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The Policy Challenge for green economy and Sustainable Development
Abstract
Green growth, the promotion of energy efficiency and clean energy technologies and sustainable development are frequently viewed as complementary goals by international policymakers. This paper argues that green growth will not ensure sustainable economic development as long as global ecosystem degradation and loss means that the world continues to face worsening problems of ecological scarcity — the loss of myriad benefits, or “services”, as these systems are exploited for human use and activity. Overcoming this problem requires addressing further sustainability and funding challenges. The sustainability challenge is to overcome a vast array of market, policy and institutional failures that prevents recognition of the economic significance of this scarcity. The funding challenge is to bridge the shortfall between the global benefits that humankind receives from ecosystems and what we are willing to pay to maintain and conserve them. Improving economic and scientific analysis of ecological scarcity, valuing the loss in benefits, and translating the implications into policy are the key steps for addressing the sustainability challenge. Exploring and implementing a range of innovative financing mechanisms, from international payments for ecosystem services to financial and currency transactions taxes to international financing facilities are possibilities for alleviating the funding challenge.
... Аналіз основних досліджень і публікацій. Дослідження основних шляхів розвитку зеленої економіки, здійснювали наступні іноземні вчені: Ален та Слоуз [1]; Барбіер [2]; Карпотті і Байлер [3]; Діяр, Акпарова, Токбаєв і Туютунікова [4]; Енді і Седіако [5]; Якобкс [6]; Констацк [7] та інші. ...
... збалансоване управління природними ресурсами. Теорія зеленої економіки заснована на трьох аксіомах [2][3][4][5][6][7]: -неможливо нескінченно розширювати сферу впливу в обмеженому просторі; -неможливо вимагати задоволення нескінченно зростаючих потреб в умовах обмежених ресурсів; -все на поверхні землі взаємопов'язане. Зелені сектори економіки передбачають зміну структури економіки, в якій: -більше уваги приділяється соціальному аспекту сталого розвитку (соціальна згуртованість, забезпечення доступу до різноманітних ресурсів, боротьба з бідністю і безробіттям і т. д.), -економіка заснована не тільки на видобувному секторі, але все більше на обробному секторі та секторі послуг; ...
... An environmental commitment to advancing climate action by building resilience in vulnerable communities will support creating a green economy [28]. Barbier (2011) adds that the challenge of sustainability is how to overcome a large number of markets, policy, and institutional failures that hinder the significance of a green economy. As a result, environmental policies must bridge the problems between environmental benefits and maintenance. ...
... Improving economic and scientific analysis of ecological scarcity, translating implications into policy, and assessing loss of benefits are key witnesses to tackling sustainability challenges. Exploring and implementing various innovative financing mechanisms for ecosystem services to financial transaction taxes will reduce the challenges towards a green economy [29]. Saladin and Turok (2013) found that changes in sustainable development are closely related to the formation of a green economy. ...
... More specifically, economic interpretations of sustainability focus on the economic opportunities and thus the level of economic welfare that each generation inherit to the following one [8]. Consequently, it is argued that society should decide how to manage the today's available total capital stock (including also the natural capital) in order to increase and enlarge the current economic activities and opportunities and the overall society's welfare for the future generations [9]. In this context, there is a clear demarcation line between the notions of economic development and economic growth. ...
The aim of this paper is to sketch out the idea for a grand theory in development studies as the necessary research field for fruitful historical interdisciplinary , arguing that Mill’s stage theory provides such a powerful theoretical framework able to contextualize, develop, and integrate the multiple, diverse, and middle-range contemporary strands in development studies. Second, an attempt is made to reconstitute Mill’s stages theory of economic development placing it at the center of his political economy. We claim that Mill’s theory of economic development implies that the dialectical relation between knowledge/innovation (human capital) and nature (natural capital) accelerates the course of economic change. In Mill’s analysis, the dialectical relation between knowledge and nature penetrates through culture, which is regarded by Mill as a structural element of each stage of economic development. By highlighting the importance of knowledge in the transition between different stages of economic development, and by proposing a reassessed interpretation of Mill’s stages theory of economic development, we propose that in Mill’s political economy both innovation and nature play a pivotal role in accessing sustainable economic development.
... As a result, the environment is regarded as an economic asset that is crucial to the operation of the economic system. Although the higher economic activity may lead major improvements in human life, it arises through a tradeoff in use of environmental resources, resulting in increased scarcity (Barbier, 2011). The depletion of natural resources is a matter of interest and it is widely acknowledged that economic activity is in some forms are related with this depletion. ...
