Renewable energy (RE) has a strong synergy with some of the sustainable development goals (SDGs), thus its successful deployment can potentially result in an impact on these SDGs. In this study, we examine the synergy effect of renewable electricity on selected SDGs via the electricity prices for the European Union (EU) countries. Using panel data and a two-step estimation approach, our findings indicate a strong synergy effect between renewable electricity prices, SDG 7 (affordable and clean energy) and SDG 8 (decent work and economic growth). The results further reveal that SDG 12 (responsible production and consumption) accounts for most of the future renewable electricity price variation (excluding self-effect), whereas future variation in SDG 7 (affordable and clean energy) and SDG 13 (climate action) are explained mostly by SDG 8 and SDG 12, respectively.

It is widely recognized that combating malnutrition for women is central not only for their own health but also for the attainment of nutritional adequacy for future generations, including infants, children and adolescents. Attaining adequate nutrition for women is necessary throughout their life, but particularly so before, during and after pregnancy, if intergenerational nutritional adequacy is to be attained. Adequacy of nutrition also helps an individual become more productive and saves medical treatment costs that may otherwise have occurred. However, India’s less than satisfactory record of female, infant and child nutrition underscores the need to take urgent steps, particularly if the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are to be attained. With this as the background the present chapter focuses on the role of agriculture in providing adequate nutrition for women and the methods through which women in the rural sector can leverage existing institutions and programs to ameliorate nutritional inadequacy. This would require the design of informative indices of nutritional attainment and close cooperation in policy between governments, civil society organizations and international advisory groups. The chapter reviews some ways in which these can be attained.

Food insecurity and malnutrition are still major challenges for large proportions of households in Sab-Saharan Africa. The empirical literature on food demand, however, suggest mixed evidence on the roles of income and other socio-economic attributes on food demand. This study analyses the food demand amongst households in Rwanda, based on nationally representative household expenditure and demographic (EICV4, 2013/14) survey data. The results show that poor households consume food containing higher carbohydrates and starches. Further, the study finds that majority of rural households spend sparingly on micronutrients from animal products, suggesting that effective targeted food policy interventions for poor and rural households may play important role in reducing incidence of malnutrition through improving food diets.… Read more

The ambitious UN-adopted sustainable development goals (SDGs) have been criticized for being inconsistent, difficult to quantify, implement and monitor. Disparaging analysis suggests that there exists a potential inconsistency in the SDGs, particularly between the socio-economic development and the environmental sustainability goals. Critiques also raise questions on the measurability and monitoring of the broadly framed SDGs. The goals are non-binding, with each country being expected to create their own national or regional plans. Moreover, the source(s) and the extent of the financial resources and investments for the SDGs are ambiguous. This chapter quantifies and examines the inconsistencies of the SDGs. It further inspects which of the underlying social, economic or environmental pillars are that most effective for achieving sustainable development. Analyses of the data reveal that the developed countries need to remain focused on their social and environmental policies. The developing countries, on the other hand, are better off being focused on their economics and social policies in the short run, even though environmental policies remain significant for sustainable development.

Do microfinance institutions (MFIs) operate in a monopoly, monopolistic competition environment or are their revenues derived under perfect competition markets? We employ the Panzar–Rosse revenue test on a global panel data to assess the competitive environment in which MFIs of five selected countries operate: Ecuador, India, Indonesia, Peru and Philippines, over the period 2005–2009. We estimate the static and the dynamic revenue tests, with analyses of the interest rate and the return on assets. We control for microfinance-specific variables such as capital-assets-ratio, loans-assets and the size of the MFI. The analyses also account for the endogeneity problem by employing the fixed-effects two-stage least squares and the fixed-effects system generalized method of moments. Our results suggest that MFIs in Peru and India operate in a monopolistic environment. We also find weak evidence that the microfinance industry in Ecuador, Indonesia and Philippines may operate under perfect competition.

There is broad scientific consensus that increasing global emissions at current rates will result irreversible climate change. The global commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals and the Paris agreement tries to address this concern with policy changes. But top-down approaches including voluntary emission cuts do not seem politically feasible in all countries. In this paper, we show that moderate voluntary emission cuts (policy) supplemented by technological developments and changes in consumption tastes and preferences induced by educating individuals (stakeholder engagement) could help achieve emission targets. We use a novel dynamical systems modeling approach based on economic theory to show the quantitative tradeoffs between these different approaches. Using this model, we also show how economic development may be balanced by global emissions reductions so that, initially, developing economies can continue along their current growth trajectories and eliminate poverty, and eventually bear more of the emissions reduction burden.

This chapter compares public attitudes to environmental protection in Estonia with those in neighbouring Baltic states. Data from the Estonian Environmental Survey (The Chair of Environmental Economics. Tallinn University of Technology, Tallinn, 2010) and ISSP Environment III are compared and analysed using an ordered logit. Support for environmental protection is measured in the form of willingness of individuals to make financial sacrifices through higher prices and higher taxes or accepting a cut in their standard of living, in order to protect the environment. Results show that the demand for the protection of the environment tends to increase with income. There are some differences between public attitudes in terms of willingness to accept cuts in the standard of living and willingness to pay higher taxes and prices. Higher education is another determinant of support for environmental protection, particularly in Estonia.