Sustainable development, Fiscal Policy and Natural Resources Management. Bolivia, Chile and Perú in the Nordic countries’ mirror

Research project The project is a collaborative network of researchers in Europe and Latin America. These researchers will develop a three-year project designed to consolidate a high quality network in the natural resources studies within the framework of sustainable development.

The aim of the project is to identify and compare natural resources policies of a group of Latin American countries that are rich in mineral resources and have a history of similar conflicts with the development of the Nordic countries. The project addresses mainly the historical development of the countries' natural resources policy and seek to identify lessons learned and success stories of relevance to current policy in low- and middle-income countries with significant reserves of natural resources. Project participants will provide an analysis of several indicators related to natural resources and sustainable development in the long term.

Project overview

Project period:

2017-01-01 – 2019-12-31

Participating departments and units at Umeå University

Faculty of Social Sciences

Research subject

Economic history

Project members

Ann-Kristin Bergquist Associate professor

Email

+46 90 786 76 56

Project description

ENGLISH

keywords: Sustainable development, divergence, Natural Resources

The project Sustainable development, fiscal policy, and management of natural resources. Bolivia, Chile and Peru in comparison with the Nordic countries is based on a collaboration between researchers in Europe and South America. The aim of the project is to identify and compare the development and performance of natural resource policy in a group of Latin American countries that are particularly rich in similar mineral resources and has a history of similar conflicts (Bolivia, Chile and Peru) with the development in the Nordic countries (Finland, Norway and Sweden). The project addresses mainly the historical development of the countries' natural resources policy and seek to identify lessons learned and success stories of relevance to current policy in low- and middle-income countries with significant reserves of natural resources. Project participants will provide an analysis of several indicators related to natural resources and sustainable development in a long-term perspective (1870-2015) using methods and analysis of economic history and related disciplines.

Three dimensions, or elements, will form the core of the project: i) Genuine Savings, which is a comprehensive measure of economic development and include the wear of natural resources and the degradation of the environment; ii) economic links between natural resources and the rest of the economy as measured by the structural changes (the capacity of countries to diversify their economies) and iii) fiscal indicators measuring the dependence on natural resources for the Latin American countries' public finances, and whether this relationship explains deficits and volatility in the state budget. A specific objective of the project is therefore to develop a comprehensive and consistent measure of development that makes it possible to compare the Latin American countries' long-term development in relation to the Nordic Council from the second part of the nineteenth century until today. To increase the understanding of macro developments will also analyse the company level to be performed by a number of cases that focus on the growth of these companies in relation to the sustainable management of natural resources and environmental risks. The project will generate at least six articles written individually or in cooperation of project participants, a book edited by project managers with chapter contributions from other project participants and invited authors.