Syllabus and Course Outline
August 25, 2025
Name: Byeong-Hak Choe.
Assistant Professor of Data Analytics and Economics, School of Business at SUNY Geneseo.
Ph.D. in Economics from University of Wyoming.
M.S. in Economics from Arizona State University.
M.A. in Economics from SUNY Stony Brook.
B.A. in Economics & B.S. in Applied Mathematics from Hanyang University at Ansan, South Korea.
Choe, B.H., 2021. “Social Media Campaigns, Lobbying and Legislation: Evidence from #climatechange and Energy Lobbies.”
Question: To what extent do social media campaigns compete with fossil fuel lobbying on climate change legislation?
Data include:
Choe, B.H. and Ore-Monago, T., 2024. “Governance and Climate Finance in the Developing World”
Climate finance refers to the financial resources allocated for mitigating and adapting to climate change, including support for initiatives that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and enhance resilience to climate impacts.
Choe, B.H. and Newbold, Steve, “Estimating the Value of Statistical Life (VSL) through Big Data”
VSL is the monetary value associated with reducing the risk of death.
Email: bchoe@geneseo.edu
Class Websites: 1 GitHub Course Website 2 Brightspace Course Shell
Office: South Hall 227B
Office Hours:
This course will focus on the role of the environment in the theory and practice of economics.
Emphasis is given to the role of market failure in explaining the existence of pollution, to alternative public policies for pollution control and environmental management, and to problems associated with energy and climate change policies.
It will make use of microeconomic analysis at the intermediate level and will incorporate real-world examples.
Your team’s proposal should critically examine a climate change issue by:
All required books are open access with free PDF files:
An Introduction to Energy Economics andz Policy, by Massimo Filippini and Suchita Srinivasan (Henthforce, FS)
Microeconomics and the Environment, by Brian Roach, Erin Lennox and Anne-Marie Codur (Henceforth, RLC)
Energy Economics and Policy, by Brian Roach and Jonathan M. Harris (Henceforth, RH)
The Economics of Renewable Energy, by David Timmons, Jonathan Harris and Brian Roach (Henceforth, THR)
The Economics of Global Climate Change, by Jonathan M. Harris, Brian Roach and Anne-Marie Codur (Henceforth, HRC)
\[ \begin{align} \quad\\ &\text{(Total Percentage Score)} \\ = &\;\;\;\, 0.05 \times \text{(Attendance)} \\ &+ 0.05 \times \text{(Quiz & Participation)}\\ &+ 0.20 \times \text{(Homework)}\\ &+ 0.20 \times \text{(Team Project)}\\ &+ 0.50 \times \text{(Exams)} \end{align} \]
You are allowed up to 6 absences without penalty.
For each absence beyond the initial six, there will be a deduction of 1% point from the Total Percentage Grade.
The single lowest homework score will be dropped when calculating the total homework score.
\[ \begin{align} &\quad(\text{Midterm Exam Score})\\ &= \max\left\{0.50 \times \text{(Midterm 1 Score)} + 0.50 \times \text{(Midterm 2 Score)},\right.\\ &\qquad\quad\;\,\left.0.33 \times \text{(Midterm 1 Score)} + 0.67 \times \text{(Midterm 2 Score)}\right\}. \end{align} \]
The Midterm Exam Score will be the higher of the following two calculations:
Midterm Exam 2 is cumulative.
\[ \begin{align} &(\text{Total Exam Score}) \\ =\, &\text{max}\,\left\{0.50\times(\text{Midterm Exam Score}) \,+\, 0.50\times(\text{Final Exam Score})\right.,\notag\\ &\qquad\;\,\left.0.25\times(\text{Midterm Exam Score}) \,+\, 0.75\times(\text{Final Exam Score})\right\}.\notag \end{align} \]
The Total Exam Score will be the higher of the following two calculations:
Final Exam is cumulative.
Make-up exams will not be given unless you have either a medically verified excuse or an absence excused by the University.
If you cannot take exams because of religious obligations, notify me by email at least two weeks in advance so that an alternative exam time may be set.
A missed exam without an excused absence earns a grade of zero.
Late submissions for homework assignment will be accepted with a penalty.
A zero will be recorded for a missed assignment.
All homework assignments and exams must be the original work by you.
Examples of academic dishonesty include:
Geneseo’s Library offers frequent workshops to help you understand how to paraphrase, quote, and cite outside sources properly.
Unless AI tools are explicitly permitted for homework or in-class quizzes, you must complete your work independently.
This means you should not use tools like ChatGPT for any aspect of our coursework.
Such use is a form of academic dishonesty. Use of such tools is not only cheating, it will also cheat you of the opportunity to learn and develop your own skills.
While AI will undoubtedly play important roles in our future society, you will be better able to utilize AI if you have developed your own critical thinking, writing, and analytical skills by doing your own work.
If you have any questions about this, please ask.
The Office of Accessibility will coordinate reasonable accommodations for persons with physical, emotional, or cognitive disabilities to ensure equal access to academic programs, activities, and services at Geneseo.
Please contact me and the Office of Accessibility Services for questions related to access and accommodations.
To get information about career development, you can visit the Career Development Events Calendar (https://www.geneseo.edu/career_development/events/calendar).
You can stop by South 112 to get assistance in completing your Handshake Profile https://app.joinhandshake.com/login.