Economics and Ecology : New frontiers and sustainable development

In the Summer of 1991, Bob Carling, who was then Life Sciences Editor of Chapman & Hall, approached me over the possibility of producing an edited volume of works on economics and ecology. As we discussed the matter further, what became clear is that there is a growing literature on the frontiers of both disciplines that has involved economists borrowing from ecology and ecologists borrowing from economics. We decided that this volume should try to provide a small cross-section of that literature. I was very much interested in editing this volume for several reasons. First, one of my principal interests in economics has been how the economic analysis of natural resource and environmental problems can benefit from the concepts and lessons learned from other disciplines, in particular ecology. I was grateful at having the opportunity to pull together a selection of readings that illustrate how the integration of the two disciplines can lead to fruitful analysis. Second, I was also aware that, as Director of the London Environmental Economics Centre and as a Senior Researcher at the International Institute of Environment and Development, I was fortunate to have worked with or to have known a number of economists and ecologists whose work would be ideal for this volume. I was delighted that so many of my friends and colleagues were as enthusiastic about this project as I, and agreed to participate.