Lucas Bretschger - Böcker

This volume includes a selection of papers presented at the conference “Susta- able Resource Use and Economic Dynamics” (SURED), held on Monte Verita ` in Ascona, Switzerland, in June 2004. Thirty years after the publication of the famous symposium issue of the Review of Economic Studies in 1974, which started the neoclassical literature on growth theory and resource economics. The conference sought to reinforce research efforts in order to provide adequate solutions for today’s challenges in the ?eld of sustainable development. The c- ference compiled innovative research from resource, energy and environmental economics, and dynamic economic theory. By bringing together leading experts, junior and senior scholars in these ?elds, it covered a broad range of aspects regarding the relationship between natural resource use and long-term economic development. The SURED conference made use of the wonderful surroundings on the “mountain of truth” and the remarkable history of the conference centre, which was shaped by the desire to return to a natural way of life. In this tradition, the conference aimed at ?nding ways of living in an economically developed world and at the same time taking into account the natural environment with its restr- tions and requirements. We take the opportunity to thank the staff of the Monte Verita ` centre for the hospitality and the excellent service.

This modern and comprehensive book offers a broad survey of economic growth theory, with special emphasis on the impact of natural resources on long-term development. The book begins with the standard growth models of the 1950s and 1960s and extends its analysis to the so-called 'new' growth theory, in which the long-term growth rate of an economy becomes an endogenous variable. The impact of positive spillovers, human capital formation, public services and innovation on the growth process are carefully studied. Using models and empirical illustration, the author evaluates to what extent growth theory is able to explain the huge international differences in living standards prevailing in the world today. The theoretical foundation is then used to consider the issue of sustainable growth under stricter environmental regulation. Growth Theory and Sustainable Development shows that the understanding of growth theory is an important key to predict the sustainability of long-term development, making it required reading for students of economic development and environmental economics.