Dr. Buzz Barak, a Flagship campus economics professor recently joined ABC reporter Whitney Burbank to share insight relating to the monetary impact that hurricanes and other weather related events can have on the economy.

While pointing out that his research at Keiser University aims to evaluate the economic impact of environmental quality on beach recreation consumption, he shared that the field of environmental economics assigns dollar values to the quality of outdoor life and recreation activities. With erosion having a costly impact on the perceived value of the beach, hurricanes and other weather related events can negatively impact tourism.

 

“Environmental economic tools and methods enable us to understand the impact of different sand conditions as they relate to the perceived value of the beach. In light of the fact that we are in an era of more frequent and extreme weather events, governments and coastal planners need to update the way in which we mitigate erosion, as beach nourishment projects will not be sufficient,” he said.

 

Keiser University experts regularly share insight with media members relating to a variety of headline stories, and their ability and willingness to comment on meaningful subjects serves as a valuable community resource.

 

Dr. Boaz (Buzz) Barak is an Economics Professor at Keiser University. He is an environmental and natural resource economist with over a decade of academic and professional experience primarily focused on coastal management, water resource management, and environmental policy. Dr. Barak was previously Assistant Professor in the School of Management at Western Galilee College, Israel and Adjunct Professor in Tel Aviv University’s Porter Graduate School of Environmental Studies. He also served as environmental economic consultant to Israel’s Ministry of Environmental Protection. Previously, Dr. Barak was a principal research scientist for Battelle Memorial Institute, serving as consultant to the U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration of the U.S. Department of Transportation in Washington, D.C. Dr. Barak’s research includes evaluation of environmental services, taxes, and maximization of public utility. His primary fields of interest include: non-market valuation, coastal management, economics of regulation, financial innovation to promote social needs, climate change economics, and renewable energy economics.