Norgaard, Richard B, 1992. "Environmental Valuation under Sustainable Development," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 82(2), pages 473-477, May.
    3. d'Arge, Ralph C & Schulze, William D & Brookshire, David S, 1982. "Carbon Dioxide and Intergenerational Choice," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 72(2), pages 251-256, May.
    4. Marini Giancarlo & Scaramozzino Pasquale, 1995. "Overlapping Generations and Environmental Control," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 29(1), pages 64-77, July.
    5. Stephan, Gunter, 1993. "Myopic decision rules and the innovation of techniques: Formulation and solution of intertemporal equilibrium models," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 4(1), pages 127-143, June.
    6. Manne, Alan & Mendelsohn, Robert & Richels, Richard, 1995. "MERGE : A model for evaluating regional and global effects of GHG reduction policies," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 23(1), pages 17-34, January.
    7. Schelling, Thomas C, 1995. "Intergenerational discounting," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 23(4-5), pages 395-401.
    8. Stephen C Peck & Thomas J. Teisberg, 1992. "CETA: A Model for Carbon Emissions Trajectory Assessment," The Energy Journal, International Association for Energy Economics, vol. 0(Number 1), pages 55-78.
    9. Solow, Robert M, 1986. " On the Intergenerational Allocation of Natural Resources," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 88(1), pages 141-149.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Gerlagh, Reyer & Lise, Wietze, 2005. "Carbon taxes: A drop in the ocean, or a drop that erodes the stone? The effect of carbon taxes on technological change," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 54(2-3), pages 241-260, August.
    2. repec:ebl:ecbull:v:17:y:2004:i:7:p:1-11 is not listed on IDEAS
    3. Escapa García, Marta & Ansuategui Cobo, José Alberto & Pérez, Azucena, 2003. "International and Intergenerational Dimensions of Climate Change: North-South Cooperation in an Overlapping Generations Framework," IKERLANAK 2003-06, Universidad del País Vasco - Departamento de Fundamentos del Análisis Económico I.
    4. Reyer Gerlagh & Marjan W. Hofkes, 2004. "Time Profile of Climate Change Stabilization Policy," Working Papers 2004.139, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei.
    5. Garau, Giorgio & Lecca, Patrizio & Mandras, Giovanni, 2013. "The impact of population ageing on energy use: Evidence from Italy," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 35(C), pages 970-980.
    6. Maik T. Schneider & Christian Traeger & Ralph Winkler, 2010. "Trading Off Generations: Infinitely-Lived Agent Versus OLG," CER-ETH Economics working paper series 10/128, CER-ETH - Center of Economic Research (CER-ETH) at ETH Zurich.
    7. Georg M ller-F rstenberger & Gunter Stephan, 1999. "Banking and Trade of Carbon Emission Rights: A CGE Analysis," Diskussionsschriften dp9906, Universitaet Bern, Departement Volkswirtschaft.
    8. Shiell, Leslie, 2003. "Descriptive, prescriptive and second-best approaches to the control of global greenhouse gas emissions," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(7-8), pages 1431-1452, August.
    9. Reyer Gerlagh & Bob van der Zwaan & Marjan Hofkes & Ger Klaassen, 2004. "Impacts of CO 2 -Taxes in an Economy with Niche Markets and Learning-by-Doing," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 28(3), pages 367-394, July.
    10. Ansuategui Cobo, José Alberto & Escapa García, Marta & Pérez, Azucena, 2003. "International and Intergenerational Dimensions of Climate Change: North-South Cooperation in an Overlapping Generations Framework," IKERLANAK 6370, Universidad del País Vasco - Departamento de Fundamentos del Análisis Económico I.
    11. Gunter Stephan & Georg Müller-Fürstenberger, 2004. "Does Distribution Matter? Efficiency, Equity and Flexibility in Greenhouse Gas Abatement," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 27(1), pages 87-107, January.
    12. Stefan Bayer & Claudia Kemfert, 2002. "Reaching National Kyoto Targets in Germany and Sustainable Development," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 4(4), pages 371-390, December.
    13. Dalton, Michael & O'Neill, Brian & Prskawetz, Alexia & Jiang, Leiwen & Pitkin, John, 2008. "Population aging and future carbon emissions in the United States," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 30(2), pages 642-675, March.
    14. Alberto Ansuategi & Marta Escapa, 2004. "Is international cooperation on climate change good for the environment?," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 17(7), pages 1-11.
