The Human Capital Transition and the Role of Policy

Abstract

Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy Working Paper No. 210 Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment Working Paper No. 185 The Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy (CCCEP) was established by the University of Leeds and the London School of Economics and Political Science in 2008 to advance public and private action on climate change through innovative, rigorous research. The Centre is funded by the UK Economic and Social Research Council. Its second phase started in 2013 and there are five integrated research themes: 1. Understanding green growth and climate-compatible development 2. Advancing climate finance and investment 3. Evaluating the performance of climate policies 4. Managing climate risks and uncertainties and strengthening climate services 5. Enabling rapid transitions in mitigation and adaptation More information about the Centre for Climate Change Economics and Policy can be found at: http://www.cccep.ac.uk. The Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment was established by the London School of Economics and Political Science in 2008 to bring together international expertise on economics, finance, geography, the environment, international development and political economy to create a worldleading centre for policy-relevant research and training. The Institute is funded by the Grantham Foundation for the Protection of the Environment and the Global Green Growth Institute. It has nine research programmes: 1. Adaptation and development 2. Carbon trading and finance 3. Ecosystems, resources and the natural environment 4. Energy, technology and trade 5. Future generations and social justice 6. Growth and the economy 7. International environmental negotiations 8. Modelling and decision making 9. Private sector adaptation, risk and insurance More information about the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment can be found at: http://www.lse.ac.uk/grantham. This working paper is intended to stimulate discussion within the research community and among users of research, and its content may have been submitted for publication in academic journals. It has been reviewed by at least one internal referee before publication. The views expressed in this paper represent those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent those of the host institutions or funders.

Cliometrics and the Evolution of Human Capital

“…Thus, the number of books increased substantially after the printing press, while the prices declined in the same way. Only during the Industrial Revolution, similar decreases in the cost of written documents were achieved thanks to mechanisation (Hippe and Fouquet 2018). Given the lower cost of books, it was also easier to teach students and it facilitated the development of written education.…”

“…On the other hand, the aim was to influence the values of the population, by e.g. enforcing a unique national language to be used in schools to homogenise the population, and by strengthening the identification of the future generations with the state (Hippe and Fouquet 2018).…”

Human Capital in European Regions since the French Revolution: Lessons for Economic and Education Policies

“…For example, Sweden passed a Church law in 1686 which aimed at raising literacy levels (or more specifically, reading ability levels). Later on, these economies were success-ful despite their relative remote location from the European core (Hippe and Fouquet [2019]). 11 How early this Church law in Sweden was passed becomes clear when comparing it with the first compulsory schooling laws in Europe.…”

“…Note that European governments had a variety of reasons to improve educational standards (see Hippe and Fouquet [2019] for details). Clearly, one of the reasons was economic in nature.…”

“…Nevertheless, the influence of the Orthodox Church was quite limited and educational levels were relatively low until independence from the Ottoman Empire (Crampton [2007]). In addition, the Catholic Church has also been an important supplier and demander of educational goods for many centuries (Hippe and Fouquet [2019]). In addition, it was a significant driver for the invention of the printing press by Gutenberg, as its demand indicated large potential profits that Gutenberg could generate by creating a new way of producing books (Hippe [2015]).…”