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Tax on Disposables
Nellie Munin and Yael Efron
This role-play focuses on the different and conflicting interests underlying consumption taxes on disposable utensils. Their intensive use is known to cause severe environmental damage. Consequently, they are recognized by international organizations as sources of global concern. Nevertheless, conflicting interests sometimes prevent the development of effective policies to regulate them. The exercise refers, among other things, to the following aspects: the effectiveness of the “polluter pays” policy, and Pigouvian taxes; the effectiveness of consumption taxes to decrease consumption of these products in comparison to other means; the conflicting interests involved in this dilemma. Roleplay parts include: lawyers representing the government, lawyers representing a non-profit, lawyers representing the association of disposable product manufacturers/importers and marketers, lawyers representing the Ministry of environment and representatives of the OECD.
Teacher’s Manual (PDF) available on Mitchell Hamline Open Access