Work

From Low Emission Zone to academic track: Environmental policy effects on educational achievement in elementary school

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Do long-term improvements in air quality influence children’s educational outcomes? This paper investigates the impact of Low Emission Zones (LEZs), which restrict access to designated areas for emission-intensive vehicles, on the educational achievement of elementary school students in Germany. Using school-level data from North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany’s most populous state, we exploit the staggered introduction of LEZs since 2008 with a difference-in-differences approach. LEZ implementations increase transition rates to the academic track in secondary education by approximately one percentage point, or 2.4 percent. We validate this finding using more aggregated district-level data across all of Germany. Our findings imply sizable educational co-benefits of reductions in air pollution.

Source: Journal of Environmental Economics and Management

Authors: Johannes Brehm, Nico Pestel, Sandra Schaffner, Laura Schmitz

Institutions: RWI – Leibniz Institute for Economic Research, Hertie School, Maastricht University, German Institute for Economic Research

Language: English

Topic: Air Quality and Health Impacts

Subfield: Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis

Field: Environmental Science

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDGs: Quality education, Sustainable cities and communities, Climate action, Reduced inequalities

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,620

Funders: Umweltbundesamt, Horizon 2020 Framework Programme