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Course participants will develop an understanding of the key insights from economics and how they can be applied in policy and government settings. The economic approach to understanding decision-making will be examined in detail with special attention paid to key concepts such as: opportunity cost; incentives; trade-offs; markets and market failure. A key aspect of the course is developing a framework to think about how to blend markets with government to achieve the best outcomes for society. 

Course overview

Topics include: 

  • Key insights and introduction to the economic way of thinking
  • Markets and prices: demand, supply and elasticities
  • Government intervention: price controls
  • Government intervention: taxes
  • Government intervention: market failure, externalities and public goods
  • Summary: role of government

 

Learning outcomes:

  • Understand key microeconomic concepts
  • Develop the ability to analyse applied case studies in microeconomics
  • Understand key tools for the analysis of competitive markets
  • Develop skills in applying the supply/demand framework to real-world settings
  • Gain an understanding for why markets may not perform as well as desired
  • Apply microeconomics concepts to real-world cases
  • Gain an understanding of the role of government in addressing microeconomic issues
  • Critically analyse government interventions

 

Who should attend?

This course is designed for individuals at any level of their career who are interested in gaining a deeper understanding of basic economics and its usefulness and application to policy issues. The course is designed for those with no economics background.

Testimonials

The presenter was superb. Paul delivered first-class lectures and provided a high level of interactivity in live sessions, as well as ensuring understanding of concepts before advancing. Fascinating readings and practical case studies further enhanced the experience.

Presenter

Prof Paul Burke

Prof Paul Burke

Professor Paul Burke is Deputy Director of the Crawford School of Public Policy at the Australian National University. His research is in energy and environmental economics, with a focus on the Asia-Pacific.

Paul has published in journals including the American Economic Journal: Macroeconomics, Economic Inquiry, Nature Geoscience, Nature Climate Change, Energy, and Global Environmental Change. Ongoing research topics include Australia's electricity sector and energy transition in South-East Asia.

Paul has delivered Executive Education training in microeconomics, environmental economics, energy economics, and related fields for a range of public sector and open enrolment participants.

Paul holds a Bachelor of Agricultural Economics (Honours I) from the University of Sydney and a PhD in Economics from the Australian National University. He is a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences in Australia (FASSA) and a Distinguished Fellow of the Australasian Agricultural & Resource Economics Society (AARES).