This paper aims to examine club, conditional and absolute convergence at regional level under the assumption that public
investment can be used as a tool to reduce income disparities. Therefore, following Phillips and Sul (2007, 2009) and Lyncker and
Thoennessen (2017), as the first step of the empirical analysis, five convergence clubs and a divergent member are identified
in real GDP per capita at Turkey NUTS II level for the period from 2004 to 2019. Additionally, the clubs’ basic data reveals three
important information. The first information is that regions with high GDP per capita receive more public investment than
others. Second information is that the share of public investment is not distributed equally in terms of GDP per capita. Third
information is that Clubs 1, 2 and TR10 (İstanbul) (the only divergent member) have higher proportion of public investments
on average than others. As a result, public capital is not used as a tool to reduce regional inequalities from the government. At
the end of the empirical analysis, the dynamic effects of public capital on growth is analyzed using Sys-GMM estimators. From
the results, it has seen that public investment is statistically significant and has a positive effect on growth; however, it has quite
low coefficient. Also, findings revealed that there isn’t absolute convergence at regional level in Turkey. Therefore, when share
of public investments are taken into account, there is conditional convergence. With the existence of club and conditional
convergence, public capital should be used much more effectively thanks to its ability to reduce income inequalities and merge
clubs, otherwise absolute convergence will not occur.
... In this regard, the interest of researchers on the function of an effective regulatory framework in promoting sustainable economy has been on increase (Cigu et al. 2020;Jalilian et al. 2007;Milani 2000;OECD 1997;World Bank 2004). Though, several determinants factor of sustainable economy have been utilized in different studies (Aldieri and Vinci 2018;Bailey and Caprotti 2014;Barbier 2011;Bostan 2016;Guo et al. 2020;Khoshnava et al. 2019;Li and Lin 2016;Vukovic et al. 2019;Vuola et al. 2020), while some studies emphasized on the relationship between environmental legislation and economic growth (Hamdouch and Depret 2010;Hu and Wang 2020;Zhao et al. 2020). However, the "Paris Agreement on climate change" (UNFCCC 2015) and the "UN 2030 Agenda for sustainable Development" (UNGA 2015) are the most circulated regulatory framework documents at the moment. ...
The attention of scholars and policymakers on the achievement of sustainable green economy has been on increase; however, the topic has not been exhaustively investigated. This study empirically investigates the implications of financial regulations on sustainable green economy in Turkey utilizing a time series data spanning from 1996 to 2019. This study employed Perron and Lee-Strazicich unit root test in the presence of structural break point for examining the stationarity properties of the series and FMOLS, CCR, and ARDL for estimating the long and short-run effect of the financial regulations on carbon productivity. Our study demonstrates that rule of law, economic freedom, and inflation have a significant long-run relationship with carbon productivity as confirmed by FMOLS and CCR, while rule of law, regulatory quality economic freedom, and inflation were confirmed by ARDL to have long-run causal relationship with carbon productivity. In addition, our study found that control of corruption, government effectiveness, rule of law, regulatory quality economic freedom, and inflation have a short-run causal effect on carbon productivity. Finally, this study concludes that financial regulations is significant for achieving sustainable green economy in Turkey and as such should be accorded adequate attention by the policy makers.
... Nesse contexto, incluem-se as discussões sobre o decrescimento que propõe uma transformação política e social para reduzir os padrões e os níveis de produção e consumo (Kallis, 2011;Kallis et al., 2018;Latouche, 2010Latouche, , 2018Schneider, Kallis, & Martinez-Alier, 2010;Sekulova, Kallis, Rodríguez-Labajos, & Schneider, 2013) e a Economia Verde que defende a baixa emissão de carbono, eficiência no uso de recursos e a inclusão social (Barbier, 2011;Droste et al., 2016;Loiseau et al., 2016;Lorek & Spangenberg, 2014). Essas perspectivas inserem o componente do bem-estar social coletivo na abordagem da governança para "consumo sustentável forte" (Hobson, 2013;Lorek & Fuchs, 2013), que também enfatiza a inovação social como um dos caminhos para provocar mudanças disruptivas na sociedade, por meio de alternativas de produção e consumo advindas do protagonismo dos próprios consumidores (Jaeger-Erben, Rückert-John, & Schäfer, 2015;Lorek & Fuchs, 2013). ...
Purpose:
Analyze the thematic evolution of the research field on sustainable consumption from 1999 to 2019.
Originality/value:
The study advances the understanding of the development of the research field on sustainable consumption, analyzing the main publications and topics covered.
