Performative State Capacity and Climate (In)Action

Thiemo Fetzer and Immanuel Feld

No 18894, CEPR Discussion Papers from C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers

Abstract: Climate action requires significant public- and private sector investment to achieve meaningful reductions in carbon emissions. This paper documents that large-scale austerity, coupled with barriers to flows of data and a lack of (digital) skills in (local) government, may have been a significant barrier to delivering climate action in the form of retrofitting. Decomposing heterogeneity in estimated treatment effects of a large-scale energy efficiency savings program that was rolled out through a regression discontinuity design in the early 2010s, we find that both the extent of austerity-induced local budget cuts and poor digital connectivity -- may be responsible for up to 30% fewer retrofit installations that counterfactually would have taken place had it not been for austerity.

JEL-codes: C21 H54 H76 O33 Q54 Q58 R11 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024-03
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Related works:
Working Paper: Performative State Capacity and Climate (In)Action (2024)
Working Paper: Performative State Capacity and Climate (In)Action (2024)
Working Paper: Performative State Capacity and Climate (In)Action (2024)
Working Paper: Performative State Capacity and Climate (In) Action (2024)
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