Optimal Adaptation and Mitigation

This lecture discusses the economically optimal adaptation and mitigation strategies to reduce the damage caused by climate change. It covers the concept of optimal adaptation, different forms of adaptation, the interplay between abatement and adaptation costs, and the challenges of cost-benefit analysis in the context of climate change. The instructor also explores the difficulties of assessing the value of ecosystem changes, the concept of discounting, and the limitations of cost-benefit analysis. Additionally, the lecture delves into decision rules, the importance of valuing environmental costs accurately, and the global efforts towards stabilizing greenhouse gas concentrations. The presentation concludes with a discussion on representative concentration pathways, the need for rapid reduction in GHG emissions, and the global mitigation challenge.