Climate damages - accounting for the changing variability and extremes of temperature and precipitation

Abstract

Quantifying the economic impact of climate change is of vital importance for informing policy regarding both mitigation and adaptation. Such work requires an integration of knowledge and approaches from both the natural and economic sciences, combining understanding of how human emissions cause climatic change, and how such change can affect the economy. In this talk I will present recent and ongoing work in this area. In particular, I will focus on improving descriptions of climate impacts by quantifying and accounting for the changing variability and extremes of temperature and precipitation. The talk will touch on: a) climate-econometrics as a tool for causal impact identification, b) pattern-filtering methods for separating forced climate change from internal variability, and c) projected future climate damages and their policy implications.