605 research outputs found
Individual Environmental Duties: Questions from an Institution-Oriented Perspective
No full textWhile Baatz provides an interesting account of individual climate duties, his account does not give much guidance with regard to particular acts, such as taking a flight. While everyone in the debate agrees that institution-oriented duties are important, the relevant question concerns the relation these have with lifestyle-oriented duties (supplement, priority, exclusion) (Bell 2005, Neuteleers 2010). In this comment, it is argued that the relation between institutions and duties is insufficiently examined and that Baatz therefore cannot deal with the following questions. First, what about the conflict between institution-oriented and lifestyle-oriented duties and what kind of actions do both types include? Second, Baatz includes the criterion ‘no moral weight’ in the answer to what can be reasonable demanded, but what will count as morally weighty (only distributive justice or other criteria such as perfection)? This comment will look at these questions by contrasting Baatz’ account with a more Rawlsian one.status: Publishe
Oil price instability, hedging, and an oil stabilization fund : the case of Venezuela
Get PDFThe Venezuelan government and PDVSA (Venezuela's state oil companies) are both exposed to oil price instability. Given the existing tax structure, PDVSA has a higher exposure than the government, especially when prices drop below $18-20 a barrel. The authors show that the volatility of prices for crude oil is higher (but not significant) than the volatility of prices for refined oil products. And both prices are highly correlated. So, there is not much strength to the argument that Venezuela, being now mainly an exporter of refined products, faces less volatility than when it was exporting mainly crude oil. The basis risk for hedging Venezuelan crude oil was founded to be higher than for other crudes of comparable quality in the region. One explanation could be the pricing policies Venezuela follows, which leads Venezuelan crude oil prices to deviate for long periods from international prices. The basis risk in Venezuelan refined products is much lower and at acceptable levels for risk management. The issue of liquidity is concentrated in contracts for periods of less than a year. For products, the liquidity is concentrated in the nearest 4-5 months. So, for short-term hedges (6-9 months ahead), there is sufficient liquidity for Venezuela to hedge a substantial part of its exports. For longer-term hedges, the over-the-counter market is the more appropriate vehicle. In either case, it will not usually be the case that all production or exports should be hedged. The authors also examined the issue of an oil stabilization fund. For an oil stabilization fund to be effective several preconditions must be met. Most notably: oil prices should not follow a random walk; financial markets are incomplete; and there are large adjustment costs. These conditions do likely apply in Venezuela. Venezuela's best strategy would be to remove as much short-term oil price risk as possible by using short-dated hedging instruments (such as futures, options, or short-dated swaps) and to also do some longer term hedging (using mainly over-the-counter options and long-dated swaps). They also find that an oil stabilization fund should be complemented by using market-based risk management tools. The oil stabilization fund could then be used to manage any remaining interperiod oil price risk to the extent considered necessary.Markets and Market Access,Environmental Economics&Policies,Oil Refining&Gas Industry,Energy and Environment,Energy Demand
A Fresh Look at ‘Relational’ Values in Nature:Distinctions Derived from the Debate on Meaningfulness in Life
No full textHow to deal with the redistributive impact of environmental goods? Assessing David Miller’s account
No full textThe provision of environmental goods has inevitably distributive implications because some will use or value environmental goods more than others. Most egalitarian theories of distributive justice, have been focused on the redistribution of privately-held goods and leave the redistributive impact of public goods, such as environmental goods, aside. One exception to this public goods gap in theories of justice is David Miller. According to Miller we need to measure the redistributive impact of public goods and develop a tax scheme which maximizes ‘equalizing of net gains’. Miller’s account has not been undisputed. According to Humprey, Miller ignores the irreplaceability of environmental goods. According to Hannis, Miller fails to make a distinction between wants and ideals. I will argue that Miller’s position can be maintained against these two criticisms. It will be, nevertheless, argued that there are fundamental desirability and feasibility problems with Miller’s approach in that it relies on economic valuation. A one-dimensional measure such as economic valuation is not suitable to deal with the incommensurable aspect of environmental goods. Dealing with incommensurability requires a more deliberative approach. Moreover, Miller’s approach reduces public goods to a matter of efficiency and distribution and leaves no room for value-based public goods.sponsorship: PhD Fellowhip of the Research Foundation - Flanders (FWO)status: Publishe
Does nature experience matter?:Why not to care too much about the link between nature experience and valuing nature
No full textIntroduction: Tendencies Towards Environmental Autocracy and Technocracy
No full textInternational audienc
Corrigendum: CT Angiography or Cardiac MRI for Detection of Coronary Artery Aneurysms in Kawasaki Disease (Frontiers in Pediatrics, (2021), 9, (630462), 10.3389/fped.2021.630462)
No full textAn author name was incorrectly spelled as Diana van Stijn-Bringas Dimitriades. The correct spelling is Diana van Stijn. The authors apologize for this error and state that this does not change the scientific conclusions of the article in any way. The original article has been updated
The Moral Economy: Why Good Incentives are No Substitute for Good Citizens S. Bowles, 2016 New Haven CT, Yale University Press xvi 272 pp, 20,00 (pb)
No full textTwee politiek-filosofische uitdagingen van het ecologisme: radicale rechtvaardigheid en autonomie
No full textThe importance of the environmental issue contrasts with the attention this issue received in contemporary political philosophy. This article examines the challenges the ecological crisis evokes for political philosophy. Looking at the ensuing ecological debate, the ecological crisis creates new challenges in two major fields: justice and the good life. Because of the ecological crisis, justice needs to be radicalised in time (future generations) and in space (global). The radicalisation of justice seems difficult to realise without authoritarian policy measures. This conflict with democracy is less apparent in political ecology. This political doctrine finds its distinctive character in the concept of autonomy. The aim of autonomy as a political act is to allow people to realise their conception of the good life. If there is a connection with the natural environment in this conception, it can be the base of an ecological political theory.status: Publishe
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