European Association
of Environmental and Resource Economists
David Pearce
European Lifetime Achievement Award in Environmental
Economics, 2005
"Integration of economy and environment is a consistent thread
in David Pearce's work - the idea that environment can and should be
given 'parity of esteem' in managing the macro and the micro economy
is at the heart of his contribution. He not only shows how it can be
done, but gets involved in making it happen; his engagement with the
UK government, the OECD, the World Bank, UN, European Commission and
many others have all been directed at giving substance in the policy
arena to our ideas. His books have numerous printings, and are translated
into many languages; both scholars and those in the policy process in
China, France, Greece, Italy, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Slovakia and Vietnam
can read his work in their own language. His 'Blueprint for a Green
Economy' (with Anil Markandya and Ed Barbier) shows that clarity, brevity
and simplicity can be a powerful combination in shaping the terms and
substance of the policy debate. The graduates of the Masters degree
in environmental economics at UCL has of course comprised the '5th column'
that has spread the Gospel of environmental economics throughout the
world."
- Frank Convery, Ireland
"Integration of economy and environment is also at
the heart of David Pearces work. As one of the true founders of
the discipline in Europe he has strived hard to advance not only the
academic discipline but also the real implementation of environmentally
sensible policies. As the author or editor of over 50 books (including
the famous "blueprint series") and over 300 papers, he has
been enormously prolific and through his writings and as advisor to
goverments and international organisations he has also been very influential
and effective. With the IIED, CSERGE and the Masters program in environmental
economics at the UCL he has created and worked with a series of very
influential organisations not only on the Brittish but the European
and International arena. "
- Thomas Sterner, Sweden
"David Pearce has done more than anyone to popularize
our subject and to bring it to the attention of policy makers: in the
UK, as advisor to Chris Patten, Margaret Thatchers Environment
Minister; in Europe; and the World Bank; and elsewhere. Today, government
officials and even the public understand and (sometimes!) accept the
advantages of emission taxes and tradeable permits but it was not always
so. The difference owes much to David Pearces tireless efforts
at using reason to defeat emotion and ideology. My guess is that his
Blueprint for a Green Economy, published in 1989 (with coauthors Ed
Barbier and Anil Markandya), isprobably the biggest selling environmental
economics book ever. And David continues to beat the drum: his latest
paper on the social cost of carbon is a stunning assessment of current
climate policy of the UK. His role in shaping the field has not been
confined to the published page. A founding member of EAERE, he also
established the first environmental economics masters program
in Europe (at University College London) and created (with Kerry Turner)
the Centre for Social and Economic Research on the Global Environment
(CSERGE), an environmental economics research organization. To conclude
with a personal reflection, David has been a mentor and friend to me,
He taught me the importance not only of having something to say, but
of saying it in a way that people could understand and perhaps even
remember."
- Scott Barrett, USA
"David Pearce's work on the normative aspects of cost benefit
analysis---particularly his concentration on the long-term implications
of ignored externalities and the costs of inaction---is seminal. The
challenge for those of us working in this area is to persuade policy
makers of the vital need to convert theory into action before historically-deferred
costs overwhelm us all."
- Pat Finnegan, Ireland
"I feel a little bit like the 6th husband of Zsa
Zsa Gabor: 'I know what is expected of me, but I do not know how to
make it
interesting'. But rather then make this little note interesting, let
me simply state the facts. I have been fortunate to know David and Karl-Göran
all the way back to my student days. There can be no better mentors.
I have benefitted, in too many ways to mention here, from their good
advice and kindness. Congratulations to both of you. With warm good
wishes."
- Bengt Kriström, Sweden
"Dear David
I am sure many will cite your enormous contribution to the field environmental
economics in terms of your brilliantly clear publications. While endorsing
this I would like to emphasise the personal support you have given to
so many people early on in their studies and careers. This had had a
wonderful impact on the lives of those concerned (and has lead a lot
of people to see this as their chosen career- so having a multiplying
impact on the field).
Like so many other people in the profession, my first positive contact
with the discipline of environmental economics was
initially through your writing followed shortly afterwards by your personal
support and encouragement. You have a genuine interest in helping young
people start out in the field. In my case I was a student at Exeter
who found your book on CBA the most accessible of all available texts.
I wrote to you, hardly expecting a reply. Instead I was given the warmest
encouragement (plus a shedload of reading!). That spirit and support
has endured throughout the now considerable years I have known you.
I feel very fortunate to have had such a great introduction to the field.
From all those with a similar debt - thank you!
Best wishes."
- Ian Bateman, UK
"For my part it is always a pleasure to see David.
David, together with Anil Markandya and Kerry Turner, were influential
in setting up the UK's first dedicated Masters programme for environmental
and resource economics. It is a measure of the respect associated with
that course, that quite a number of us are still working in the field,
in research, in public organizations, in business or in consultancy.
Thirteen years on, and with many other students having graduated, it
is always gratifying to know that David remembers and maintains contact
with so many of us."
- Craig Bullock, Ireland
"Maler and Pearce have my respect, the first for
hos insightful contributions to theoretical issues, the second for his
endless endeavors to assing values to the environment."