Design/methodology/approach:
Systematic literature review through a bibliometric study with analysis based on citations supported by the CitNetExplorer software, using core publication and clustering techniques. Two hundred sixty-four articles were analyzed.
Findings:
The most recent publications converge on the need to change the current patterns and levels of consumption and to engage dif- ferent stakeholders in participatory and co-creation processes. Also, the existence of five research clusters was identified, namely: 1. eco-efficiency with a focus on greening the market; 2. consumer behavior with an emphasis on encouraging the purchase of green products; 3. social nature of consumption that inserts the sociological perspective; 4. dynamic approach for considering the interdisciplinarity of the field; and 5. the role of education for sustainable consumption. The various themes found reveal contributions from different areas of knowledge and the importance of developing research that integrates the dynamics of the challenges to achieve sustainable consumption. We emphasize the need for an integrated approach due to the inherent complexity of the theme that involves economic, technological, political, social, psychological, and environmental aspects for governance in favor of sustainable consumption.
... Throughout history, it was the first time the concept was used in the international "Blueprint for a Green Economy" report, as the British government had been the leader since 1989 to prepare a board of leading environmental economists (Barbier, 2011). Stjepanović et al. (2019) respond to the importance of the economic dimension to a green growth approach that is very different from traditional GDP benchmarks, so it is necessary to integrate additional information qualitatively through method scouring of the opportunity costs of lost turnover and the costs of environmental damage (Rahman et al., 2017). ...
The concept of green growth is one part of the realization of sustainable development. To support this mission, Indonesia is taking part in global change by accelerating the development programs contained in the SDGs. We need to study Green Growth (GG) which is determined by the empowerment of the energy sector such as Source of Electric Lighting (SEL), Renewable Energy Mix (REM), and Primary Energy Intensity (PEI) in Indonesia. Time-series data were analyzed using Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) modeling in the 2015-2024 period. The result, of the three targeted hypotheses, only two can be accepted which are explained by SEL and PEI have a positive effect on GG. In another exploration, one hypothesis that was rejected was that REM had a negative effect on GG. The implications of this study are brought to the attention of our findings that have raised important points, especially in the SDGs document on the energy sector.
... In its beginnings, the report "Our Common Future" [1] drew attention to the danger of unchecked growth, capable of depleting the planet's resources, where sustainable growth was synonymous with and linked to environmental balance. In this regard, it is necessary to consider the link between sustainability and the depletion of the planet's resources, the food crisis, excessive consumption, focusing particularly on the need to prioritize sustainability, growth and economic development [2]. To this end, it is becoming essential to conserve natural resources [3] through a process of integration. ...
The 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda sets out 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) aimed at improving life in all its dimensions, covering all sectors, with a particular emphasis on education. The study presented here focuses on universities as priority organisations and agents of change within the sphere of their social commitment. We thus conducted an analysis of the related scientific production as well as a bibliometric mapping, identifying the main publications indexed in the Web of Science, within its main collection. Focusing on scientific production, we examine the types of documents published, the evolution of the number of publications, the countries of origin of the publications, the most cited sources and articles, together with the most productive authors and a co-citation analysis. Regarding the bibliometric mapping analysis, the five core clusters included in the study were: SDGs in general; SDG 4 on Quality Education; Education for Sustainable Development; Higher Education; and Education Management. Among the main conclusions reached, we would emphasise the need for a change in role and function of university education to tackle sustainable development.
... In particular, green production saves non-renewable natural resources, on the one hand, and generates positive externalities related to clean air, water and soil. Reducing fine particulate matter in the air reduces respiratory diseases (Barbier, 2011;McAfee, 2016). Thus, the prevention and preconditions for creating a high health status of the population through the activities listed above are associated with lower costs than stimulating overproduction, stimulating over-consumption and ultimately: a growing economy with high healthcare costs associated with treating sick individuals. ...
Abstract: Many of the European Union's policies are related to promoting the idea of a ecological and resource-efficient economy, respecting the principles of the green economy. The latter is defined as the main tool through which the goals of sustainable development can be achieved. The green economy is perceived as a universal approach that has an impact on the long-term development of national economies and helps to solve a number of problems related to the economy, public welfare and environmental protection. The aim of the article is to make complex assessments of the level of the green economy and the level of health status of the population in some European countries and to establish the degree of interdependence between them. The first complex assessment is based on the following indicators: consumption of inorganic fertilizers; environmental taxes and fees by economic activities; a contribution to the USD 100 billion international commitment to climate-related spending; capacity for production of electricity from renewable sources and waste; production in industry, and the second one is based on: average life expectancy; share of people with good or very good perception of health as a value; air pollutants and greenhouse gases; causes of death; general health expenditure. It was found that the degree of dependence between the two complex estimates is large, since the value of the correlation coefficient (r) is 0.87.
