Q Why Economic Conservatives are really environmentalists The Kuznets Curve The Environmental Kuznets Curve is used to graph the idea that as an economy develops, market forces begin to increase and economic inequality decreases. More specifically that as the economy grows, initially the environment suffers but eventually the relationship between the environment and the society improves. The Curve is represented by an inverted U curve. The graph’s Y-axis is labeled as inequality, while time or per-capita income is depicted by the X-axis. In other words, the theory suggests that as a nation is going through industrialization, and mechanization of agriculture – the nation’s economy will naturally move towards cities. Inequality is expected to decrease when rural populations move towards urban cities. The Kuznets Curve-Explained What Causes Environmental Problems?Links to an external site. Before we can find the best solution, we need to understand the nature of our environmental troubles. From deforestation to polluted oceans and dirty air, environmental problems can be traced to what economists call “the tragedy of the commons.” The tragedy occurs when no one owns a particular resource, so no one has a strong enough incentive to take care of it. Economists Terry Anderson and Laura Huggins highlight the dilemma by explaining why no one ever washes a rental car Links to an external site.: No One Washes a Rental CarLinks to an external site. by Terry Anderson and Laura E. Huggins via Hoover Institution Have you ever washed a rental car? Barring some unusual circumstance, such as the car is caked in so much mud that you can’t see out the window, the answer is almost certainly no. “Unlike the rental car company, which is quick to wash, wax, and polish, we don’t wash rental cars because we don’t own them and thus will reap no rewards from their future rental or sale value. The owner of the car, however, by maintaining the car, captures a return in the rental and resale market.” When you own something, you have a significant financial stake in preserving and improving it. In contrast, when a resource is held in common, people don’t have as many reasons to care for it. Instead, they overuse or abuse it. You can see examples of the tragedy of the commons in all sorts of environmental issues. Deforestation, overfishing, and even air pollution all happen because no one owns the environmental good in question, so no one has incentives to ensure the resources aren’t squandered. B.4.2.4 Advanced Explanation- Common Resource- Tragedy of the Commons QuickWrite Question: 1. Can Privatization-Private Property lead to better outcomes for the environment? Assignment Requirements: This is not an analytical paper, but a summary analysis of your knowledge of the concepts in this chapter. Students ARE NOT to cut and paste from the internet. You are welcome to add cited sources to your response. The response should be about 300 words (one page). Students posting less than a 300 word response will get reduced or no credit. Students may want to construct this response on a Google Doc and then post or submit the item to this portal. These responses are run against public sources via Turnitin.com (running inside Canvas) Submitting an Assignment via Google.Doc. - You can also just paste the text into the box