- Joseph Lekakis, Greece
"When I first joined the newly created OECD Environment
Directorate in 1971, I was told that OECD, as an economic organization,
would have to make a contribution to the economic aspects of environmental
protection. But at that time, environmental economics as such hardly
existed and the issue was either ignored or considered as minor by the
economic community. Thus, my first task was to contact the very small
number of economists who had given some thought to the issue, and to
gather them together for a four week "think tank". David Pearce
was a member of this select group, and this was my chance to start working
with him from the very beginning of the rich and remarkably fast developing
new discipline now recognized as "Environmental and Resources Economics"(1)
. This was the start of a long standing, and fertile cooperation. David
has made many major contributions to OECD, in particular on benefits
estimates, distributive implications and sustainable development. David's
"opus" and influence are immense, and his capacity to link
sound conceptual analysis with the "political economy" aspects
of environmental policy have helped shape environmental policies in
OECD countries. It has been, and still is, my great privilege to work
with him."
(1) The output of this Think Tank was the publication
for the 1972 Stockholm Conference of the OECD book "Problems in
Environmental Economics" which was the first publication covering
the key aspects on environmental economics.
- Jean-Philippe Barde, France
"It is impossible for me to put into a "short
paragraph" both the appreciation and the debt that I owe these
two great European environmental economists, Karl-Goran Maler and David
Pearce. Unfortunately, an unavoidable scheduling conflict means that
I will miss the Bremen conference, and so I cannot be there to honor
these two leading lights and their distinguished careers. I wish it
were not so.
Words fail me when I try to summarize what David Pearce means to me
personally and intellectually: mentor, friend, colleague, co-author
are all apt but somehow cannnot possibly summarize it. In my opinion,
there has never been - and possibly never will be - another economist
who has single-handedly shaped and influenced global environmental policy
the way David Pearce has and continues to do so. It was an honor to
have had the opporunity to work with David - from "Bluprint"
to biodiversity, from Rio to Zimbabwe. We worked hard; we played hard;
and most importantly, we discovered what economics should really be
about. Thank you, David, for teaching me that last lesson; it is with
me with every book, article or paper that I write today."
- Ed Barbier, USA
"It is difficult to me to think about a lifetime
achievement award in the field of Natural Resource and Environmental
Economics without having in the first position of the list to these
two excellent economists, Karl-Goran Mäler and David Pearce. Thank
them people like me working a little isolated in the beginning of his
career here in the South have found the intellectual stimulus to devote
their research effort to the development of this field. Thank you for
all and congratulations."
- Santiago J. Rubio, Spain
"David was the driving force in introducing environmental
and natural resource economics in Europe, and in applying the theory
in the work of international organizations like the OECD, EU, UNEP and
the World Bank. His influence can be llustrated by the fact that his
textbook "Economics of Natural Resources and the Environment"
(1990) (together with Kerry Turner) have been extensively used in universities
all over Europe and in the US, and it has been cited nearly 450 times!
(according to Google Scholar). David has been instrumental to my motivation
for venturing into environmental economics, and his encouragment when
I worked with him on national case studies on environmenmtal valuation
for the OECD in the late 1980s was crucial for my interest in applying
environmental economics to real life problems of decision makers in
both developed and developing countries.£
- Ståle Navrud, Norway
"David Pearce has made outstanding contributions
to major topics in environmental economics; his 'blueprint for a green
economy' still is a 'must' reading for any university."
- Raimund Bleischwitz, Germany
"K-G Maler and David Pearce have both in their different
ways been very influential and contributed greatly to the evolution
and wider international acceptance of the sub-discipline of environmental
and resource economics since the 1960s. Karl-Goran's work on the theoretical
frontiers (including for example the production function approach) of
the sub-discipline is widely acknowledged to have set the standards
for others to follow. More recently his work on natural resource accounting
and non-convex systems has set in motion a whole new wave of research
encompassing both developed and developing country economies. He has
truly earned his place in the environmental economists' 'hall of fame'.
David Pearce's contribution to the profession is no less
noteworthy. David's prolific applied economics work has spanned a large
range of policy-relevant issues and problems. His publications, above
all others, are always immensely lucid and readable analyses of complex
topics. The sub-discipline owes him an immense debt for there is no
doubt that his work has served to showcase environmental economics to
a range of audiences, not least students and the policy makers and related
communities. His interdisciplinary insights have also served to engage
economists with the natural scientists and many fruitful collaborations
have subsequently emerged. Both of these colleagues have greatly helped
and influenced me and I owe them a personal debt of gratitude. But their
real merit lies in the fact that I am only one of very many people who
have benefited from their wisdom. They are truly two of the main pillars
of modern environmental economic thought and the associated academic
community."
- Kerry Turner, UK
"David Pierce and his Masters Course at University
College London on Environmental and Natural Resource Economics have
been magnets for many interested in environmental policy and how the
tools of environmental economics can contribute. Year after year students
from across the world and from a wide range of disciplines learnt about
environmental economics. Year after year David facilitated the learning
of this diverse yet focused group, while at the same time addressing
the much wider audience of interested parties through the ever lengthening
set of publications and public addresses. He has been a cornerstone
of the development and uptake of environmental economics - on a global
scale. A major achievement. An equally major achievement has been the
time he has always made available for his ex students. The former merits
a strong applause and the latter, a heartfelt Thank You. "