Short course
Economics and the Environment
Course status:
Applications being accepted
Dates:
19/01/2027 - 23/03/2027
Study format:
In-person weekly
Fees:
£315.00
For a long time ‘advanced’ societies took nature to be a resource that was there for plundering. What changes when we treat nature not as a free backdrop to the economy, but as a set of life-supporting assets on which all economic activity depends? This short course presents the way that economists have included the social value of nature within their calculations and how this should be put into practice in the future.
The background to the valuation of the environment is the challenge from ecological economists to the mainstream of the subject. Thinkers such as Herman Daly, Robert Costanza and Gretchen Daily challenged the assumption that market pricing already accounted for the value of nature and the services it provides. This has gradually become more widely accepted, to the point that the UK government has commissioned economists such as Dieter Helm and Partha Dasgupta to consider how to put this into practice.
The course uses minimal mathematics and no prior economics experience is required. Learners will be introduced to core economic ideas through practical environmental examples. These ideas include those of scarcity, incentives, public goods, externalities, discounting, valuation, institutions and investment.
This introductory short course is for adult learners who want to understand why biodiversity loss is an economic problem as well as an environmental one. Through accessible examples, case studies and discussion, the course introduces key ideas such as natural capital, ecosystem services, common resources, valuation and sustainability.
Book this course
Book your place online using the button below.
Programme details
Course starts Tuesday 19 January 2027
This is an in-person course which requires your attendance at the weekly meetings in Oxford on Tuesdays, 4.30-6.30pm.
Week 1: Why does nature belong in economics?
Week 2: Basic economics for nature: scarcity, markets and externalities
Week 3: Biodiversity and ecosystem services
Week 4: Natural Capital: Useful concept or dangerous metaphor?
Week 5: Nature as an asset
Week 6: Criticisms of valuing nature: inappropriate valuations?
Week 7: Valuing the wealth of nature: The Balance sheet approach
Week 8: Policies for behavioural change
Week 9: The owner’s perspective: Business, landowners and investors. What role should they play?
Week 10: The future: The value of the world around us
Teaching methods
Students will be asked to engage with one or two relevant texts each week before class, plus other materials as relevant. Classroom sessions will consist of a mixture of activities including active lecturing, small group discussion and open debate.
Learning outcomes
By the end of the course, students will have been given the opportunity to have learnt how to:
- outline the arguments for and against applying economic thinking to the valuation of nature;
- assess rival economic policy aims;
- advocate their own position on the question of how to value nature.
Assessment methods
Only those students who have registered for assessment and accreditation, in advance of the course start date, can submit coursework/assignments for assessment.
Assessment
You will be set two pieces of work for the course. The first of 500 words is due halfway through your course. This does not count towards your final outcome but preparing for it, and the feedback you are given, will help you prepare for your assessed piece of work of 1,500 words due at the end of the course. The assessed work is marked pass or fail.
Level and demands
The Department’s Weekly Classes are taught at FHEQ Level 4, ie first year undergraduate level, and you will be expected to engage in a significant amount of private study in preparation for the classes. This may take the form, for instance, of reading and analysing set texts, responding to questions or tasks, or preparing work to present in class.
Course aims
Learn how to assess how economists have proposed to value the natural environment, and the arguments for and against doing so.
Course objectives
- Gain an understanding of the different ways of valuing the environment.
- Apply basic economic concepts to threats to biodiversity.
- Defend a position in the argument for and against valuing the environment through an economic lens.
Programme details
Course starts Tuesday 19 January 2027
This is an in-person course which requires your attendance at the weekly meetings in Oxford on Tuesdays, 4.30-6.30pm.
Week 1: Why does nature belong in economics?
Week 2: Basic economics for nature: scarcity, markets and externalities
Week 3: Biodiversity and ecosystem services
Week 4: Natural Capital: Useful concept or dangerous metaphor?
Week 5: Nature as an asset
Week 6: Criticisms of valuing nature: inappropriate valuations?
Week 7: Valuing the wealth of nature: The Balance sheet approach
Week 8: Policies for behavioural change
Week 9: The owner’s perspective: Business, landowners and investors. What role should they play?
Week 10: The future: The value of the world around us
Teaching methods
Students will be asked to engage with one or two relevant texts each week before class, plus other materials as relevant. Classroom sessions will consist of a mixture of activities including active lecturing, small group discussion and open debate.
Learning outcomes
By the end of the course, students will have been given the opportunity to have learnt how to:
- outline the arguments for and against applying economic thinking to the valuation of nature;
- assess rival economic policy aims;
- advocate their own position on the question of how to value nature.
Assessment methods
Only those students who have registered for assessment and accreditation, in advance of the course start date, can submit coursework/assignments for assessment.
Assessment
You will be set two pieces of work for the course. The first of 500 words is due halfway through your course. This does not count towards your final outcome but preparing for it, and the feedback you are given, will help you prepare for your assessed piece of work of 1,500 words due at the end of the course. The assessed work is marked pass or fail.
Dr Doug Bamford
Doug Bamford is lecturer in Lifelong Learning (Political Philosophy) at OUDCE, teaching courses in philosophy and political economy. His main interest is in political philosophy and its application to public policy, particularly taxation. He obtained his PhD in 2013 and became an Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (AFHEA) in 2023. He is author of Rethinking Taxation (Searching Finance, 2014) and several papers (including articles in the Journal of Applied Philosophy, Moral Philosophy and Politics, Problema, and Think). He blogs at Doug Bamford’s Tax Appeal.
Assessment methods
Only those students who have registered for assessment and accreditation, in advance of the course start date, can submit coursework/assignments for assessment.
Level and demands
The Department’s Weekly Classes are taught at FHEQ Level 4, ie first year undergraduate level, and you will be expected to engage in a significant amount of private study in preparation for the classes. This may take the form, for instance, of reading and analysing set texts, responding to questions or tasks, or preparing work to present in class.
Fees
| Description | Costs |
|---|---|
| Course fee (with no assessment) | £315.00 |
| Assessment and Accreditation fee | £60.00 |
How to enrol
Please use the ‘Book now’ button on this page. Alternatively, please complete an enrolment form.
How to register for accreditation and assessment
To be able to submit coursework and to earn credit (CATS points) for this course, if you wish to do so, you will need to register and pay an additional £60 fee. You can do this by ticking the relevant box at the bottom of the enrolment form or when enrolling online.
Students who do not register for CATS points during the enrolment process will not be able to do so after the course has begun.
If you are enrolled on the Certificate of Higher Education at the Department you need to indicate this on the enrolment form but there is no additional registration fee.