Regolazione ambientale, innovazione tecnologica, produttività

Neoclassical economic theory considers environmental regulation as necessary to cope with market failures related to environmental externalities but detrimental to firms’ productivity. This interpretation has been challenged almost 25 years ago by Michael Porter by arguing that well-designed policies do not necessarily hinder the competitiveness of firms but might actually increase it. In this article, we will review the main – and often contrasting – results of the studies on what has become simply known as the «Porter’s hypothesis». Possible new venues of research will be also discussed