For a complete and up to date academic publication list, please consult my Google Scholar page.

Work in progress

Belgian wealth inequality, 1935-2022.
Working paper forthcoming.



Selected academic publications

Measuring and characterising green jobs: A literature review
Together with Mikkel Barslund, Energy Research & Social Science. 2024.
Postprint
Click to see the abstract
This study presents a comprehensive literature review on green job measurement and characterisation across various countries and world regions. The study adopts a conceptual framework distinguishing between output-based and process-based greenness, and entity-level and occupation-specific measurement techniques. The wide-ranging green job estimates result from diverse concepts, measurement techniques, and employment scopes considered. This study discusses practical challenges in both entity-level and occupation-specific measurement approaches. Entity-level measurement approaches use aggregate statistics or survey data to examine green jobs through green entities, though identifying these entities remains challenging. In the US, studies often rely on the Green Goods and Services (GGS) or Green Technologies and Practices (GTP) surveys, while the EU employs the Environmental Goods and Services Sector (EGSS) approach, with individual countries using different estimation strategies. For occupation-specific green job research, the primary dataset is the ONET green job classification, linking occupations with tasks and skills. Various methods are used to measure green jobs, including discrete categories, constructing continuous green task indices for occupations, and constructing continuous green skill indices. The study highlights the need for future research to (1) identify, motivate, and assess conceptual choices, measurement techniques, and employment scopes, and (2) update green and brown job classification systems.


A one-off wealth tax for Belgium: Revenue potential, distributional impact, and environmental effects
Together with Dan O'Neill, Ecological Economics. 2022.
Postprint
Click to see the abstract
Policymakers and economists are becoming increasingly concerned about wealth inequality. Here we estimate Belgium's wealth distribution — and based on this distribution — the revenue potential, distributional impact, and environmental effect of three proposals for a one-off Belgian wealth tax. Our method consists of (1) estimating the Belgian wealth distribution by extending survey data with a top-tail Pareto distribution based on a novel national rich list, and (2) combining the estimated wealth distribution with proposed tax configurations and published elasticities. There are four main results. First, the wealthiest 1% of households possess ~24% of total net wealth, substantially more than previous estimates suggest. Second, the revenue potential of a one-off tax is considerably higher than estimated by wealth tax advocates. Third, the distributional impact would be limited as the richest 1% of households would still possess at least 23% of total net wealth. Fourth, a one-off tax would likely reduce CO2 emissions by only 0.1–0.6%. Overall, our findings suggest a one-off wealth tax could finance over half of Belgium's COVID-19 costs, but would lead to only small reductions in wealth inequality and environmental impact. Ecological economists may therefore wish to pursue other policy proposals to achieve fair distribution and sustainable scale.



Selected non-academic output

I occasionally summarize the results of my work and the related literature for a non-academic audience (in Dutch).

Een vermogensbelasting is het einde van de wereld niet
Opinion piece, De Tijd. 2024.
Postprint
Click to see a short summary in English
While acknowledging that the desirability of a wealth tax is clearly a political issue, here I argue that many of the arguments put forward by opponents of a Belgian wealth tax seem misguided. Belgian wealth inequality is high, and moderate wealth tax configurations would have a substantial revenue potential. Valuation issues are less insurmountable than they seem, and either the government or third parties already possess almost all of the information required for tax enforcement. Moreover, the administrative costs of levying a wealth tax are likely reasonable. The behavioural effects of wealth taxation should not be understated, but solutions such as third-party reporting and 'exit' or 'tail' taxation exist. Lastly, while it is often argued that wealth is already heavily taxed in Belgium compared to other European countries, the evidence for such a statement is rather weak.


De top 1 procent bezit in België waarschijnlijk (veel) meer dan 13,5 procent
Opinion piece, De Standaard. 2023.
Postprint
Click to see a short summary in English
In this opinion piece, I cast doubt on the reliability of the inequality estimates in the UBS global wealth report for Belgium. I shortly explain the issues with wealth survey methods and possible corrections, and go on to argue that for Belgium more reliable estimates are available.