Climate resilient development: Can macroeconomics face a climate in crisis?

As the devastating impacts of climate change are increasing, the need for adaptation is more urgent than ever - especially in the Global South. But how can one plan for climate justice in practice? Developing strategies tho help decide where and how to invest most efficiently is key for long-term climate resilience. Understanding the aggregate economic impacts of climate change more systematically is an important step in this direction.

Climate-sensitive macroeconomic modeling will be a critical tool in this context. It could help to understand the impacts of climate change on national economies, and analyze economic vulnerabilities and long-term welfare effects. Further, it could help avoid maladaptation through efficient cross-sectoral and long-term planning. But is the macroeconomic discipline stepping up to this challenge?

Join us for our webinar, organised in collaboration with the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), we will discuss these and more questions with leading experts in the field:

• What is the added value of climate sensitive macroeconomic modelling?

• Where is climate-sensitive macroeconomics at, and where is more work needed?

• How could macroeconomic modeling tools be made more readily available to developing and emerging economies where impacts are most pronounced but analytical resources are often limited?

Dr. Ulrich Volz is Professor of Economics and Director of the Centre for Sustainable Finance at SOAS, University of London.  He is also a Senior Research Fellow at the German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS), Visiting Professor at the LSE, and a Honorary Professor of Economics at the University of Leipzig. He has taught internationally and has held advisory roles for governments, central banks, international organisations and development agencies on matters of macroeconomic policy, sustainable finance and development. Ulrich has a leading role in numerous international initiatives to promote sustainable macroeconomics and sustainable finance, for example as the academic director of the University Network for Strengthening Macrofinancial Resilience to Climate and Environmental Change.

Iryna Payosova, PhD, is an Economist in the New Climate Economy Division of the World Resources Institute in Washington, DC. She holds a doctoral degree in Environmental and Energy Management from the George Washington University and an MSc degree in Agricultural and Resource Economics from the University of Arizona, as well as degrees in Biology, Economics, Environmental Science and Policy from the National University of “Kyiv-Mohyla Academy“, Kyiv, Ukraine. Prior to joining the WRI, Iryna has worked on climate and energy topics for the World Bank and the Environmental and Energy Studies Institute.

Dr. Christoph Schult is a researcher in the macroeconomics department of the Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung Halle (IWH). In addition to his doctorate, Christoph holds a master’s degree from Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and a bachelor’s degree from Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg. His research focuses on dynamic macroeconomics, forecasting, and energy economics.