... Therefore, in a green economy, the core of the concept is protecting the environment and natural resources rather than promoting economic growth and development. To effectively protect the environment, a green economy must distance itself from the old concept of sustainable growth (Barbier 2011). ...
Over the last couple of decades, many peer-reviewed publications focused on the bioeconomy, which it is frequently argued to be a key part of the solution to global challenges (climate change, ecosystem degradation). This study investigates the scientific literature on forest bioeconomy by applying a social network analysis to the bibliometric science. The bibliometric network analysis was performed over the time-frame of 2003–2020 to provide an overview on the main aspects characterising the forest bioeconomy issue. The results show that 225 documents on forest bioeconomy were published by 567 organisations from 44 countries. Finland and Canada are the two most productive countries with 32.8% and 12.7% of forest bioeconomy documents respectively. The co-occurrence network map of the keywords shows that the forest bioeconomy is related to three main concepts: sustainable development, bioenergy production, climate change mitigation.
... A green economy, therefore, is one of the global strategies for dealing with the economic and environmental crises suffered by contemporary societies. Its aim is to ensure that regulatory frameworks are promoted which encourage conservation, that incentives are given to green sectors and industries, and that rigorous standards are put in place to control and reduce activities which affect the environment (Barbier, 2011). ...
The circular economy is an alternative paradigm whose purpose is the protection of the environment, the prevention of pollution and the growth of economic prosperity. This paper covers research which is qualitative in nature but has an exploratory scope through a documentary review, and includes proposals to promote sustainability. A more responsible consumption or use can be achieved by educating the user or consumer to return the product to production or repair through a collection service by way of reverse logistics (recovery of materials), followed by recycling or reuse of the product or its components to then offer these as recovered or recycled products on the market.
... This highlights the eradication of poverty as the most pressing challenge" (p.19). But many commentators concluded that UNCSD (2011) was a missed opportunity to make the green economy central to international policy debates (POWERS, 2012;BARBIER, 2011;BARBIER, 2013). ...
Whit the issue of sustainability on the rise, it was suggested to talk about the importance of it as well as a whole for society, bringing the concern with the consumer's vision regarding the production, commercialization and the act of acquiring products that come from the process of reforestation. It addresses corporate social responsibility to society and the green economy, which is cited as a concept still under discussion, but innovative because it encompasses economic growth and environmental quality.With the issue of sustainability on the rise, it was suggested to talk about its importance, as well as a whole for society, bringing the concern with the consumer's view of production, marketing and the act of acquiring products that come from the reforestation process. It is approached about, the corporate social responsibility before the society and the green economy, which is cited as a concept still under discussion, but innovative for encompassing economic growth and environmental quality. The survey is based on methodological procedures of exploratory research, qualitative research, applying survey questionnaires in a population of 400 people, using an instrument of data collection in loco, being printed, self-filled, with questions open and closed by the public. The results were exposed and it was concluded that the majority of the interviewees showed a good consumer view of the reforestation process and sustainability as a whole, giving positive notes to the questions where this process was cited as important. The consumer realizes that this importance is also relevant for companies, because the results of the survey show that he wants companies to have this genuine concern with sustainability in the medium and long term, valuing strategies and environmental policies.The results were exposed and it was concluded that the majority of respondents demonstrated a good consumer vision regarding the reforestation process and sustainability as a whole, giving positive marks to the issues where this process was cited as important.The consumer realizes that this importance is also relevant for companies, because the research results show that he wants companies to have this genuine concern with sustainability in the medium and long term, valuing environmental strategies and policies.
... According to Barbier (2011), green growth will not mean sustainable growth as long as the problems such as degradation and loss of global ecosystem and the ecological scarcity problems in the world worsens. As long as a global policy is not adopted to overcome the financing challenges and the sustainability of the globally rising ecological scarcity, the welfare of the existing and next generations is at risk. ...
The aim of this study is to examine the effect of real exchange rate movements on the foreign trade balance for Turkey over the period 1998:1-2014:3. Pesaran et al. (2001) bounds testing procedure which is employed in this context asserts the existence of cointegration between foreign trade balance and national income, foreign income and real exchange rate. ARDL model implying long-run effects indicates the validity of the Marshall-Lerner condition for Turkey in the considered period. According to the estimated short-run error correction model based on ARDL, the short-run improvements in the exchange rate deteriorates the foreign trade balance, thus J-curve effect is valid.
