Economists and climatologists share research at International Workshop on Econometric Applications in Climatology

The University of Guelph will welcome climatologists and economists to campus this week, two groups that, on the surface, have little in common.

At the International Workshop on Econometric Applications in Climatology, they will share their research on how econometrics – specialized statistical methods developed to analyze economic data sets – can help with the analysis of climate data.   

The two-day interdisciplinary workshop, taking place from April 21 to 23, will welcome experts from Norway, Russia, the United Kingdom and the U.S. Led by professor Ross McKitrick, it is an opportunity for sharing expertise and building opportunities for future collaboration.

 “I’ve been in contact with a lot of people in econometrics who are curious about working with climate data sets, as well as those in the climate field who have data sets but need expertise in analyzing them,” said McKitrick.

“While econometricians are recognized as experts in applying statistical methods to economic data, the same techniques also work for studying climate data.”

One economist who will be presenting at the workshop is professor James Davidson from the University of Exeter’s Department of Economics who recently used techniques for finance sector data to analyze ice core data.

“Climatologists have debated whether, in very long ice core records, changes in temperature lead to changes in atmospheric carbon dioxide levels or vice versa, but they haven't had the statistical methods to work out a convincing answer,” McKitrick explained.

“It turns out there are methods from the analysis of co-movements of financial stock prices that can answer this question quite precisely, and professor Davidson will be presenting some new results at the workshop that will help settle the question.”

In addition to Davidson’s talk, topics will also include trend estimation, polar regions, climate models and climate datasets. The agenda also features two keynote addresses: professor Trevor Dickinson from the University of Guelph’s Department of Engineering, will speak on “Disentangling Impacts of Climate and Land Use Changes in Ontario” and Judith Curry from Georgia Tech University’s Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences will present “How Do Climatologists Think About Uncertainty?”

The workshop is supported by the College of Business and Economics and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC). For more information, visit the workshop’s website.