Answering Energy and Climate Challenges With Rational Economic Policy

As U.S. and world energy challenges mount, public and political discussions frequently demonstrate disturbing misunderstandings of both the problems and the potential solutions. Three distinct problems — energy costs, geopolitical impacts of energy consumption, and the threat of extreme climate change — suggest different solutions that may not be well aligned with one another. Professor Borenstein will discuss the logic and fallacies behind existing and proposed public-policy responses. The energy challenges that the U.S. faces are serious, he argues, but by adhering to a few basic economic principles, the cost of meeting these challenges can be kept manageable.