... The role of an effective regulatory financial framework in promoting green sustainable economy has generated considerable interest among researchers and practitioners in recent years, with the first studies being connected with economic growth [1][2][3][4][5]. Many studies are developed on the relationship between the green sustainable economy and its different determinants [6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15]. There are also studies developed with a strong emphasis on the link between environmental legislation and economic growth [16][17][18][19][20]. ...
Following the international financial trend, several countries launched comprehensive and coordinated financial system reform programs to reach green sustainable economy. These reforms have included significant adjustments in financial regulation and supervision policies designed precisely to stimulate the improvement in the performance of green economy. This paper explores the literature regarding the importance of financial regulation and the state of green sustainable economy as a first objective. The second objective is to develop a linear regression model for empirically understanding how the financial regulation can affect green sustainable economy and apply it for 25 European Union countries, over the period of time 2000–2018, covering pre-crisis, crisis, and post-crisis period. Our findings support the idea that coherent financial regulation framework determines green economy to be growth-friendly and sustainable. The paper can be considered a useful viewpoint in understanding the complex relationship between regulation and green sustainable economy, thus adding to existing literature.
... This highlights the eradication of poverty as the most pressing challenge" (p.19). But many commentators concluded that UNCSD (2011) was a missed opportunity to make the green economy central to international policy debates (POWERS, 2012;BARBIER, 2011;BARBIER, 2013). In the research in question, it can be observed that the level of education of the interviewees was somewhat relevant in the results. ...
With the issue of sustainability on the rise, it was suggested to talk about the importance of it as well as a whole for society, bringing the concern with the consumer's vision regarding the production, commercialization and the act of acquiring products that come
from the process of reforestation. It addresses corporate social responsibility to society and the green economy, which is cited as a concept still under discussion, but innovative because it encompasses economic growth and environmental quality. With the issue of sustainability on the rise, it was suggested to talk about its importance, as well as a whole for society, bringing the concern with the consumer's view of production, marketing and the act of acquiring products that come from the reforestation process. It is approached about, the corporate social responsibility before the society and
the green economy, which is cited as a concept still under discussion, but innovative for encompassing economic growth and environmental quality. The survey is based on methodological procedures of exploratory research, qualitative research, applying survey questionnaires in a population of 400 people, using an instrument of data collection in loco, being printed, self-filled, with questions open and closed by the public. The results were exposed and it was concluded that the majority of the interviewees showed a good consumer view of the reforestation process and sustainability as a whole, giving positive notes to the questions where this process was
cited as important. The consumer realizes that this importance is also relevant for companies, because the results of the survey show that he wants companies to have this genuine concern with sustainability in the medium and long term, valuing strategies and environmental policies. The results were exposed and it was concluded that the majority of respondents demonstrated a good consumer
vision regarding the reforestation process and sustainability as a whole, giving positive marks to the issues where this process was cited as important. The consumer realizes that this importance is also relevant for companies, because the research results show
that he wants companies to have this genuine concern with sustainability in the medium and long term, valuing environmental strategies and policies.
... The impact of COVID-19 pandemic on municipal waste accentuates the importance of sustainable waste management (Sarkodie and Owusu, 2020). The UN Conference of Sustainable Development Science of the Total Environment 755 (2021) 142510 (UNCSD) parties clarified the definition of Sustainable Development (SD) (Barbier, 2011;Wanner, 2015). It is defined as one that meets our present needs while allowing future generations to address their own. ...
Municipal solid waste (MSW) is one of the most urgent issues associated with economic growth and urban population. When untreated, it generates harmful and toxic substances spreading out into the soils. When treated, they produce an important amount of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions directly contributing to global warming. With its promising path to sustainability, the Danish case is of high interest since estimated results are thought to bring useful information for policy purposes. Here, we exploit the most recent and available data period (1994–2017) and investigate the causal relationship between MSW generation per capita, income level, urbanization, and GHG emissions from the waste sector in Denmark. We use an experiment based on Artificial Neural Networks and the Breitung-Candelon Spectral Granger-causality test to understand how the variables, object of the study, manage to interact within a complex ecosystem such as the environment and waste. Through numerous tests in Machine Learning, we arrive at results that imply how economic growth, identifiable by changes in per capita GDP, affects the acceleration and the velocity of the neural signal with waste emissions. We observe a periodical shift from the traditional linear economy to a circular economy that has important policy implications.
