Conference Agenda

Session
Track W8-1: Allocative and Value Effects of ESG
Time:
Wednesday, 22/May/2024:
8:30am - 9:15am

Session Chair: Pedro Matos, University of Virginia Darden School of Business
Discussant: Maxime Sauzet, Boston University
Location: Room 1203


Presentations

A Deep Learning Analysis of Climate Change, Innovation, and Uncertainty

Michael Barnett1, William Brock2, Lars Peter Hansen3, Ruimeng Hu4, Joseph Huang5

1Arizona State University; 2University of Wisconsin; 3University of Chicago; 4University of California Santa Barbara; 5University of Pennsylvania

We study the implications of model uncertainty in a climate-economics framework with three types of capital: “dirty” capital that produces carbon emissions when used for production, “clean” capital that generates no emissions but is initially less productive than dirty capital, and knowledge capital that increases with R&D investment and leads to technological innovation in green sector productivity. To solve our high-dimensional, non-linear model

framework we implement a neural-network-based global solution method. We show there are first-order impacts of model uncertainty on optimal decisions and social valuations in our integrated climate-economic-innovation framework. Accounting for interconnected uncertainty over climate dynamics, economic damages from climate change, and the arrival of a green technological change leads to substantial adjustments to investment in the different capital types in anticipation of technological change and the revelation of climate damage severity.


Barnett-A Deep Learning Analysis of Climate Change, Innovation, and Uncertainty-279.pdf