Person:
Miranda, Juan Jose
Author Name Variants
Fields of Specialization
Development economics,
Environmental economics,
Behavioral economics,
Urban economics,
Climate impacts
Degrees
External Links
Departments
Environment and Natural Resources Global Practice
Externally Hosted Work
Contact Information
Last updated
January 31, 2023
Biography
Juan Jose Miranda is an Environmental Economist at the Environmental and Natural Resources Global Practice. He holds a PhD in Economics at Georgia State University's Andrew Young School of Policy Studies with focus on environmental, behavioral and urban economics. He leads analytical work on impact evaluation, conduct policy research and provide analytical economic support on sustainable development issues. Juan Jose is also a Research Associate at Instituto de Estudios Peruanos (IEP), a research think-tank based in Lima – Peru, and an Associate Member at the Seminario Permanente de Investigación Agraria (SEPIA). He has published in the Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, The American Journal of Political Science, American Economic Review (P&P), among others.
Publication Search Results
1 - 10 of 17
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Publication
The Cost of Coastal Zone Degradation in Nigeria: Cross River, Delta and Lagos States
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2020-10)Nigeria is Africa’s richest economy. The country has a large population, abundant natural resources, and diverse cultures. Coastal areas are particularly unique: extending along more than 800 km, they are home to rich ecosystems, thriving industries, and booming opportunities. But these areas are also fragile. Every year, floods, erosion, and pollution of air and water have alarming consequences: they cause death, sicken children, and wash away land and houses. The poor bear the brunt. How big is the damage? This report provides a clear answer to this important question. Using a consistent valuation methodology, it estimates the cost of coastal degradation in three Nigerian states: Cross River, Delta and Lagos. The results are striking: in 2018 alone, floods, erosion and pollution in these three states cost society US$9.7 billion, or 2.4 percent of the country’s GDP. As this estimate covers less than a half of the country’s coastline, the total cost of coastal degradation in Nigeria is certainly higher. This report demonstrates the benefits of doing a coordinated study that builds on state and local level analyses. Its findings will inform the country’s multi-sectoral investment plan for the coastal zone, and will support its efforts to mobilize financing for coastal resilience as part of the West Africa Coastal Areas program. Investing in coastal resilience will save lives and prevent future damages. The time is now. -
Publication
A Behavioral Approach to Water Conservation: Evidence from Costa Rica
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2015-06)This paper presents the design a set of three simple and replicable behavioral interventions, which use stickers that can be added to water bills at low cost, and test their impact on water consumption in Belen, Costa Rica, using a randomized control trial. Two of the three interventions were found to decrease water consumption significantly in the months following the intervention. A descriptive social norm intervention using neighborhood comparisons reduces consumption by between 3.7 and 5.6 percent relative to a control group, while a plan-making intervention reduces consumption by between 3.4 and 5.5 percent. While the two interventions have similar results, they are effective on different subpopulations, with the plan-making intervention being most effective for low-consumption households, while the neighborhood comparison intervention is most effective for high-consumption households. The results demonstrate that behavioral interventions, which have hitherto utilized sophisticated software to deliver customized messages, can be effectively implemented by local governments in developing countries, where technology and resource constraints render the sorts of customized messaging that has typically been used to deliver them in developed countries unfeasible. The results further confirm that raising awareness about how much water an individual consumes, and comparing this consumption level with peers, can go a long way in helping change individuals’ behavior regarding the use of a finite resource such as water. -
Publication
Particulate Matter and Labor Supply: The Role of Caregiving and Non-Linearities