... Aufgrund dieser definitorischen Offenheit werden Interpretationen der Idee einer nachhaltigen Entwicklung durchaus kontrovers diskutiert. So wird vor allem das Konzept der Green Economy aus Umweltschutz-Perspektive kritisch gesehen (Barbier 2011;Brand 2012). Die Übernahme des Ziels einer nachhaltigen Entwicklung in politische Programme erfolgte vielfach, ohne bestehende politische und wirtschaftliche Ziele fundamental in Frage zu stellen (Hopwood et al. 2005: 40). ...
Die Studie untersucht, wie in zwei Bereichen der europäischen Politik auf Adressaten eingegangen wird. In der EU-Umweltpolitik dominiert die Annahme souveräner Konsumenten, während in der EU-Gesundheitspolitik von Adressaten ausgegangen wird, die durch politische Maßnahmen stärker geschützt werden müssen. Diese unterschiedlichen Charakterisierungen der Zielgruppen spielen eine wesentliche Rolle für die Begründung politischer Maßnahmen und Steuerungsansätze. Die Betonung schwacher und spezifischer Zielgruppen in der EU-Gesundheitspolitik ermöglicht Maßnahmen wie die Einführung von verhaltensbasierten Instrumenten.
Der Autor
Jan Pollex ist wissenschaftlicher Mitarbeiter am Geschwister-Scholl-Institut für Politikwissenschaft der Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München. Er forscht zur Europäischen Union, Umwelt- und Nachhaltigkeits- und Gesundheitspolitik. Einen weiteren Schwerpunkt stellt die Parteienforschung und lokale Politikforschung dar.
... The critical supply situation of raw materials and the subsequent growth of metal ores extraction affecting Europe, together with the influence of new extractivist neoliberal models (Ye et al., 2020), will have a deep impact on the everchanging profile of its rural areas. Amidst the consequences of the global economic and financial crisis, Europe is exploring novel approaches to the exploitation of its natural resources, unfolding an emerging landscape of metal mining that will have critical consequences for the rural world (Barbier, 2011;Berghäll and Perrels, 2010). The expansion of these new legal and physical landscapes of metal ore across Europe, however, despite the political actors, budgets, and economic projects involved, has not been widely publicized in the mass media and has taken many by surprise. ...
In this article we aim to explore the still incipient first steps of the return of extractivism to Europe, examining the geopolitical context that led to a reemergence of metal mining in rural areas. Previous emphasis on nature conservation and tourism promotion, equally fostered from European stances since the 70s on, are nowadays being confronted with a renewed focus on the strengthening of self-provision of certain raw materials. We will go through the most relevant regulations as key tools for grasping the contradiction within the new legal frameworks. Despite the urgent need to understand the changing scenario of European rural areas, the staggering reality of critical mineral extractivism, together with its environmental, ecological and social threats, is only now starting to be analyzed by social scientists.
Available at:
https://authors.elsevier.com/a/1bXPV3pILThdY
... India highlighted sustainable development in its national 12 th Five-Year Plan, emphasizing the goals of a "friendly, environment-friendly society" and "fast, sustainable, and more inclusive growth," which demonstrate the shift of national strategic priorities. Many scholars did many research studies in green development and green finance [6][7][8][9], such as Csete and Horváth (2012), Edward (2013), Wang and Zhi (2016), and Xiong and Qi (2018). erefore, promoting the development of green finance has become a priority. ...
Finance contributes to poverty alleviation through economic growth, and the development of green finance is related to the sustainable development of the world economy and environment. Green finance not only helps promote sustainable economic development but also helps reduce poverty. Based on the analysis of related theories about green finance and poverty alleviation, this paper selects 18 indicators from three dimensions of economic development, financial development, and social environmental development and uses the improved entropy method to measure the green finance development index of China’s 25 provinces and municipalities from 2004 to 2017. The results show that the development level of green finance in China’s 25 provinces and municipalities is quite different. On the basis of the above analysis, make an empirical analysis of the impact of the green finance development index on poverty alleviation using multiple regression analysis and static panel and dynamic panel estimation methods. The research results show that there is a significant positive correlation between green finance and poverty alleviation; the higher the level of green finance development, the more conducive the poverty alleviation. So, this paper suggests that poverty can be better alleviated by improving the level of green finance development, financial asset level, and economic development level.
... For example, the Grande Carajàs mine required the creation of some 800,000 ha of protected areas and indigenous reserves to partially compensate for the damage it caused (Humphreys Bebbington et al., 2018). E. Barbier (2011) addresses the funding challenge of bridging the shortfall between the global benefits that humanity receives from ecosystems and what it is willing to pay to maintain and conserve them. Finally, we find that government revenue from extractive industries contributes to mitigating forest cover loss. ...
