Savings Choices and Climate Change Beliefs

Do people save more when concerned about climate change?

This paper empirically estimates the effect of climate change beliefs on savings using data from the UK Understanding Society survey. A stronger concern about climate change significantly increases savings, both on the intensive and on the extensive margin. The effect varies in size across the income distribution, with a larger effect on lower income individuals. The overall effect is consistent with a savings model including the risk of negative shocks to income caused by climate change, as people who perceive these risks will engage in precautionary savings.

In the webinar, Hannah will take us through this research and discuss her findings in a Q&A.

About Hannah

Hannah Römer is a DPhil candidate at the Department of Economics at the University of Oxford as well as a David Walton distinguished scholar for the academic year 2024-25. She is interested in questions at the intersection of environmental economics and macroeconomics, with a particular focus on heterogeneity and uncertainty. Before going to Oxford, she completed her two master's degrees (one in Mathematics, one in Management, Business and Economics) at RWTH Aachen. As an intern during the summer of 2023, she gained valuable policy experience at the International Monetary Fund.