Biophysical Economics: Historical Perspective and Current Research Trends
Author(s)
Cleveland, Cutler J.
Abstract
In the midst of current debates regarding environmental policy, standard economic models have often been criticized for their unsophisticated and unrealistic treatment of the crucial role of natural resources in human economic affairs. Many of these critiques spring from a broad body of research known as biophysical economics. Biophysical economics uses thermodynamic and ecological principles that emphasize the role of natural resources in the economic process. Although the emergence of a palpable environmental and ecological consciousness is a relatively recent phenomenon, the origins of biophysical economics are, in fact, far older. Dating back as far as the Physiocratic economists of the 18th century and the formulation of the laws of thermodynamics in the early 19th century, it is an area of research that has continued to evolve up to the present.
