Policy Practicum: Structuring Effective Carbon Markets

This policy lab project builds on Stanford Steyer-Taylor Center (STC) and Sustainable Finance Initiative (SFI) research and analysis on structuring effective carbon markets. It leverages related work and resources on campus, and engages with clients in the US government working to design effective US and International carbon markets. Steyer-Taylor Center and Sustainable Finance Initiative researchers have identified five key pieces to structuring effective carbon markets: (1) Carbon accounting for liabilities and assets in compliance and non-compliance markets; (2) scientific measurement issues covering quantity, duration and budgets; (3) property rights, mineral rights and legal issues underlying transactions; (4) market structure, securities, capital structures and trading infrastructure; and (5) regulation and the role of government actors. Students will work in small teams to help develop this vision for coordinated carbon markets by researching and writing (1) a series of position papers covering the five topics listed above (a top-down approach); and (2) case studies of specific transactions (a bottom-up approach). Policy lab students may contribute generally to papers on the five topics or they may develop a case study on a specific transaction. The project seeks graduate and upper-division students from law, public policy, economics, finance, environmental science, and the Graduate School of Business. Please email your questions to instructor Alicia Seiger (aseiger@stanford.edu). Elements used in grading: Attendance, Performance, Class Participation, Written Assignments, Final Paper. Apply by March 20 through the Policy Lab Consent of Instructor form. To access the consent application for this course, go to link SLS Registrar https://registrar.law.stanford.edu/ and then click SUNetID Login in the top right corner of the page.