This book presents essential insights on environmental policy derived from behavioral economics. The authors demonstrate the potential of behavioral economics to drive environmental protection and to generate concrete proposals for the efficient design of policy instruments. Moreover, detailed recommendations on how to use “nudges” and related instruments to move industry and society toward a sustainable course are presented. This book addresses the needs of environmental economists, behavioral economists and environmental policymakers, as well as all readers interested in the intersection between behavioral economics and environmental policy.

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This book presents essential insights on environmental policy derived from behavioral economics. The authors demonstrate the potential of behavioral economics to drive environmental protection and to generate concrete proposals for the efficient design of policy instruments. Moreover, detailed recommendations on how to use “nudges” and related instruments to move industry and society toward a sustainable course are presented. This book addresses the needs of environmental economists, behavioral economists and environmental policymakers, as well as all readers interested in the intersection between behavioral economics and environmental policy.

1. Introduction / Frank Beckenbach and Walter Kahlenborn -- 2. Innovative behavioral approaches to analyze the incentives of environmental instruments / Frank Beckenbach -- 3. Specification required? A survey of scientists' views about the role of behavioral economics for assessing environmental policy instruments / Maria Daskalakis -- 4. What can be learned from behavioral economics for environmental policy? / Markus Pasche -- 5. "Great transformation" towards sustainability and behavioral economics / Erik Gawel -- 6. Behavioral concepts as part of a participative political economics perspective / Peter Söderbaum -- 7. Behaviorally green: why, which and when defaults can help / Cass R. Sunstein and Lucia A. Reisch -- 8. Environmental behavior and fast and frugal heuristics / Florian M. Artinger, Ana Paula Bortoleto, and Konstantinos V. Katsikopoulos -- 9. Behavioral approaches to managing household energy consumption / Michelle Baddeley -- 10. Road pricing in Germany: a behavioral economics perspective / Erik Gawel -- 11. Implications of behavioral economics for designing adaptation policies / Christian Kind and Jonas Savelsberg -- 12. Sustainable behavioral governance: responsive regulation for innovation / Kilian Bizer and Martin Führ -- 13. Behavioral determinants of environmental innovation: a Carnegie-based approach / Maria Daskalakis -- 14. Conclusions and perspectives / Frank Beckenbach and Walter Kahlenborn