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2016-04)This paper examines the effect of air pollution on labor supply in Lima, Peru. It focuses on fine particulate matter (PM2.5), an important pollutant for health according to the medical literature, and shows that moderate levels of pollution reduce hours worked for working adults. The research design takes advantage of rich household panel data in labor outcomes to address omitted variables and allows investigation of whether the response to air pollution is non-linear. The analysis finds that the effect of moderate pollution levels on hours worked is concentrated among households with susceptible dependents, that is small children and elderly adults, while the highest concentrations affect all households. This suggests that caregiving is likely a mechanism linking air pollution to labor supply at moderate levels. Further evidence of this mechanism is provided using DHS data on children morbidity for the same time period. Finally, no evidence is found of intra-household attenuation behavior. For instance, there is no re-allocation of labor across household members, and earnings decrease with air pollution. -
Publication
The Cost of Coastal Zone Degradation in West Africa: Benin, Côte d'Ivoire, Senegal and Togo
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2019-03-13)West Africa’s coastal areas host about one third of the region’s population and generate 56 percent of its GDP. They are home for valuable wetlands, fisheries, oil and gas reserves, and high tourism potential. However, these areas are affected by severe pressures: rapid urbanization along the coast has increased the demands on land, water, and other natural resources; man-made infrastructure and sand extraction have contributed to significant coastal retreat; moreover, climate change and disaster risks are exacerbating these threats. As a result, coastal areas are undergoing alarming environmental degradation leading to deaths (due to floods, air and water pollution), losses of assets (houses, infrastructure) and damages to critical ecosystems (mangroves, marine habitat). This study estimates in monetary terms the Cost of Environmental Degradation (COED) in the coastal areas of Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Senegal, and Togo. Specifically,it values the impacts of degradation that occur during one year, as a result of three major factors: flooding, erosion, and pollution (from water, air and waste). The final results are expressed in 2017 prices. They are reflected in absolute (USD) and in relative terms, as percentage of the countries’ GDP. Overall, the COED of the four countries is estimated at aboutUSD 3.8 billion, or 5.3 percent of the countries’ GDP in 2017. Flooding and erosion are the main forms of degradation, accounting for more than 60 percent of the total cost. Moreover, coastal degradation causes over 13,000 deaths a year, primarily due to air and water pollution, and to floods. -
Publication
Particulate Matter and Labor Supply: The Role of Caregiving and Non-linearities
(Elsevier, 2017-11)This paper examines the effect of air pollution on labor supply in Lima, Peru. We focus on fine particulate matter (PM2.5), an important pollutant for health according to the medical literature, and show that moderate levels of pollution reduce hours worked for working adults. Our research design takes advantage of rich household panel data in labor outcomes to address omitted variables. This research design allows us to investigate whether the response to air pollution is non-linear. We find that the effect of moderate pollution levels on hours worked is concentrated among households with susceptible dependents, i.e., small children and elderly adults; while the highest concentrations affect all households. This suggests that caregiving is likely a mechanism linking air pollution to labor supply at moderate levels. We provide further evidence of this mechanism using data on children morbidity. Finally, we find no evidence of intra-household attenuation behavior. For instance, there is no re-allocation of labor across household members, and earnings decrease with air pollution. -
Publication
Analysis of the Impact of Investments in Disaster Risk Reduction and Prevention in Mexico: Case Study of Tabasco between 2007 and 2011
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2017)In the late nineties, the Mexican Government has implemented a fiscal risk management policy for natural disasters through the creation of the Mexican fund for natural disasters (FONDEN). The case of Tabasco presents a unique opportunity to analyze the impact of the investments in disaster risk reduction (DRR) in Mexico. The purpose of this report is to assess the impact of said investments in the state of Tabasco between 2007 and 2010 and to analyze, on the basis of empirical evidence, the effectiveness and efficiency of the implementation of risk reduction measures in the country. Due to its geographical location and hydrological characteristics, the state of Tabasco has been affected by 33 hydrological disasters, such as intense rainfall events, floods, and tropical storms, over the last ten years. The analysis confirms that the DRR measures implemented after the 2007 floods played a key role in reducing the damages and losses sustained in the 2010 events. The first section of this document presents background information on the state of Tabasco, how fiscal risk management is handled upon natural disasters in Mexico, and an overview on the creation and implementation of the Plan Hidrico Integral de Tabasco (PHIT). The second section presents the methodology used for assessing the impact of the investments in DRR measures implemented after 2007. The third section analyzes the advantages of both methods, the implications of the results obtained, and the potential of investments in DRR as a cost-effective measure to mitigate the impact of adverse weather events. -
