2024 Rachel Carson Distinguished Lecture by Geoffrey Heal

Geoffrey Heal, the Donald C. Waite III Professor of Economics at the Business School of Columbia University, presented the first lecture of the 2024 Rachel Carson Distinguished Anniversary Lecture Series on Jan 11, 2024. The title is "Biodiversity - the next frontier in economics. How can economists model the contribution that the biosphere makes to social and economic wellbeing?" 

Professor Heal has made significant contributions to economic theory and environmental economics. He currently explores developments in energy markets, the impact of climate change on business, and the economics of corporate social responsibility.

He serves as chair of the Board of the Coalition for Rainforest Nations and as a member of the board of the Union of Concerned Scientists. He has chaired a committee of the National Academy of Sciences on valuing ecosystem services, was a commissioner of the Pew Oceans Commission, was a coordinating lead author of the IPCC’s Fifth Assessment Report, and was a member of France president Nicolas Sarkozy’s Commission on the Measurement of Economic Performance and Social Progress.

Heal is the author of 18 books and about 300 articles. His latest book, Endangered Economies — How the Neglect of Nature Threatens our Prosperity, sets out the economic and business case for environmental conservation. He has been a principal in two start-up companies.

He is a graduate of Cambridge University, a member of the National Academy of Sciences and holds an honorary doctorate from the Université de Paris Dauphine.