Person:
Polasky, Stephen

Profile Picture
Author Name Variants
Fields of Specialization
Ecological Economics, Environmental Economics, Natural Resources Economics, Game Theory, Sustainability Science
Degrees
ORCID
0000-0003-4934-2434
External Links
University of Minnesota/Stephen Polasky
Google Scholar
Externally Hosted Work
Contact Information
Last updated: February 21, 2024
Biography
Stephen Polasky is a Regents Professor and the Fesler-Lampert Professor of Ecological/Environmental Economics at the University of Minnesota. His research focuses on issues at the intersection of ecology and economics including the value of ecosystem services and natural capital, biodiversity conservation, land use, sustainability, common property resources, and environmental regulation. He is a co-founder of the Natural Capital Project. He served as Senior Staff Economist for environment for the President’s Council of Economic Advisers. He was a coordinating lead author for the Global Assessment of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES). He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, and a Fellow of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He has a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Michigan.

Filters

2020 - 20253
Reset filters

Settings

Statistics
Citations

Publication Search Results

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
  • Thumbnail Image
    Publication
    Nature's Frontiers: Achieving Sustainability, Efficiency, and Prosperity with Natural Capital
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2023-06-27) Damania, Richard; Polasky, Stephen; Ruckelshaus, Mary; Russ, Jason; Amann, Markus; Chaplin-Kramer, Rebecca; Gerber, James; Hawthorne, Peter; Heger, Martin Philipp; Mamun, Saleh; Ruta, Giovanni; Schmitt, Rafael; Smith, Jeffrey; Vogl, Adrian; Wagner, Fabian; Zaveri, Esha
    The great expansion of economic activity since the end of World War II has caused an unprecedented rise in living standards, but it has also caused rapid changes in earth systems. Nearly all types of natural capital—the world’s stock of resources and services provided by nature—are in decline. Clean air, abundant and clean water, fertile soils, productive fisheries, dense forests, and healthy oceans are critical for healthy lives and healthy economies. Mounting pressures, however, suggest that the trend of declining natural capital may cast a long shadow into the future. "Nature’s Frontiers: Achieving Sustainability, Efficiency, and Prosperity with Natural Capital" presents a novel approach to address these foundational challenges of sustainability. A methodology combining innovative science, new data sources, and cutting-edge biophysical and economic models builds sustainable resource efficiency frontiers to assess how countries can sustainably use their natural capital more efficiently. The analysis provides recommendations on how countries can better use their natural capital to achieve their economic and environ mental goals. The report indicates that significant efficiency gaps exist in nearly every country. Closing these gaps can address many of the world’s pressing economic and environmental problems—economic productivity, health, food and water security, and climate change. Although the approach outlined in this report will entail demanding policy reforms, the costs of inaction will be far higher.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Publication
    The Economic Case for Nature: A Global Earth-Economy Model to Assess Development Policy Pathways
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021-06-29) Johnson, Justin Andrew; Baldos, Uris; Cervigni, Raffaello; Chonabayashi, Shun; Corong, Erwin; Gavryliuk, Olga; Hertel, Thomas; Nootenboom, Christopher; Gerber, James; Ruta, Giovanni; Polasky, Stephen
    The Economic Case for Nature is part of a series of papers by the World Bank that lays out the economic rationale for investing in nature and recognizes how economies rely on nature for services that are largely underpriced. This report presents a first-of-its-kind global integrated ecosystem-economy modelling exercise to assess economic policy responses to the global biodiversity crisis. Modeling the interaction between nature’s services and the global economy to 2030, the report points to a range and combination of policy scenarios available to reduce the impact of nature’s loss on economies. This modeling framework represents an important steppingstone towards ‘nature-smart’ decision-making, as it seeks to support policymakers who face complex tradeoffs involving the management of natural capital, and hence achieving growth that is resilient and inclusive.
  • Thumbnail Image
    Publication
    Rohingya Refugee Camps and Forest Loss in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh: An Inquiry Using Remote Sensing and Econometric Approaches
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2022-02-28) Dampha, Nfamara K; Salemi, Colette; Polasky, Stephen
    How do refugee camps impact the natural environment This paper examines the case study of Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, a district that hosts nearly 1 million Rohingya refugees in refugee camps. Using spatially explicit data on land-use / land cover and proximity to a camp boundary, the paper quantifies land-use changes across the district over time. To evaluate the extent to which the camps triggered additional forest loss, the analysis calculates total forest loss in the district and uses a difference-in-difference model that compares areas 0–5 kilometers from a camp boundary (treatment) to areas 10–15 kilometers away (control). The findings show that the rate of forest loss intensified near camps relative to the control area. The analysis reveals that areas experiencing camp-stimulated reductions in forest cover are also experiencing faster settlement expansion relative to the control area. Settlement expansion is largely concentrated in areas outside protected areas. This enhanced settlement expansion still occurs when pixels 0–1 kilometer from the camps are omitted, which is evidence that the results are not due to camp settlements expanding beyond the official camp borders. The results suggest that camps stimulate in-migration as Bangladeshis seek new economic opportunities and improved access to resources.