Up in Smoke: The Influence of Household Behavior on the Long-Run Impact of Improved Cooking Stoves
Laboratory studies suggest that improved cooking stoves can reduce indoor air pollution, improve health, and decrease greenhouse gas emissions in developing countries. We provide evidence, from a large-scale randomized trial in India, on the benefits of a common, laboratory-validated stove with a fo...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Other Authors: | |
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | en_US |
| Published: |
American Economic Association (AEA)
2017
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/106808 https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6105-617X |
| _version_ | 1811097401854787584 |
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| author | Rema, Hanna Greenstone, Michael Duflo, Esther |
| author2 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Economics |
| author_facet | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Economics Rema, Hanna Greenstone, Michael Duflo, Esther |
| author_sort | Rema, Hanna |
| collection | MIT |
| description | Laboratory studies suggest that improved cooking stoves can reduce indoor air pollution, improve health, and decrease greenhouse gas emissions in developing countries. We provide evidence, from a large-scale randomized trial in India, on the benefits of a common, laboratory-validated stove with a four-year follow-up. While smoke inhalation initially falls, this effect disappears by year two. We find no changes across health outcomes or greenhouse gas emissions. Households used the stoves irregularly and inappropriately, failed to maintain them, and usage declined over time. This study underscores the need to test environmental technologies in real-world settings where behavior may undermine potential impacts. |
| first_indexed | 2024-09-23T16:58:57Z |
| format | Article |
| id | mit-1721.1/106808 |
| institution | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| language | en_US |
| last_indexed | 2024-09-23T16:58:57Z |
| publishDate | 2017 |
| publisher | American Economic Association (AEA) |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | mit-1721.1/1068082022-10-03T09:36:53Z Up in Smoke: The Influence of Household Behavior on the Long-Run Impact of Improved Cooking Stoves Rema, Hanna Greenstone, Michael Duflo, Esther Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Economics Duflo, Esther Laboratory studies suggest that improved cooking stoves can reduce indoor air pollution, improve health, and decrease greenhouse gas emissions in developing countries. We provide evidence, from a large-scale randomized trial in India, on the benefits of a common, laboratory-validated stove with a four-year follow-up. While smoke inhalation initially falls, this effect disappears by year two. We find no changes across health outcomes or greenhouse gas emissions. Households used the stoves irregularly and inappropriately, failed to maintain them, and usage declined over time. This study underscores the need to test environmental technologies in real-world settings where behavior may undermine potential impacts. MIT Energy Initiative Institute of Financial Management and Research (IFMR). Centre for Microfinance Institut Veolia Children's Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF) 2017-01-31T17:13:48Z 2017-01-31T17:13:48Z 2016-02 Article http://purl.org/eprint/type/JournalArticle 1945-7731 1945-774X http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/106808 "Up in Smoke: The Influence of Household Behavior on the Long-Run Impact of Improved Cooking Stoves." American Economic Journal: Economic Policy 8;1 (February 2016), pp.80-114. ©2016 American Economic Association. https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6105-617X en_US http://dx.doi.org/10.1257/pol.20140008 American Economic Journal: Economic Policy Article is made available in accordance with the publisher's policy and may be subject to US copyright law. Please refer to the publisher's site for terms of use. application/pdf American Economic Association (AEA) American Economic Association |
| spellingShingle | Rema, Hanna Greenstone, Michael Duflo, Esther Up in Smoke: The Influence of Household Behavior on the Long-Run Impact of Improved Cooking Stoves |
| title | Up in Smoke: The Influence of Household Behavior on the Long-Run Impact of Improved Cooking Stoves |
| title_full | Up in Smoke: The Influence of Household Behavior on the Long-Run Impact of Improved Cooking Stoves |
| title_fullStr | Up in Smoke: The Influence of Household Behavior on the Long-Run Impact of Improved Cooking Stoves |
| title_full_unstemmed | Up in Smoke: The Influence of Household Behavior on the Long-Run Impact of Improved Cooking Stoves |
| title_short | Up in Smoke: The Influence of Household Behavior on the Long-Run Impact of Improved Cooking Stoves |
| title_sort | up in smoke the influence of household behavior on the long run impact of improved cooking stoves |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/106808 https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6105-617X |
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