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Demand-side Value for Ecosystem Services and Implications for Innovative Markets: Experimental Perspectives on the Possibility of Private Markets for Public Goods

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  15 September 2016

Stephen K. Swallow
Stephen K. Swallow*
Affiliation:
Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Center for Environmental Sciences and Engineering at the University of Connecticut
*
Correspondence: Stephen K. Swallow ▪ Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics ▪ University of Connecticut ▪ 1376 Storrs Road, Young Building, Unit 4021 ▪ Storrs, CT 06269 ▪ Phone 860.486.1917 ▪ Email stephen.swallow@uconn.edu.
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Abstract

Environmental economists invest in measuring the value of the environment but put less effort toward integrating that value directly into the economy. Experimental economists evaluate the performance of mechanisms to fund public goods but in some cases offer limited insight into practical implications for developing markets. This discussion presents initial insights into applying mechanisms for private provision of public goods based on demand-side values rather than regulatory-based market incentives such as cap-and-trade policies. Consideration of mechanisms to generate revenue inspires field tests that could direct experiments using threshold public goods and Lindahl's framework toward applications that transform value into revenue.

Keywords

aesthetic valueauctioncultural ecosystem servicesLindahl pricingnonmarket valuationprovision pointrebatewildlife habitat
Type
Invited Papers
Information
Agricultural and Resource Economics Review , Volume 42 , Issue 1 , April 2013 , pp. 33 - 56
Copyright
Copyright © 2013 Northeastern Agricultural and Resource Economics Association 

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