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Tackling environmental problems is one of the main policy challenges facing governments. The process of forming attitudes starts at a young age, and is mostly shaped by education. Participation in pro-environmental initiatives at schools is mainly voluntary. Local governments can play an important role as the institution that links communities with the environment. In this paper, we examine the role of local governments/municipalities on school participation in an environmental educational program, with a special focus on primary and secondary education. We use data from the Sustainable School Program in Chile. We model schools' participation and level of participation by an ordered probit model with sample selection. Results show that public schools are more likely to participate in the program compared with private schools, and schools with more teachers reveal a higher probability of being part of the program. In addition, while school performance and teachers' perceptions correlate with achieving higher levels of certification, a more intense commitment to the program is more likely in communes whose local authorities have the capacity to promote voluntary financial and environmental initiatives. Thus, in order to promote successful co-management of environmental policy, local governments should take into account the heterogeneity of the school system.

Risk is an inherent characteristic of aquaculture production. For a holistic understanding of risk, the risk assessment process must account for both subjective and objective dimensions of risk. This paper empirically studies the role of risk perception and the risk properties of inputs used in aquaculture to explain the low adoption rates of seaweed farming in Chile. We propose a risk production estimation framework with selectivity to explore the role of risk, given that many aquaculture concessions remain totally or partially unexploited. We found that farmers are more likely to produce seaweed when they perceive greater access to financing, but also that this activity is more exposed to theft than other activities. Moreover, results suggest that labor and energy are risk-increasing inputs, while we found that capital and the number of hectares available are risk-decreasing inputs. The latter is important as it suggests that larger seaweed producers and more investment would reduce production variability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Environmental education provides people with the information they need to understand the causes and consequences of environmental issues, helping to promote positive attitudes toward nature. This paper uses a multivalued treatment effects model to evaluate the effects of a green school certification program on children's pro-environmental behavior in Chile. Pro-environmental behavior is measured by knowledge, attitudes, and practices related to the consumption and disposal of plastics. Results evidence a positive effect of schools' higher certification level on children's plastic waste behavior. This effect seems stronger in practices where children have more decision-making power (e.g., packing a lunch box). The observed reverse effect when switching from basic to intermediate level of certification is in line with the potential non-linear effects of environmental education on pro-environmental behavior regarding the consumption and disposal of plastic. To improve the design of the program, it is important to redefine incentives in the certification system to differentiate better the benefits of reaching each level of environmental certification • There is need to better understand the consequences of plastic pollution. • Green school certification programs play a role in promoting waste beneficiation behavior • We perform a multivalued treatment framework to evaluate the effect of the program. • We found a non-linear effect of different levels of environmental school certification. • It is important to redefine incentives so that a higher certification level is valued by school. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]