Environmental Economics

Environmental Economics

by Frank Givens

Rotary International has some great programs. If you don’t know about them, look on the website at Rotary.org and when you find something you are interested seek out a local Rotarian. He or she will be glad to help. Here are the three big ones. Most common is the Rotary Exchange program where a young person (ages 14 to 18) can attend high school in another country. Another is the Ambassadorial Scholarship for undergraduate and graduate students to study in another country. A third is called GSE (Group Study Exchange) and is a cultural and vocational exchange for those ages 25 to 40 in the early stages of their careers.

A few years ago, I had the good fortune of leading a GSE team of young professionals to Norway. You travel from community to community and visit people who are in your own profession. You attend Rotary Club meetings and tell about your home and work. You stay in the homes of local Rotarians. You are treated like royalty. On this trip I learned a valuable lesson about the economy of environmentalism.

When it comes to the environment we all want to preserve it for future generations. After that, there isn’t much consensus. But we know what happens to the goldfish bowl if the water doesn’t get changed. So where do we find solutions? First, the best thing for the environment is a strong free economy. You don’t see a strong economy unless it is free. And you don’t see a good environment unless the economy is strong. You might say that these factors are interdependent.

In Norway, they have had two environmental and economic disasters, not entirely of their own making. And they got one really big break for the economy. In the old days, their economy was built on fish and timber. At some point the waters were over fished and the fish stock became depleted. At some point the timber began to die from acid rain. Russia (that command economy, environmental disaster of a nation) was polluting the air.

When it affected their pocketbooks, Norwegians became environmentalists. Their big break came from oil in the North Sea. They are the third largest exporter of oil and gas. As a result, they have the national wealth to provide for the social systems that are in place.

So what does all this mean for us? We must protect our economy as well as our environment. Government can set policy. Education works. Beyond that, should government do more, can government spend tax dollars without harming the economy? Keynes may say yes, Friedman or Hayek would say no. Can the justice system rather than budgets keep the environment clean? What part of the resources can the government take to spend and we have a free economy? Does really big business become a branch of the government? Our children need to learn about economics. And there are some questions we can’t answer. That’s economics. So learn, participate, think and vote. That’s all folks.

Frank Givens, CPA, is a registered representative with and securities are offered through LPL Financial, Member FINRA/SIPC. Frank can be reached at frank.givens@lpl.com. The opinions voiced in this material are for general information only and are not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual.