Kaleb Javier

Welcome,

I'm Kaleb Javier, a Ph.D. Candidate in the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics (ARE) at UC Berkeley.

My research lies at the intersection of Environmental Economics and Industrial Organization, where I explore how market structures, firm behavior, and policy design shape environmental outcomes. I’m particularly interested in how regulatory frameworks and innovation incentives can be optimized to address climate change, promote sustainable industry practices, and improve social welfare.

At Berkeley, I work with faculty across economics, public policy, and energy institutes to develop empirical and theoretical tools that inform real-world environmental policy. My current projects examine the effectiveness of carbon pricing mechanisms, the role of competition in clean technology adoption, and the environmental impact of industrial supply chains.

Through my work, I aim to contribute to evidence-based policymaking that balances economic efficiency with environmental stewardship.

My job market paper will be made available soon. In this paper, I examine how the transition from flat-fee public insurance to risk-adjusted private insurance affects firm behavior in hazardous industries, using Texas's 1999 phase-out of its "UST Trust Fund" as a natural experiment. I employ a difference-in-differences framework to test whether risk-based pricing induced firms to adopt safer technology and accelerated the exit of older, higher-risk facilities.

Feel free to explore my research, publications, and teaching experience, or reach out if you'd like to connect!

Education

PhD Agricultural and Resource Economics – PhD Candidate (Present)      

University of California, Berkeley

Fields: Energy & Environmental Economics, Industrial Organization, and Behavioral Economics

Pre-Doctoral Research Fellowship – Non-Degree Awarding          

Stanford Graduate School of Business, Stanford, CA

American Economic Association Summer Program – Non-Degree Awarding                                            

Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI

M.S. in Cultural and Environmental Resource Management

Central Washington University, Ellensburg, WA 

Thesis: The Economic Impacts of Forest Timber Methods in Washington State: A Hedonic Approach

B.A. in Economics, B.S. in Law and Justice

Magna Cum Laude 

Central Washington University, Ellensburg, WA