The Biofuels Act of 2006 (RA 9367) was legislated to reduce the Philippines’ dependence on imported fuels and to protect public health and the environment. Under the Act, the Department of Energy (DOE) is authorized to increase the proportion of biodiesel blend upon the recommendation of the...

The Filipinos’ vision for themselves by 2040 is for them to enjoy a stable and comfortable lifestyle, having enough for their daily needs and unforeseen expenses, so they can plan and prepare for their own and their children’s futures. This paper looks at one major commodity that bears...

This study proposes a new mechanism for the resource curse: crowding-out of innovation due to the existence of an option to engage in conflict. Using a game theoretical framework, it is argued that an increase in the amount of natural resources (in the informal sector where conflict for a...

We develop a continuous time dynamic game to provide with a benchmark theory of Arab Spring-type events. We consider a resource-dependent economy with two interacting groups, the elite vs. the citizens, and two political regimes, dictatorship vs. a freer regime. Transition to the freer regime...

We propose a new methodology exploring Markov perfect equilibrium strategies in differential games with regime switching. Specifically, we develop a general game with two players having two kinds of strategies. Players choose an action that influences the evolution of a state variable, and...

This study proposes a new mechanism for the resource curse: crowding-out of innovation due to the existence of an option to engage in conflict. Using a game theoretical framework, it is argued that an increase in the amount of natural resources (in the informal sector where conflict for a...

This paper examines whether lax environmental policy and abundant natural resources both attract foreign direct investment (FDI). At first, their potential effects are discussed using arguments from the pollution haven hypothesis and the natural resource curse. Using cross-country Ordinary Least...

Using a laboratory experiment, we study the impact of a sudden increase in the common-pool size on within-group fighting, i.e. the paradox of the plenty. We also consider the role of leader behavior in avoiding this paradox. In the first stage, a randomly chosen leader of the group determines...

By examining annual data (1994-2003) for 15 countries from East Asia and the Pacific, this study provides an analysis of the effects of political institutions and other socioeconomic factors on deforestation. Results show that economic prosperity does not automatically cause higher environmental...