Microeconomic Theory Microeconomic theory concentrates on the study of the determination of relative prices and their importance in shaping the allocation of resources and the distribution of income in an economy. We will study the optimizing behavior of households in a variety of settings: buying goods and services, saving, and labor supply decisions. We will also examine the behavior of firms in different market structures. Together, the theories of household and firm behavior help illumine contemporary economic issues (discrimination in labor markets, mergers in the corporate world, positive and negative externalities, for example).

The Economics of Climate Change In this course we will apply the tools of economic analysis to the problem of global climate change. The goal is to expose students to how economists approach this important policy problem. The course will begin with a review of reasons for policy interventions in markets and policy instrument choice. We will then focus on the measurement of damages from emissions of greenhouse gases. Subsequent topics will include: discounting, technology and abatement costs, benefit-cost analysis, uncertainty and catastrophic risk, and policies in practice. (ECON 0255; ECON 0265 encouraged).

Environment and Development Climate change, air pollution, tropical deforestation: there is little doubt that economic development affects, and is affected by, the global and local environment and natural resources. In this course we will explore the complex relationship between environment and development using the theoretical and empirical tools of applied economic analysis. We will begin with pioneering research papers on the empirics of economic growth, examine the macroeconomic evidence, and then move to the micro foundations of the poverty-environment nexus. Major topics will include the resource curse and environmental Kuznets curve hypotheses, approaches for understanding responses to climate variability and disasters in poor communities, management of natural resources in smallholder agriculture, choosing policy instruments for pollution reduction, conservation, and environmental protection, and relationships between human health and the environment. We will conclude with a number of selected topics and issues of contemporary policy relevance. (ECON 0111 (formerly ECON 0210) and ECON 0255 or IPEC 0240 [formerly ECON 0240])

Julia Berazneva

Reviews and ratings for Julia Berazneva at Middlebury College.Julia Berazneva teaches Micro Theory, Climate Change Economics, Environment and Development and more.  Explore top rated instructors and find the best for you.Is Julia Berazneva good ? Find out on MiddCourses.

Professor Berazneva is very passionate about what she is teaching. It's very great that the classes have slides that summarize every reading, so you can always come back to them to revise for the exams. There are so many topics covered, so at times you could feel lost, but at the end, the slides save them all. There is one research poster project in group at the end, one midterm, and several (around 4) problem sets scattering throughout the semester. 

I took this class because I thought it would be the most interesting econ class at Midd. While there was a lot of interesting information, Professor Berazneva did not effectively present it to us. She lectured for the duration of most classes, with most of the lecture was her just restating what was in the readings. Not a great teaching style but an easy grader.

This is a required class for the Econ major so everyone must take it. It is very math heavy with a pretty strong grasp of calculus required. The exam style was to make one question extremely difficult, or something you hadn’t learned.