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Gernot Wagner

Gernot Wagner

30 commentaries

Gernot Wagner is a climate economist at Columbia Business School.

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  1. The Climate Policy Pendulum
    wagner31_Westend61Getty Images_climatependulum Westend61/Getty Images

    The Climate Policy Pendulum

    Jan 16, 2025 Gernot Wagner notes that green technologies retain their many advantages, regardless of national political developments.

  2. What Will Trump’s Victory Mean for the Climate?
    wagner30_HoustonChronicleHearstNewspapersGettyImages_us_solar_plant_danger Houston Chronicle/Hearst Newspapers/Getty Images

    What Will Trump’s Victory Mean for the Climate?

    Nov 8, 2024 Gernot Wagner notes that the president-elect’s proposed policies will mainly harm America, not the global energy transition.

  3. The Best Climate Policy Puts Carrots Before Sticks
    schnitzer1_Michael P. FarrellAlbany Times Union via Getty Images_solarpanelsUS Michael P. Farrell/Albany Times Union via Getty Images

    The Best Climate Policy Puts Carrots Before Sticks

    Aug 8, 2024 Monika Schnitzer & Gernot Wagner show how the sequencing of positive and negative inducements can make all the difference.

  4. Averting Climate Catastrophe Requires Economic Growth
    terzi6_green transition degrowth Getty Images

    Averting Climate Catastrophe Requires Economic Growth

    May 1, 2024 Alessio Terzi & Gernot Wagner show why shrinking the global economy, as envisaged by advocates of degrowth, is a bad way to cut emissions.

  5. The Right Response to China’s Electric-Vehicle Subsidies
    wagner28_ PEDRO PARDOAFP via Getty Images_yellen PEDRO PARDO/AFP via Getty Images

    The Right Response to China’s Electric-Vehicle Subsidies

    Apr 5, 2024 Gernot Wagner & Shang-Jin Wei explains why the United States and the European Union are considering tariffs – and why that’s a bad idea.

  1. velasco156_Alex WroblewskiGettyImages_dnc_harris_buttons Alex Wroblewski/Getty Images

    How Liberals Lost America

    Andrés Velasco attributes Donald Trump’s return to power to Democrats’ embrace of both moral neutrality and moral preachiness.
  2. halland10_TERJE PEDERSENNTBAFP via Getty Images_norwayukraineaid Terje Pedersenntb/AFP via Getty Images

    Norway Should Cede Its War Windfall to Ukraine

    Håvard Halland & Knut Anton Mork say that the government's justifications for its war profiteering are disingenuous and short-sighted.
  3. bhide11_Anthony KwanGettyImages_deepseek Anthony Kwan/Getty Images

    Is DeepSeek Really a Threat?

    Amar Bhidé

    If vindicated, DeepSeek’s technology could be to large language models what Nikola Tesla’s breakthroughs with alternating current were to electrification. While it cannot overcome the unavoidable limitations of backward-looking statistical models, it could make their price performance good enough for wider use.

    explains what a purported Chinese AI breakthrough does and does not mean for the industry.
  4. spence180_Picture AllianceGettyImages_germany_annual_economic_report Picture Alliance/Getty Images

    What’s Wrong With Germany’s Economy?

    Michael Spence

    Germany became a European powerhouse partly because, in the early 2000s, its industrial sectors took over the highest-valued-added segments of global supply chains. Replicating this success today would require Germany to move to the forefront of the digital transformation, and it cannot do that without the EU.

    thinks the country’s prospects depend significantly on closing the digital-technology gap with the US and China.
  5. hausmann119_Christine OlssonGettyImages_northvolt_bankruptcy Christine Olsson/Getty Images

    When Companies Fail to Learn, They Learn to Fail

    Ricardo Hausmann explains how the inability to identify and address knowledge gaps can doom even the most promising projects.
  6. berahab1_LUDOVIC MARINAFP via Getty Images_gabonforest Ludovic Marin/AFP via Getty Images

    How to Make Carbon Pricing Work for Africa

    Rim Berahab & Otaviano Canuto argue that policies must be structured to facilitate, not obstruct, the continent’s shift to renewables.
  7. jma6_NurPhotoGettyImages_china_evs_trade NurPhoto/Getty Images

    Green Free Trade in a Protectionist Age

    Ma Jun envisions regional arrangements that facilitate the exchange of climate-friendly goods and services.
  8. mazarei1_Sayed HassanGetty Images_suezcanal Sayed Hassan/Getty Images

    Egypt’s Economic Crisis May Not Be Over

    Adnan Mazarei urges the international community to push for long-overdue governance and economic reforms.
  9. iyer2_SIA KAMBOUAFP via Getty Images_malariavaccine Sia Kambou/AFP via Getty Images

    Climate Displacement Is Also a Health Crisis

    Jayasree K. Iyer proposes a four-pronged strategy to ensure that essential medicines reach vulnerable populations.

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