    15. Gerlagh, Reyer & van der Zwaan, B. C. C., 2001. "The effects of ageing and an environmental trust fund in an overlapping generations model on carbon emission reductions," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 36(2), pages 311-326, February.
    16. Schneider, Maik T. & Traeger, Christian P. & Winkler, Ralph, 2012. "Trading off generations: Equity, discounting, and climate change," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 56(8), pages 1621-1644.
    17. Richard Howarth, 2000. "Climate Change and the Representative Agent," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 15(2), pages 135-148, February.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Dalton, Michael & O'Neill, Brian & Prskawetz, Alexia & Jiang, Leiwen & Pitkin, John, 2008. "Population aging and future carbon emissions in the United States," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 30(2), pages 642-675, March.
    2. Lugovoy, O. & Polbin, A., 2016. "On Intergenerational Distribution of the Burden of Greenhouse Gas Emissions," Journal of the New Economic Association, New Economic Association, vol. 31(3), pages 12-39.
    3. Khanna, Neha & Chapman, Duane, 1997. "Climate Policy and Petroleum Depletion in an Optimal Growth Framework," Staff Papers 121172, Cornell University, Department of Applied Economics and Management.
    4. Endress, Lee H. & Pongkijvorasin, Sittidaj & Roumasset, James & Wada, Christopher A., 2014. "Intergenerational equity with individual impatience in a model of optimal and sustainable growth," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 36(2), pages 620-635.
    5. Tol, Richard S. J., 2002. "Welfare specifications and optimal control of climate change: an application of fund," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 24(4), pages 367-376, July.
    6. Roger Fouquet, 2012. "Economics of Energy and Climate Change: Origins, Developments and Growth," Working Papers 2012-08, BC3.
    7. Laurence Kotlikoff & Felix Kubler & Andrey Polbin & Jeffrey Sachs & Simon Scheidegger, 2021. "Making Carbon Taxation A Generational Win Win," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 62(1), pages 3-46, February.
    8. Hammitt, James K. & Adams, John L., 1996. "The value of international cooperation for abating global climate change," Resource and Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 18(3), pages 219-241, October.
    9. Wei, Yi-Ming & Mi, Zhi-Fu & Huang, Zhimin, 2015. "Climate policy modeling: An online SCI-E and SSCI based literature review," Omega, Elsevier, vol. 57(PA), pages 70-84.
    10. Claudia Kemfert & Richard Tol, 2002. "Equity, international trade and climate policy," International Environmental Agreements: Politics, Law and Economics, Springer, vol. 2(1), pages 23-48, March.
    11. John Reilly & Kenneth Richards, 1993. "Climate change damage and the trace gas index issue," Environmental & Resource Economics, Springer;European Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, vol. 3(1), pages 41-61, February.
    12. Tol, Richard S. J., 2001. "Equitable cost-benefit analysis of climate change policies," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 36(1), pages 71-85, January.
    13. Motavasseli, Ali, 2016. "Essays in environmental policy and household economics," Other publications TiSEM b32e287e-169b-4e89-9878-1, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    14. Hoberg, Nikolai & Baumgärtner, Stefan, 2017. "Irreversibility and uncertainty cause an intergenerational equity-efficiency trade-off," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 131(C), pages 75-86.
    15. Mouez Fodha, 2015. "Nuclear waste storage and environmental intergenerational externalities," International Journal of Sustainable Development, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 18(1/2), pages 94-114.
    16. Khanna, Neha & Chapman, Duane, 1997. "A Critical Overview of the Economic Structure of Integrated Assessment Models of Climate Change," Working Papers 127883, Cornell University, Department of Applied Economics and Management.
    17. Plambeck, Erica L & Hope, Chris, 1996. "PAGE95 : An updated valuation of the impacts of global warming," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 24(9), pages 783-793, September.
    18. Gerlagh, Reyer & van der Zwaan, B. C. C., 2001. "The effects of ageing and an environmental trust fund in an overlapping generations model on carbon emission reductions," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 36(2), pages 311-326, February.
    19. Tol, Richard S.J., 2006. "The Polluter Pays Principle and Cost-Benefit Analysis of Climate Change: An Application of Fund," Climate Change Modelling and Policy Working Papers 12058, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei (FEEM).
    20. Laurence J. Kotlikoff & Andrey V. ZUBAREV & Andrey POLBIN, 2021. "Will the Paris accord accelerate climate change [Ускоряет Ли Парижское Соглашение Изменение Климата?]," Ekonomicheskaya Politika / Economic Policy, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, vol. 1, pages 8-37, February.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:kap:enreec:v:10:y:1997:i:1:p:27-40. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.