Publication
Land Values, Property Rights, and Home Ownership: Implications for Property Taxation in Peru
(Elsevier, 2017-12-30)This paper evaluates the effect of property rights on property values in Peru. Previous research on squatting has shed light on how the provision of formal land titles affects a number of socioeconomic outcomes and a subset of this research has provided estimates on how the provision of formal titles affects property values. However, the phenomenon of squatting encompasses a variety of informal property rights distinct from the possession of a legal title. Using an exceptionally rich household data set including geo-location at the community level we study the effects of both formal and informal property rights on property values. Having a title increases property values by almost 7 percent and squatting on the land by invasion reduces values by about 6 percent. Using these estimates, we determine the potential losses of property tax revenue and are able to study the issue of squatting in the context of public finance. -
Publication
Mangroves for Coastal Protection: Evidence from Hurricanes in Central America
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2019-03)This paper evaluates whether mangroves can mitigate the impact of hurricanes on economic activity. The paper assembles a new, regionwide panel data set that measures local economic activity using nightlights, potential hurricane damages using a detailed hurricane windstorm model, and mangrove protection by mapping the width of mangrove forests on the path to the coast. The results show that hurricanes have negative short-run effects on economic activity, with losses likely concentrated in coastal lowlands that are exposed to both wind and storm surge hazards. In these coastal lowlands, the estimates show that nightlights decrease by up to 24 percent in areas that are unprotected by mangroves. By comparison, the impact of the hurricanes observed in the sample is fully mitigated in areas protected by mangrove belts of one or more kilometers. -
Publication
Weathering Storms: Understanding the Impact of Natural Disasters on the Poor in Central America
(World Bank, Washington, DC, 2016-06)In the past decades, natural disasters have caused substantial human and economic losses in Central America, with strong adverse impacts on gross domestic product per capita, income, and poverty reduction. This study provides a regional perspective on the impact of hurricane windstorms on socioeconomic measures in the short term. Apart from modeling the socioeconomic impact at the macro and micro levels, the study incorporates and juxtaposes data from a hurricane windstorm model categorizing three hurricane damage indexes, which lends a higher level of detail, nuance, and therefore accuracy and comprehensiveness to the study. One standard deviation in the intensity of a hurricane windstorm leads to a decrease in growth of total per capita gross domestic product of between 0.9 and 1.6 percent, and a decrease in total income and labor income by 3 percent, which in turn increases moderate and extreme poverty by 1.5 percentage points. These results demonstrate the causal relationship between hurricane windstorm impacts and poverty in Central America, producing regional evidence that could improve targeting of disaster risk management policies toward those most impacted and thus whose needs are greatest. -
Publication
Weathering Storms: Understanding the Impact of Natural Disasters in Central America
(Springer, 2018-05-22)In the past decades, natural disasters have caused substantial human and economic losses in Central America, with strong adverse impacts on gross domestic product per capita, income, and poverty reduction. This study provides a regional perspective on the short-term impact of hurricane windstorms on socioeconomic indicators. Apart from modeling the socioeconomic impact at the macro and micro levels, the study incorporates and juxtaposes data from a hurricane windstorm model categorizing three hurricane damage indexes, which lends a higher level of detail, nuance, and therefore accuracy and comprehensiveness to the study. One standard deviation in the intensity of a hurricane windstorm leads to a decrease in growth of total per capita gross domestic product of between 0.9 and 1.6%, and a decrease in total income and labor income by 3%, which in turn increases moderate and extreme poverty by 1.5 percentage points. These results demonstrate the causal relationship between hurricane windstorm impacts and poverty in Central America, producing regional evidence that could improve targeting of disaster risk management policies toward those most impacted and thus whose needs are greatest.