Matt Cole

Professor of Environmental Economics

Birmingham Business School

University of Birmingham

Matt Cole

Professor of Environmental Economics

Birmingham Business School

University of Birmingham

About me

I am a Professor of Environmental Economics in the Department of Economics, University of Birmingham and Interim Dean of Birmingham Business School.

My research interests lie at the intersection of Environmental Economics, Development Economics and International Economics. Current topics include pollution offshoring, pollution and health, the economics of biodiversity, and environmental inequality.

I am a Co-Editor of the Journal of Environmental Economics and Management and a member of the Sustainable Future Policy Lab.

New research

Carneiro, J., Cole, M.A. and Strobl, E. (forthcoming). The Effects of Air Pollution on Students’ Cognitive Performance: Evidence from Brazilian University Entrance Tests. Journal of the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists.

Cole, M.A., Elliott, R.J.R. and Strobl, E. (2021). Biodiversity and Economic Land Use. Land Economics, 97, 4.

covid-19 research papers

Maps of the Netherlands showing Covid cases per capita (left) and PM2.5 concentrations (right)

Cole, M.A., Ozgen, C. and Strobl, E. (2020). Air Pollution Exposure and Covid-19 in Dutch Municipalities. Environmental and Resource Economics, 76, 4 pp. 581-610. (Also IZA Discussion Paper No. 13367)

See also our article in The Conversation and an article in The Guardian on this research.

Cole, M.A., Elliott, R.J.R., Liu, B. (2020). The Impact of the Wuhan Covid-19 Lockdown on Air Pollution and Health: A Machine Learning and Augmented Synthetic Control Approach. Environmental and Resource Economics, 76, 4 pp. 553-580.

See also our article in The Conversation on this research.

Selected Recent Publications

Cole, M.A., Elliott, R.J.R. and Strobl, E. (2021). Biodiversity and Economic Land Use. Land Economics, 97, 4.

Cole, M.A., Ozgen, C. and Strobl, E. (2020). Air Pollution Exposure and Covid-19 in Dutch Municipalities. Environmental and Resource Economics, 76, 4, pp. 581-610. (link to paper on publisher's website).

Cole, M.A., Maddison, D.J. and Zhang, L. (2020). Testing the Emission Reduction Claims of Clean Development Mechanism Projects Using Benford’s Law. Climatic Change , 160, pp. 407-426. (Impact Factor 4.2). (link to paper on publisher's website).

Cole, M.A. and Zhang, L. (2019). The Clean-up of Chinese Manufacturing: Examining the Role Played by Changing Techniques of Production. Economics Letters, 180, pp. 11-14. (link to paper on publisher's website).

Cole, M.A., Elliott, R.J.R., Okubo, T. and Strobl, E. (2019). Natural Disasters and Spatial Heterogeneity in Damages: The Birth, Life and Death of Manufacturing Plants. Journal of Economic Geography, 19, 2, pp. 373-408. (link to paper on publisher's website)

Cole, M.A., Elliott, R.J.R, Occhiali, G., and Strobl, E. (2018). Power Outages and Firm Performance in Sub-Saharan Africa. Journal of Development Economics, 134, pp. 150-159. (link to paper on publisher's website)

Cole, M.A., Elliott, R.J.R. and Zhang, L. (2017). Foreign Direct Investment and the Environment. Annual Review of Environment and Resources, 42. (link to paper on publisher's website)

Full publication list