Agricultural Productivity and Deforestation

Dr. Garg will be presenting in person at Bren. Join us in Bren Hall 1414, or watch online using this link and passcode forests

ABSTRACT

Improving agricultural productivity is vital to anti-poverty and food security goals but can have ecological ramifications. Increasing the relative value of agricultural land may spur deforestation, but factor market constraints paired with improvements in existing land productivity may reduce the demand for clearing forests for agriculture. Leveraging the discontinuity in eligibility for a large agricultural training program, we find that the program reduced deforestation by 14%. The program increased adoption of promoted practices such as manure use and crop rotation driving higher productivity but no increase in cultivated area. Median estimates suggest that carbon savings alone cover 15% of program costs.

BIO

Teevrat Garg is an Associate Professor of Economics at the School of Global Policy and Strategy at the University of California in San Diego. His research is at the intersection of environmental and development economics with an emphasis on the role of public policy and institutions in fostering sustainable development, the renewable energy transition and adaptation to climate change. In recent years, he has conducted research in Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Mexico and Uganda. Teevrat’s work has been published in leading academic journals and covered by prominent media outlets such as the New York Times and Science Magazine. Prior to joining UC San Diego, Teevrat was a postdoctoral fellow at the London School of Economics and Political Science. He received a B.A. in Economics (with Honors) and a B.S in Mathematics from Lafayette College in 2010, and a PhD in Applied Economics and Management from Cornell University in 2015.

This talk will not be recorded.