A B S T R A C T: The extractive industries (oil, gas, and mining) play a dominant economic, social, and political role in the lives of approximately 3.5 billion people living in 81 countries across the world. However, the benefits of extractive industries come at a cost that is no longer limited to the “natural resource curse” but also includes greenhouse gas emissions, pollution, and biodiversity losses. This paper revisits the links between man-made and natural capital in developing countries, focusing on forest cover loss1. Considering a theoretical model of income maximization, we assess through empirical observation the impact of extractive industries on forest cover loss. Based on a panel of 52 resource-rich developing countries over the period 2001–2017, we adopt a dynamic specification with the two-step Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) system to address the inherent bias. Our main results show a detrimental effect of the total rent from the extractive industries on the forest cover but suggest non-homogenous impacts according to the type of rent. More specifically, mineral and gas rents contribute to accelerating forest cover loss. In contrast, oil rents and resource tax revenues contribute to reducing forest cover loss. Our results can be interpreted as in a “polluter pays” situation, where a fair share of the profits is earmarked obligatorily to compensate for the environmental damage caused by the exploitation of extractive industries. To promote corporate environmental management, stakeholders must overcome regulatory inefficiencies in exploration and exploitation contracts so that environmental compensation is at least equal to the marginal damage caused by the extractive industries.
Keywords: Extractive industries (oil, mineral, and gas), Resource taxation, Deforestation
JEL classification: C33 H23 Q32 Q5 H5
... In response to the problems currently being faced, a new trend in the economy arises, the green economy, which has undoubtedly been favored by the difficulties faced by the prevailing economic paradigm due to the crisis and market failures that were generated during this first decade of the 21st century [6,7], in particular the financial and economic crisis of 2008. However, at the same time, there is evidence of a better way forward [7,8], a new economic paradigm in which obtaining material wealth must not be obtained at the cost of increased environmental risks, ecological scarcity, or social inequality [9]. ...
The concept of the green economy is one of the global strategies to face contemporary societies' economic and environmental crises. Methodologically, the conceptualization, objectives, implementation, and criticism of various sectors of society to this new economic paradigm are addressed. It was found that authors and civil organizations have great expectations in the face of the challenges and challenges of this global strategy that has within its objectives sustainability, the eradication of poverty, and the inclusion of vulnerable social sectors. It is concluded that the green economy can contribute to maintaining a healthy environment and the proper use of ecosystem services, both for the present generation and for future generations.
... Green jobs are often presented as a step forward in creating solutions to both the economic recession and the current environmental crisis, because they are created in the context of sustainable energy development and climate change [37]. Barbier [38] considers that terms such as "green jobs", "clean economy" and "green growth" have become particularly important in the ideology and programs of states, governments and international organizations that adopt and implement "growth strategies that promote energy security and environmental protection". ...
Europe is in the middle of an energy crisis, exacerbated in large part by skyrocketing gas costs. Renewable energy is critical in this environment for decreasing Europe’s reliance on imported energy; boosting renewables in Europe requires a ‘New Energy Compact’—a coordinated effort throughout Europe to build more renewable energy capacity. The purpose of this research is to examine the structure of renewable energy production in Romania between 2010 and 2020, as well as the green employment produced by the renewable energy sector in Romania between 2010 and 2019. Using the Markov chain approach, it was predicted that in 2025, the hydropower industry’s employees would account for the biggest proportion of the overall average number of workers engaged in the renewable energy production sector in Romania (74.68%). Solar energy production employees will account for 14.31% of the average number of workers in the renewable energy production sector, biomass energy production employees will account for 5.8%, and wind energy production employees will account for 5.2% of the average number of workers in the green energy sector.
... The authors argue that the green economy can be perceived as a Gramscian 'passive revolution' whereby the dominant discourse on sustainable development, subsumed by capitalist hegemony, is secured in global developmental, economic, environmental, and growth crises Barbier, 2011 The policy challenges for green economy and sustainable economic development ...
With the increased efforts and focus on sustainable development and changes in the climate, literature has given more attention to the green economy. However, researchers have not yet been totally able to consensus on the definition of this phenomenon. The study presented in the paper provides an overview of the advancements present in research on the green economy for the period from 1990 to 2020. Using a bibliometric analysis approach, the paper summarizes the trends of development and the status quo of the green economy. The aim is to provide the reader with guidance and a solid conceptual framework for future research.
