The Economics of Environmental Inequality
This III research programme examines the interconnections between environmental change, inequality, and environmental policy. It examines how climate impacts and policy responses are distributed across countries, regions, and social groups, and how these inequalities shape both vulnerability to climate risks and the political feasibility of climate action.
The programme is led by Dr Clare Balboni and Dr Martina Pardy.
This programme focuses on how climate impacts and policy responses are distributed across countries, regions, and social groups, and how these inequalities shape both vulnerability to climate risks and the political feasibility of climate action. It responds to growing evidence that climate change disproportionately harms vulnerable populations, and that poorly designed climate policies—especially those that ignore who bears the costs—can trigger ‘green’ discontent and fuel environmental populism, weakening support for climate action.
The research programme will bring together leading experts at the LSE, in collaboration with external researchers, to build a cross-disciplinary intellectual community in this field.
The programme focuses on four themes:
- Unequal climate impacts – analysing how climate damages are unevenly distributed across socioeconomic groups and demographic categories such as race, gender, and age, and how these disparities influence vulnerability and perceptions of climate risk.
- Inequality and climate policy design – exploring how the costs and benefits of environmental policies are shared, and how distributional consequences shape public support or resistance to climate action.
- Representation and decision-making – investigating whose voices are included in environmental governance and how different social groups are prioritised in practice.
- The green transition – identifying mechanisms to ensure that transitions to a low-carbon economy contribute to, rather than undermine, shared prosperity.
- Dr Clare Balboni, Assistant Professor, Department of Economics, LSE
- Dr Martina Pardy, Postdoctoral Researcher, International Inequalities Institute, LSE and the University of Liverpool
- Professor Giles Atkinson, Professor of Environmental Policy, Department of Geography & Environment, LSE
- Philipp Bothe, PhD student, Paris School of Economics
- Dr Paolo Brunori, Associate Professorial Research Fellow, International Inequalities Institute, LSE
- Dr Michael Callen, Associate Professor of Economics, Department of Economics, LSE
- Dr Lucas Chancel – Associate Professor, Paris School of Economics & Sciences Po
- Tim Dobermann, Director of Research, International Growth Centre, LSE
- Sarah Elven, PhD Student, Department of Geography & Environment, LSE
- Professor Francisco H. G. Ferreira, Amartya Sen Professor of Inequality Studies, International Inequalities Institute, LSE
- Stephane Hallegatte, Chief Economic Adviser for Climate, The World Bank
- Dr Hannah Hasenberger, Teaching Associate, University of Cambridge
- Dr David Hope, Assistant Professor, Department of Political Economy, King’s College London
- Dr Amaia Palencia-Esteban, Assistant Professor, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia
- Dr Elisabetta Pietrostefani, Assistant Professor, University of Liverpool
- Capucine Riom, Economist, The World Bank
- Professor Andrés Rodríguez-Pose, Professor of Economic Geography, Department of Geography & Environment, LSE
- Dr Lukas Slothuus, Visiting Fellow, Department of Government, LSE
- Romano Tarsia, PhD Student, Department of Geography & Environment, LSE
- Dr Ben Tippet, Assistant Professor, King’s College London
- Dr Ana Varela Varela, Assistant Professor in Geographic Data Science, Department of Geography & Environment, LSE
- Dr Sofie Waltl, Assistant Professor, University of Cambridge
Climate Inequalities Mini-Conference - 19 March 2026
The Economics of Environmental Inequality programme are co-hosting the second Economics of Environment and Energy mini-conference on the topic of Climate Inequalities. Stephane Hallegate (the World Bank’s Chief Economic Advisor for Climate) will be presenting alongside another speaker (TBC). The programme will also include short student 'egg-timer’ presentations, offering an opportunity to receive feedback on research.
If you are interested in presenting, please email Agnes Norris Keiller (a.norris-keiller@lse.ac.uk).
- Global Sustainability Research Fund by the Global School of Sustainability at LSE on The Economics of Environmental Inequality