David Popp

David Popp is a professor of public administration and international affairs, a senior research associate in the Center for Policy Research, and the Caroline Rapking Faculty Scholar in Public Administration and Policy. David is also a research associate of the National Bureau of Economic Research, a research network member in the Energy & Climate Economics Research Group of CESifo, and a co-editor for two journals: the Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists and Environmental and Resource Economics. 

Popp's research interests are in environmental policy and the economics of technological change. Much of his research focuses on the links between environmental policy and innovation, with a particular interest in how environmental and energy policies shape the development of new technologies that may be relevant for combating climate change.

His work has been funded by the National Science Foundation and the U.S. Department of Energy, and has been published in a variety of economics and policy journals, including American Economic Review, the Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Nature Energy, and the Journal of Policy Analysis and Management. His 2002 publication in the American Economic Review, “Induced Innovation and Energy Prices,” was one of two articles selected for the 2017 Association of Environmental and Resource Economists Publication of Enduring Quality Award.

Popp has served on the U.S. General Accounting Office Expert Panel on Climate Change Economics, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Advisory Council on Clean Air Compliance Analysis and the Advisory Committee of the Green Growth Knowledge Platform, and has consulted for the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development and the World Bank.

Popp received a B.A. in political economy from Williams College in 1992, and a Ph.D. in economics from Yale University in 1997.

Principle Investigator. "Does Government Funding Change What You Do? The Effects of Funding on the Direction and Impact of Academic Energy Research," with Daniel Acuna. Funded by the Sloan Foundation. 2020-2023.

Principal Investigator. “Can Green Government Spending Aid Employment Transitions in a Low Carbon Economy?” Funded by Environment and Climate Change Canada’s Economics and Environmental Policy Research Network (EEPRN), 2019-2020.

Contractor. “Program on Integrated Assessment Inter-Model Development, Testing, and Diagnostics.” Funded by the United States Department of Energy. 2013-2016.

Principal Investigator. “Using Scientific Publications to Evaluate Government R&D Spending: The Case of Energy.” Funded by the National Science Foundation. 2011-2014.

Contractor. “Integrated Assessment Model Development, Comparison, and Diagnostics Project.” Funded by the United States Department of Energy. 2010-2013.

Co - Principal Investigator. "DRU:  An Improved Model of Endogenous Technical Change Considering Uncertain R&D Returns and Uncertain Climate Response." Funded by the National Science Foundation. 2008-2011.

Selected Papers

“Environmental Regulation and Green Skills: an empirical exploration.” Vona, Francesco, Giovanni Marin, Davide Consoli, and David Popp. Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists, (October 2018), 5(4), 713-753. 

“From Science to Technology: The Value of Knowledge From Different Energy Research Institutions.” David Popp. Research Policy, November 2017, 46(9), 1580-1594.

“Economic Analysis of Scientific Publications and Implications for Energy Research and Development." David Popp, Nature Energy, Vol. 1, No. 4 (2016), pp. 1–8.

“The Learning Process and Technological Change in Wind Power: Evidence from China’s CDM Wind Projects." Tian Tang and David Popp, Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, Vol. 35, No. 1 (Winter 2016), pp. 195-222.

“Necessity as the Mother of Invention: Innovative Responses to Natural Disasters." Qing Miao and David Popp, Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Vol. 68, No. 2 (September 2014), pp. 280-295.

“Renewable Energy Policies and Technological Innovation: Evidence Based on Patent Counts." Nick Johnstone, Ivan Haščič, and David Popp, Environmental and Resource Economics, Vol. 45, No. 1 (2010), pp. 133–155.

“Induced Innovation and Energy Prices.” David Popp, American Economic Review, Vol. 92, No. 1 (March 2002), pp. 160-180.