Intermediate macroeconomics: Growth and Sustainability

Course goals

Learning objectives
At the end of the course the student is able to:

• Demonstrate knowledge of long-run trends in the macro-economy
• Describe key macroeconomic concepts and their measurement
• Explain the main macroeconomic theories in the area of long-run economic growth
• Apply theoretical knowledge to analyze real-life issues faced by countries in the long run
• Collect and confront data with theoretical knowledge and insights
• Develop a compact and instructed report on a specific subject, in groups.

Content

Contents
What drives the long-run growth in human living standards? How come certain countries grow faster? Can we maintain growth in a sustainable way? We discuss some of the persistent challenges  our economy faces, such as demographic change, natural resource scarcity, climate change and inequality. Building on fundamentals learned in Macroeconomics: European perspective (ECB1MACR), we deepen the knowledge on long-term growth and incorporate topics such as sustainability by using the tools of long-run macroeconomic models.
In this course, we explore data on the long-term trends of key macroeconomic outcomes such as total income per capita, drivers of economic growth, and measures of inequality between and within countries. We discuss how models of economic growth are used as tools to understand and analyze differences in economic growth across countries and over time. First, we focus on the role of labour and capital inputs through the lens of the Solow model. Next, we shift our attention to  technological change as a driver of growth by considering a framework that characterizes how new ideas develop in an economy and increase productivity. Finally, we consider the question: how can we have sustained growth while having finite natural resources? We incorporate natural resources into our growth model to account for depletion of our resources and analyze pollution as a by-product of production.

Academic Skills
Analytical skills
Ability to

• use algebra and graphical methods to analyse macroeconomic issues
• solve problems (identifying the problem, devising a path towards the solution, following this path, verifying the outcome) for more complex assignments.
• identify, interpret and critically evaluate the main line of reasoning, for more complex problems.

Academic reasoning
Ability to

• think conceptually and use a theoretical framework to identify how different economic variables relate to each other

Communication and social skills
Ability to

• explain complex and abstract issues and the underlying mechanisms to a broad audience.
• write a report on a specific subject
• communicate research results in a presentation
• work effectively in a team for a specific project
• provide constructive and effective feedback to peers

Effort requirements
The effort requirement consists of two parts:
- Attendance in 6 out of 8 of tutorials
- Submission of problem set preparation in 6 out of 8 tutorials

Courses that build on this course

• Advanced Mathematics (ECB3VWIS)
• Development and Growth (ECB3GD)