Moving to Cleaner Skyes: Age-Specific Effects of Exposure to Pollution on Health and Human Capital by Aline Butikofer

Join us for the latest Applied Economics Research Seminar Series event, Spring Term 2025.

Aline Bütikofer, from the Norwegian School of Economics, will present this week's seminar on Moving to Cleaner Skyes: Age-Specific Effects of Exposure to Pollution on Health and Human Capital.

Abstract

This paper investigates the long-term and age-specific consequences of early childhood exposure to pollution by exploiting the sharp decline in imported sulfur dioxide in Norway following the enactment of the 1979 Convention on Long-Range Transboundary Air Pollution. We find that cohorts born after 1980 in municipalities experiencing significant reductions in pollution exposure saw greater improvements in education, earnings, and health outcomes at age 30 than those born in municipalities with minimal initial exposure. To further examine age-specific effects, we embed a movers' design in our analysis, leveraging relocations that generate sharp variations in exposure levels - both in magnitude and direction - across different ages. Our findings highlight the critical importance of early-life exposure, irrespective of its duration.

The seminar will begin with a presentation and will end with a Q and A session.

It will be held in the Economics Common Room at 2pm on Thursday, 3 April 2025. This event is open to all levels of study and is also open to the public. To register your place and gain access to the webinar, please contact the seminar organisers.

This event is part of the Applied Economics Research Seminar Series.