(Nov 9) ENVR 201: Rebound Effects, Policy Paradoxes, and Environmental Governance

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering the economic mechanisms of rebound effects, Jevons' Paradox, game-theoretic paradoxes, and environmental tax policies.

Rebound Effect

The phenomenon in which some of the expected resource conservation from energy efficiency gains is lost to increased use, typically measured across studies between $20\%$ and $80\%$.

Jevons' Paradox

The extreme form of the rebound effect occurring when efficiency gains accelerate and increase total resource consumption rather than diminishing it, defined as a rebound effect $> 100\%$.

Wealth Effect (Rebound Channel)

An indirect rebound mechanism wherein monetary savings from energy efficiency improvements in one area are spent on consuming other energy-using goods and services.

General Equilibrium Growth Effect

A macroeconomic rebound channel in which efficiency-driven productivity gains create economic spillovers, leading to increased total consumption across the broader economy.

Green Paradox

The perverse outcome where the announcement of policies to phase out fossil fuels or develop cheap clean energy induces resource owners to rapidly liquidate reserves, accelerating climate change in the short term.

Braess's Paradox

A game theory phenomenon in traffic networks where adding capacity can worsen overall transit times, and conversely, removing a road can speed up traffic for everyone.

Autonomous Vehicle Cruising Problem

A game-theoretic perverse outcome analyzed by Millard-Ball (2019) where driverless vehicles avoid parking fees by cruising continuously at low speeds, worsening urban congestion.

Pigouvian Tax

A punitive tax designed to correct market failures by disincentivizing activities that generate negative externalities.

Earmarked Revenue

The policy mechanism of linking a specific revenue stream directly to a related domain of government expenditure, frequently implemented because it makes intuitive sense to voters.

Traveling Salesman Problem

A complex mathematical optimization puzzle that seeks the shortest path through a set of destinations, applied by data scientist Mortada Mehyar to map routes across U.S. Tesla Supercharger stations.

"Beer Fridge" Phenomenon

An appliance-level rebound effect where the acquisition of a new, high-efficiency refrigerator is accompanied by retaining the older, inefficient unit in secondary storage spaces, offsetting anticipated energy savings.

Collective Action Problem Policies

Government interventions—such as environmental taxes, performance standards, regulations, R&D subsidies, and public investments—aimed at overcoming coordination failures where individual incentives conflict with societal goals.