Research

Economic access is a central dimension of food security, yet cross-country empirical work has limited measures that link the purchasing power of low-income populations to food expenditure across countries. We introduce the socio-economic index of food security (SEF), defined as the ratio between the per capita income of the bottom 20 percent of the income distribution and average per capita food expenditure. Using data from 110 countries, we examine the ability of SEF to explain cross-country differences in the prevalence of undernourishment (PoU), the Food and Agriculture Organization indicator of insufficient dietary energy intake. SEF explains a substantial share of cross-country variation in undernourishment. On average, a 1 percent increase in SEF is associated with a 0.25 percent lower PoU. The relationship is non-linear, with quantile regressions showing stronger effects at higher levels of food insecurity, where estimated elasticities range from −0.19 at the 25th percentile to −0.34 at the 95th percentile. Interestingly, an affordability measure based on the purchasing power of the poorest quintile captures cross-country differences in dietary-energy undernourishment more accurately than measures based on national-average income. SEF is therefore best understood as a globally comparable indicator of economic access to food, complementing household-level and multidimensional food security measures.

Housing is a major component of U.S. wealth, yet the long-run impact of tropical cyclones on housing markets remains poorly understood. This paper presents a systematic analysis of all U.S. coastal counties exposed to tropical cyclones from 1992–2021. I find housing values decline by 15% over eight years. Losses are most persistent in counties with little prior cyclone exposure, while high-risk counties rebound. Rising insurance premiums depress housing prices, yet facilitate reconstruction in high-risk areas. A model of heterogeneous risk perception shows how cyclone experience shapes insurance demand and drives divergent long-run housing outcomes.

Severe floods significantly worsen firm creditworthiness in developing economies. Using proprietary IFC credit ratings for 3,243 firms (1994–2021) matched to global flood events, I find that a single severe flood deteriorates ratings by 20% within three years, a three-notch downgrade equivalent, primarily through balance sheet weakening, with no significant increase in defaults among IFC’s large borrowers. Repeated exposure reveals partial adaptation at moderate levels (2–4 floods) but renewed deterioration beyond five events. This provides the first causal evidence from emerging markets that climate shocks erode private firm credit quality, with critical implications for development finance as hazard frequency rises.

This paper investigates the impact of wind turbine visibility on tourism outcomes. Using data from Italy from 1998-2019, we show that the visibility of wind turbines reduces tourist arrivals by 20%, with the effect peaking approximately seven years after installation. The effect is mainly driven by rural areas. Tourist spending follows a similar pattern, declining by about 19%. We further estimate that tourism-related losses offset up to 40% of the CO₂ emission savings resulting from wind turbine installations. These findings highlight the need for policies that mitigate local externalities while preserving broader environmental benefits.

We study a Fuel Price Transparency Reform in Italy, according to which stations have to prominently display the previous day’s regional average price next to their own current price. In contrast to the stated objective of the reform, we find no evidence that prices in Italy decreased. Matching stations within Italy, we find that those stations who are located in relatively high-priced stations set relatively higher prices post-reform, suggesting that the competitive pressure of these stations was reduced. The price increase is substantial, corresponding to roughly twice the margin of dealers of branded stations pre-reform.