We are seriously concerned with global climate change, the higher frequency of extreme weather conditions, the rise of sea level, the acidification of the oceans, the salinisation of sweet water in small islands, the dramatic reduction in biodiversity, and ubiquitous pollution. But we are optimist that mitigation is still possible if the world reacts with extreme energy and cohesion.

Economics as a science has been reducing the issue of climate change to prices and quantities, interest rate and utility functions, converting health and security issues in tradable commodities. Neoclassical economics with all its empirical and logical flaws risks to provide unsufficient advice to goverments and firms, while neglecting technological and fairness issues.

At the same time, economic aspects of any mitigation strategy will be crucial for its success. So we are keen to solicit economists to devise, develop and articulate innovative economic policies and measures to be integrated in effective and fair climate change mitigation efforts at every geographical and industry level.

New insights from evolutionary economics, prospect theory, behavioural economics and finance might be coupled with the established body of knowledge developed by sociology and managerial disciplines and with the experience on the terrain of real policymaking.

Instead of framing climate change mitigation as a cost, we feel it is a huge opportunity for innovation, profits, employment, wages and improvement of real quality of life.

Join us in the International Symposium on "Innovative Economic Policies for Climate Change Mitigation" to be held on the 25th-26th June 2009 near Rome (Italy) and contribute to the subsequent book we would like to submit to national and international authorities before the Copenhagen summit, where the new Treaty will be signed and whose recomendations could be implemented in the following months and years.

Influencing the debate, the outcome and the implementation of decisions is the practical goal of this initiative, while helping the consolidation of a new attention in those strand of economics for real policymaking.

Themes

Main themes of the symposium are policies aimed at the transition towards a low-carbon economy in terms, mainly but not excusively, of:

Industrial structure and techno-economic paradigms
Firm behaviour
Consumers/Households purchases and behaviour
Government negotiation, legislation and activities

In terms of domains of application, we particularly welcome policies for international agreements, national strategies (both in developed and developing countries, including the Small Island Developing States), regional intervention (e.g. in heavy polluting regions), city planning.

Submissions

The selection of participants is based on the submission of a short Abstract of the policy you would like to outline.

The deadline for abstract submission is 20th April 2009, by filling in forms to be sent to info@economicswebinsitute.org, available at http://www.economicswebinstitute.org/mitigation-abstract.zip

We shall send you the results of selection by 27th April 2009.

For the full paper (max 10 pages), the deadline for submission is 5th June, by filling forms to be sent to info@economicswebinsitute.org, available at http://www.economicswebinstitute.org/mitigation-paper.zip.

Late submission of paper might be accepted, but we want to circulate copies to all participants and prepare a draft of the book to be offered to the discussion at the Symposium.

Book

The book will be made available through Internet and by print-on-demand services. 10 hard copies will be given to each contributing author. We are going to present the book in European and non-European capitals. Hopefully, some policymaker might adopt a policy proposed in the book and subsequent development could follow.

Location and timing

We are organizing the Symposium in a Benedictine Monastery uphill near Rome on the 25th-26th June 2009.

Scholars that would like to contribute to the book but that do not, for any reason, have the possibility of taking part to the symposium can still send abstract and, if accepted, the paper. We are trying to organise a video-conference for scholars being in different world locations the days of the symposium.