Christopher Costello
Chief Economist
Work
Areas of expertise:
Natural resource economics, Environmental market design, Risk and decision-making under uncertainty, Climate policy and adaptation, Property rights and asset values, Marine policy, Land use, Biodiversity, Conservation economics, Data revolution and environmental management
Description
As Chief Economist, Chris leads a team of economists and analysts, collaborating with researchers, policymakers, and stakeholders globally to generate research and policy guidance that supports EDF’s mission. His work focuses on finding innovative, market-based solutions that are durable, equitable, and effective. This involves collaborating across disciplines, working with practitioners and policymakers, and thinking critically about how interventions affect human behavior.
Background
Chris is a distinguished professor of Environmental and Resource Economics at UC Santa Barbara and Director of the Environmental Markets Lab. He has been a long-time partner of EDF, previously serving as a research collaborator, member of the Economic Advisory Council, and trustee for over a decade. His research has focused on natural resource economics and policy, particularly environmental markets, property rights, and decision-making under uncertainty. He serves as an advisor to California’s Governor Newsom on the Council of Economic Advisors and was previously a trustee of The Nature Conservancy (California), Property and Environment Research Center, and Global Fishing Watch.
With over 100 peer-reviewed publications and extensive mentorship of PhD students and postdocs, Chris brings deep expertise in applying economic insights to global environmental challenges.
His many hobbies outside of work include cycling, gardening, woodworking, blacksmithing, beekeeping, and spending time with his family.
For more information about Dr. Costello’s work, please visit his personal webpage.
Education:
- Ph.D., Agricultural & Resource Economics, University of California, Berkeley
- MS, Agricultural & Resource Economics, Oregon State University
- BS, Environmental Economics & Policy, University of California, Berkeley
Publications
Villasenor-Derbez, J.C., Costello, C., et al. (2024). A market for 30x30 in the ocean. Science, 384, 1177-1179. DOI:10.1126/science.adl4019
Noack, F., & Costello, C. (2024). Credit Markets, Property Rights, and the Commons. Journal of Political Economy, 132(7), 2396-2450. DOI: 10.1086/729065
Costello, C., Cao, L., Gelcich, S., et al. (2020). The future of food from the sea. Nature, 588, 95–100. DOI:10.1038/s41586-020-2616-y
Leonard, B., Costello, C., et al. (2021). Allow “nonuse rights” to conserve natural resources. Science, 373, 958-961. DOI:10.1126/science.abi4573
Costello, C., Kotchen, M.J. (2022). Policy Instrument Choice with Coasean Provision of Public Goods. Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, 9(5), 947-980. DOI: 10.1086/717345
Severen, C., Costello, C., Deschênes, O. (2018). A Forward-Looking Ricardian Approach: Do land markets capitalize climate change forecasts? Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, 89, 235-254. DOI:10.1016/j.jeem.2018.03.009
Costello, C., Ovando, D., Clavelle, T., Strauss, C.K., Hilborn, R., Melnychuk, M.C., Branch, T.A., Gaines, S.D., Szuwalski, C.S., Cabral, R.B., Rader, D.N., Leland, A. (2016). Global fishery prospects under contrasting management regimes. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 113(18), 5125-5129. DOI:10.1073/pnas.1520420113
Costello, C., Quérou, N., Tomini, A. (2015). Partial enclosure of the commons. Journal of Public Economics, 121, 69-78. DOI:10.1016/j.jpubeco.2014.11.011
Costello, C., et al. (2012). Status and Solutions for the World’s Unassessed Fisheries. Science, 338, 517-520. DOI:10.1126/science.1223389