We analyze the role of "the" utility discount rate and its implications to generation-specific and societal altruism and egoism, respectively, in a neoclassical framework. It is worked out clearly, that two different utility discount rates have to be distinguished: An (inverse)...

This paper analyses the choice of an inter-generational discount rate as well as a method for inter-generational discounting. It is shown that the pure time preference rate is irrelevant for inter-generational comparisons. However, the application of the growth time preference rate - with...

This paper analyses the choice of an inter-generational discount rate as well as a method for inter-generational discounting. It is shown that the pure time preference rate is irrelevant for inter-generational comparisons. However, the application of the growth time preference rate - with...

This paper investigates the sustainability of the German economy when reaching the Kyoto emissions reduction target. We use a special intergenerational discounting technique which actually takes into account intergenerational peculiarities in an overlapping generations modeling framework which...

We investigate the systematic intergenerational discounting of climate policy on basis of the neo-classical benefit-cost analysis. Reference point is the Ramsey-rule which results from optimal growth theory. The agents live infinitely long. This signifies that intergenerational comparisons do...