Adam Smith Center

Great article explaining the meaning and significance of the 4th of July! Well worth reading.

What the Declaration of Independence Said and Meant "The adoption of the Declaration, and the public affirmation of its principles, led directly to the phased in abolition of slavery in half of the United States by the time the Constitution was drafted--as well as the abolition of slavery in the Northwest Territory."

300 years of Adam Smith, born on June 16!

Happy 300th, Adam Smith! "He really did help to establish a presumption of liberty—that is, 'allowing every man to pursue his own interest his own way' as a presumption." ~ Dan Klein

This week marks the 300th birthday of Scottish moral philosopher and economist Adam Smith! His ideas today are as relevant as when they were first published.

Adam Smith understood that we need each other The thinker's views of human sympathy, beneficence, justice, and the division of labor still resonate.

Check out this recent paper that our research fellow Praharsh Mehrotra wrote on Malaysia’s energy transition!

Praharsh Mehrotra (Adam Smith Center) was on BFM 89.9 to discuss the contents of the paper "Energy Transition in Malaysia: An Ecomodernist Perspective", which he co-authored with Bryan Cheang. The paper was published by the Center for Market Education and is available for free download here: https://marketedu.me/policy-papers/

Listen to the podcast here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thqR3tk96ts&t=5s

Here's wishing everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

We wanted to also take the chance to remind everyone of the online courses that we've spent the entire year developing on FutureLearn, a global MOOC platform. They are all on Environmental Economics and feature various specialists!

Online courses from Adam Smith Center The Adam Smith Center is an independent, non-profit organisation in Singapore dedicated to economics and public policy education.

NEW COURSE: ENVIRONMENTAL ETHICS 🌎🌱

Science and economics provide data, information and knowledge. Scientific knowledge alone, however, does not provide any moral or ethical impetus for environmental protection. The emerging field of environmental ethics complements climate science and asks: How should we live? Why should we care?

In this five-week, online course, you will explore humanist, modernist, and other environmental perspectives. These include deep ecology, eco-socialism, eco-modernism and various ecotheologies.

Hosted on FutureLearn, this brand new course is led by Dr. Bryan Cheang and Connor Tomlinson from British Conservation Alliance, the UK's largest environmental campus action network.

Our new FutureLearn course is ready for you!

Join course today: https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/environmental-ethics

WORLD POPULATION DAY 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦

World Population Day offers a moment to celebrate human progress. This milestone may stoke Malthusian concerns over unsustainable growth and the fear of “too many” people. However, a fixation on numbers often lead to coercive and counterproductive measures. Rather than seeing population growth as a problem, environmental optimists like Julian Simon remind us that human ingenuity is the ultimate resource and engine for progress.

Hosted on FutureLearn, this brand new online course is led by Dr. Gale Pooley, Professor of Business Management at Brigham Young University-Hawaii. In this course, we explore the Simon Abundance Index and a unique framework jointly developed by Dr. Marian Tupy and Dr. Gale Pooley, which measure the different degrees of resource abundance.

Join course today: https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/overpopulation-resource-depletion-and-human-innovation

POPULATION GROWTH: BOON OR BANE? 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦

Overpopulation was a global fear in the early 1970s. Explore the problem of overpopulation through the lens of Thomas Malthus and environmental optimist, Julian Simon.

Hosted on , this brand new online course is led by Dr. Gale Pooley, Professor of Business Management at Brigham Young University-Hawaii. In this course, we investigate the depletion of resources in relation to overpopulation. We explore the Simon Abundance Index and a unique framework developed by Dr. Marian Tupy and Dr. Gale Pooley, which measure the different degrees of resource abundance.

Join course today: https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/overpopulation-resource-depletion-and-human-innovation

RENEWABLE AND LOW-CARBON ENERGY ☀️☁️

When it comes to , the winds of change are here. This , learn more about the innovative, low-carbon solutions in our energy mix today. Will this energy transition herald a cost-effective and climate-friendly future?

Hosted on , this 4-week online course is led by Jordan McGillis from The Institute for Energy Research and Dr. Bryan Cheang from the Adam Smith Center. The course explores climate change through a prism of , and , introducing learners to theories and concepts in environmental economics. Aside from policy proposals, the course also surveys various energy sources and cutting-edge innovations which are paving the way to a more sustainable climate future.

Our new FutureLearn course is ready for you!

Join course today: https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/climate-change-and-public-policy

WHAT IS A POLYCENTRIC APPROACH TO ENVIRONMENTALISM? 🍃🌐

In the second week of our latest course, we unpack Elinor Ostrom’s concept of polycentricity. Rather than imposing a blanket blueprint across the board, Ostrom preferred what is called a ‘polycentric’ alternative, where local communities and public entrepreneurs experiment with their own solutions.

Hosted on FutureLearn, this new online course is led by Dr. Erik Nordman, Professor of Natural Resources Management at Grand Valley State University, USA. Specifically, we delve into the paradigm-changing work of Nobel laureate Elinor Ostorm, the first woman to win the Nobel Prize in Economics. Through case studies of community-led, bottom-up approaches in the real-world context, learners will better understand the merits of self-governance over the top-down approach.

Join course today: https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/environmental-management-bottom-up-approach-policy-implementation

WHO IS ELINOR OSTROM? 🎓

In the first week of our latest course, find out how Ostrom shattered the glass ceiling in the field of Economics. As the first female Nobel laureate in Economics, Ostrom believed in applying an interdisciplinary and community-centric approach to improve the way we manage our natural resources.

Hosted on FutureLearn, this new online course is led by Dr. Erik Nordman, Professor of Natural Resources Management at Grand Valley State University, USA. Specifically, we delve into the paradigm-changing work of Elinor Ostrom. Through case studies of community-led, bottom-up approaches in the real-world context, learners will better understand the impact of self-governance and its advantages over the top-down approach.

Join course today: https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/environmental-management-bottom-up-approach-policy-implementation

💻 NEW ONLINE COURSE 💻

While inspiring, the bottom-up approach to environmental policy is sometimes overlooked. This approach accumulates and assimilates elements of local knowledge into broader blueprints for a climate-friendly future.

Hosted on FutureLearn, this new online course is led by Dr. Erik Nordman, Professor of Natural Resources Management at Grand Valley State University, USA. Specifically, we delve into the paradigm-changing work of Elinor Ostrom. Through case studies of community-led, bottom-up approaches in the real-world context, learners will better understand the impact of self-governance and its advantages over the top-down approach.

Join course today: https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/environmental-management-bottom-up-approach-policy-implementation