by Shawn Regan G. Pascal Zachary has a fascinating piece in the latest PERC Reports on how entrepreneurs are creatively adapting to the lack of property rights in Africa: In the lush highlands of eastern Uganda, mud is a valuable commodity— so long as it is “quality” mud, with certain characteristics coveted by residents whoContinue reading “Ugandan mud entrepreneurs and property rights”
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Economic Situation Report for March
by Bruce Yandle My latest Economic Situation Report for March 2011 is now available online. Read or print it online here [PDF].
PEI Success Story: Chris Corbin Turns Blue Into Green
by Reed Watson Anyone thinking of applying to PERC’s Enviropreneur Institute should watch this video of Chris Corbin, a 2008 PEI alum. In the video, Chris explains how property rights and markets allow environmentalists to keep water in stream and entrepreneurs to turn a profit while improving environmental quality. As Chris says, his company, Lotic,Continue reading “PEI Success Story: Chris Corbin Turns Blue Into Green”
Let Us Bid! The Story of Tim DeChristopher
Just hours before Tim DeChristopher made false bids in a BLM oil and gas lease auction, he took a final exam at the University of Utah. One of the test questions asked whether the sale prices at the auction would reflect the real value of the leases if the only bidders were from oil andContinue reading “Let Us Bid! The Story of Tim DeChristopher”
Annual Enviropreneur Issue of PERC Reports
By Laura E. Huggins “Every private sector entrepreneur has this incredible bias toward letting enlightened self-interest pull things along, and I fully believe this will happen,” says Gregg Carr who is creating a national park in Mozambique. Carr is finding that the fastest way to solve most environmental problems is with “economics not public policy”—aContinue reading “Annual Enviropreneur Issue of PERC Reports”
The Appealing Aspect of Forest Preservation
The U.S. Forest Service once provided nearly 25 percent of the nation’s timber consumption but today it provides less than 2 percent. The mandate has changed to forest preservation, a problem because forests are always changing and don’t preserve well. Protected acreage in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest is a case in point. Portions of the forestContinue reading “The Appealing Aspect of Forest Preservation”
Are we running out of resources?
by Pete Geddes Steve Horwitz addresses this modern economic myth:
How the market can keep streams flowing
With streams and rivers drying up because of over-usage, Rob Harmon has implemented an ingenious market mechanism to bring back the waterand fFarmers and beer companies find they have mutual interests.
The Green-Economy Mirage
Promises that green energy will change almost everypart of our lives for the better is an enchanting idea, but it is also a myth.
The False Promise of Green Energy
Hundreds of billions in government subsidies for green energy will not reduce pollution or revitalize the job market Competitve forces working in a free market are the most efficient and effective way to achieve these results.