Sriniketh Nagavarapu
Assistant Professor of Economics and Environmental Studies:
Department of Economics and Center for Environmental Studies
Phone: +1 401 863 6279
Sriniketh_Nagavarapu@brown.edu
I study environmental and labor economics, primarily in developing countries. My interests in both areas involve using econometrics and economic theory to better understand the linkages between individual decision-making, environmental forces, and poverty alleviation.
Biography
I am originally from Torrance, California, and I received a B.A. in Economics from Stanford University in 2002. While in college, I participated in research on welfare programs in the U.S., including Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Food Stamps, and Medicaid. I further developed my interest in labor economics in graduate school, working on issues in both the U.S. and developing countries. My interest in environmental economics arose naturally from my dissertation research, which examines the potential consequences of a further expansion of Brazilian ethanol production for deforestation and regional development, with a focus on the crucial role of the labor market in land use decisions.
I joined the Brown faculty in July 2008, with a joint appointment in Economics and CES. The links above and my homepage (to the right) give more information about my background and my research/teaching interests.
Interests
My research examines issues in both environmental and labor economics, primarily in developing countries. Currently, I am involved in research on the potential for expanding ethanol production in Brazil – and the accompanying rise in sugarcane production – to increase deforestation. I develop and estimate an empirical model of Brazil's regional agricultural and labor markets to predict land use changes in various parts of the country.
Several of my interests in environmental economics stem from this project. One line of inquiry concerns the link between natural resources and labor markets. For instance, in the coming year, I will begin work with an inter-disciplinary group investigating the social, economic, and ecological causes and consequences of land owners' decisions in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso, an important area for deforestation. I also hope to develop a potential project on fishing communities in the Gulf of California, jointly with collaborators interested in marine policy. Another line of inquiry involves a host of issues related to alternative energy, especially bio-fuels. For example, I am interested in further examination of the sugarcane/ethanol sector in Brazil, with possible topics ranging from the health of sugarcane workers to the role of ethanol distilleries in electricity production.
In terms of purely labor economics, I am currently studying the schooling decisions of Argentine households during the 2002 financial crisis. In the coming months, I will begin preliminary investigation on a project involving childhood malnutrition in Uttar Pradesh, India, with a focus on understanding why the vast government resources spent on food programs have been ineffective.
Awards
2007-2008: Taube/Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research Fellowship
Spring 2006: Teaching Assistant Award, Stanford University
2002-2005: National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship
2002-2005: Stanford Graduate Fellowship (Koret Foundation)
Spring 2002: Anna Laura Meyers Award for Economics Honors Theses, Stanford University
Spring 2001: Phi Beta Kappa, Stanford University
Affiliations
Population Studies and Training Center, Brown University
Spatial Structures in the Social Sciences, Brown University
American Economics Association
Adjunct Staff Member, RAND Corporation
Teaching
ENVS 1350-Environmental Economics and Policy: This course covers the economic analysis of environmental issues, with an emphasis on the implications for designing appropriate policy measures. Specifically, we will cover the valuation of and demand for environmental goods; the basic theory of economic markets and market failure in the presence of externalities; private and government solutions to market failure; the role of uncertainty in policy-making; and the special concerns involving open trade environments and trans-boundary pollution, on a national and global scale. We will study the applications of these concepts to issues such as climate change, land use, air and water pollution, and energy.
ECON 2510-Economic Development I: This course covers issues related to labor, land, and natural resource markets in developing countries, in partial and general equilibrium settings. Topics covered include: The standard household model, under complete and incomplete market assumptions; household and individual labor supply, income maintenance programs, migration, self-employment, and the informal sector; land markets and land distribution issues, including sharecropping models; and environmental issues, with special attention to land use, air pollution, water usage, and potential consequences of climate change.
