Professor Markandya has worked extensively on environmental problems from an economic viewpoint. He earned a Masters in Econometrics and a PhD from the London School of Economics.  He was a lead author for the 3^rd and 4^th IPCC Assessment Reports on Climate Change (which were awarded a share of the Nobel Peace in 2007), a Lead Author for the 5^th Assessment Report, and a contributing author for the special report on 1.5ºC.  He has also published widely on resource valuation and regulation in the context of sustainable development.

In 2008 he was nominated by Cambridge University as one of the top 50 contributors to thinking on sustainability in the world. From 2000 to 2006 he was a Lead Economist at the World Bank. He has acted as advisor to several governments and international organizations over the last 30 years.

Professor Markandya was President of the European Association of Environmental and Resource Economics from 2014-2015. Currently he is Distinguished Ikerbasque Professor at the Basque Centre for Climate Change in the Basque Country, Spain and Honorary Professor of Economics at the University of Bath, UK.