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How do we apply economic theory to solve environmental issues? What is and should be the role of government in environmental regulation? Should we subsidize low-carbon or tax fossil energy? Environmental and natural resource economics deal with these and many more questions. One economist defines environmental economics as “concerned with the impact of the economy on the environment, the significance of the environment to the economy, and the appropriate way of regulating economic activity so that balance is achieved among environmental, economic, and other social goals.” (Kolstad, 3). In answering the aforementioned questions in this field, a wide range of topics will be examined in this course including, ‘Links between economic behavior and environmental quality: valuation of non-market benefits of pollution abatement; climate change policy and emissions standards; taxes; and transferable discharge permits. Specific problems of hazardous waste; relationships between pollution and health, the exploitation of commonly owned natural resources; and the links between the environment, income distribution, and economic development.’ A goal of this course is to ensure that you are able to connect theories in environmental economics with real world problems and practical applications. As such, we will learn and use tools like ArcGIS and GeoDA for spatial analysis as well.