Robert Stavins, professor of public policy and faculty chair of the Environment and Natural Resources Program at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at the Kennedy School of Government, has been appointed chairman of the Environmental Protection Agency's Environmental Economics Advisory Committee (EEAC), for a two-year term effective retroactively from Oct. 1, 1997, to Sept. 30, 1999. The committee of 12 economists, who are leaders of environmental economic research, provides advice to the EPA administrator and deputy administrator on issues that affect the agency and its mission.

"Dr. Stavins has a long and distinguished career in environmental economics research and education. The experience and expertise he brings to this appointment are tremendously valuable as the agency prepares for the environmental and public health challenges in the coming century," said EPA Deputy Administrator Fred Hansen.

"EPA Administrator Carol Browner, and Deputy Administrator Fred Hansen are committed to drawing upon the expertise of EEAC to help expand and improve the use of economic analysis throughout the agency," said Stavins. "The EEAC membership is a dream team of leading environmental economists from across the United States. It is a real honor to succeed Kerry Smith and Paul Portney as the chairman of this outstanding group."

Stavins, an economist with primary interest in environmental and resource policy issues, is a University Fellow of Resources for the Future, and a member of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the board of directors of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, the

editorial council of The Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, and the editorial boards of several other scholarly journals.

"Rob Stavins is superbly well-qualified to lead EPA's Environment Economics Advisory Committee," said Graham Allison, director of the Belfer Center. "Whether analyzing or explaining economic dimensions of environmental policy, Stavins is knowledgeable, articulate, dedicated, and effective."

Stavins' current research includes analyses of: pollution-control technology innovation and diffusion; new methods of environmental benefit valuation; positive political economy of policy instrument choice; and estimation of carbon sequestration costs. His previous research has appeared in the American Economic Review, Journal of Economic Perspectives, Journal of Economic Literature, Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Ecology Law Quarterly, Journal of Risk and Uncertainty, Resource and Energy Economics, The Energy Journal, Energy Policy, Explorations in Economic History, Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, other scholarly and popular periodicals, and several books.

Stavins is widely known for his research and public-sector outreach efforts on market-based policy instruments for environmental protection. He directed Project 88, a joint venture conceived by Senators John Heinz and Timothy Wirth, to develop innovative approaches to environmental protection and resource management. Project 88 has been credited for laying the foundation for major legislative revision of the Clean Air Act in 1990, including the highly successful allowance trading program to reduce acid rain.

At the Kennedy School, Stavins teaches two courses: Environmental and Resource Economics and Policy and Economic Analysis of Public Policy. He also leads an advanced Seminar in Environmental Economics and Policy, jointly with Professor Martin Weitzman of Harvard's Department of Economics.

Harvard University is the only institution nationally to have three representatives on the 12-member EEAC, and all three are affiliated with the Kennedy School. The other two are Professor Dale Jorgenson (Department of Economics and the Kennedy School) and Professor Kip Viscusi (Harvard Law School and the Kennedy School).