... They also believed it should incorporate differences, diversity, fairness, and inclusivity into a concept of society and community; in other words, the philosophy of green economics is to manage the natural economy as a standard rather than manage the commercial environment. Barbier (2011) argued that green growth, energy efficiency, clean energy technology, and sustainable development are often seen by international policymakers as complementary objectives and that countries should engage in a ''low-carbon revolution" that bridges the global benefits of ecosystems with what nations are willing to pay to maintain and protect these ecosystems. A global green new deal is a key strategy for economic recovery. ...
Green development answers to the common needs and demands of all humanity, especially the emerging economies like China. Based on the newly constructed Metafrontier-Global-SBM super-efficiency DEA (Data Envelopment Analysis) model, this study measures the green economic growth levels of 286 prefecture-level cities in China from 2003 to 2018 and examines their spatiotemporal evolution characteristics and internal influencing mechanisms. The empirical findings highlight that China achieved favorable green economic growth with the most significant improvement in the northeast and eastern coastal cities. In terms of regional distribution, green economic growth in Shanghai, Guangdong, Heilongjiang, Gansu, and Ningxia was at a higher level, while the Chongqing and Qinghai regions were lagging. Based on the decomposition results of the green economic growth rate; the study argues that “innovation effect” was the primary factor driving growth and “technology-leader-transfer effect” showed a contrary inhibiting effect. This study adds empirical evidence to the facts of green development in Chinese cities and the influencing mechanisms behind it, and has important policy implications for further harmonizing the relationship between resource conservation, environmental protection and economic development, and further promoting green development in China and globally.
... The authors argue that the green economy can be perceived as a Gramscian 'passive revolution' whereby the dominant discourse on sustainable development, subsumed by capitalist hegemony, is secured in global developmental, economic, environmental, and growth crises Barbier, 2011 The policy challenges for green economy and sustainable economic development ...
With the increased efforts and focus on sustainable development and changes in the climate, literature has given more attention to the green economy. However, researchers have not yet been totally able to consensus on the definition of this phenomenon. The study presented in the paper provides an overview of the advancements present in research on the green economy for the period from 1990 to 2020. Using a bibliometric analysis approach, the paper summarizes the trends of development and the status quo of the green economy. The aim is to provide the reader with guidance and a solid conceptual framework for future research.
A green economy is expected to solve the failure of the conventional economy to address climate change. It would do this by emphasising the balance between economic and environmental factors – an approach that is in line with the existing concept of Islamic finance. As a new field, research related to the green economy is still developing. This study attempts to provide quantitative information on this development. In total, Scopus lists 1183 papers, including journal articles, book chapters, and conference papers, on this subject, all produced between 1961 and 2021. This study employed the Biblioshiny package from R-studio and Excel software to synthesise and analyse this data. In addition, we identified relevancies between the green economy and Islamic finance using existing research. Regarding the results obtained, the natural fit between Islamic finance and a green economy would naturally support the implementation of the latter. Furthermore, the results show that sukuk, in particular, is a potential instrument in Islamic finance for promoting a green economy.
The concept of ecosystem services (ES) has risen to prominence based on its promise to vastly improve environmental decision‐making and to represent nature's many benefits to people. Yet the field has continued to be plagued by fundamental concerns, leading some to believe that the field of ES must mature or be replaced. In this paper, we quantitatively survey a stratified random sample of more than 1,000 articles addressing ES across three decades of scholarship. Our purpose is to examine the field's attention to common critiques regarding insufficient credible valuations of realistic changes to services; an unjustified preoccupation with monetary valuation; and too little social and policy research (e.g. questions of access to and demand for services). We found that very little of the ES literature includes valuation of biophysical change (2.4%), despite many biophysical studies of services (24%). An initially small but substantially rising number of papers address crucial policy (14%) and social dimensions, including access, demand and the social consequences of change (5.8%). As well, recent years have seen a significant increase in non‐monetary valuation (from 0% to 2.5%). Ecosystem service research has, we summarize, evolved in meaningful ways. But some of its goals remain unmet, despite the promise to improve environmental decisions, in part because of a continued pre‐occupation with numerical valuation often without appropriate biophysical grounding. Here we call for a next generation of research: Integrative biophysical‐social research that characterizes ES change, and is coupled with multi‐metric and qualitative valuation, and context‐appropriate decision‐making. A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article. A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article.
Sustainable Development (SD) is a concept of socially inclusive approach, resource-efficient, with low-carbon measures bolstered by public and private investment partnerships in economic activities and infrastructural projects that minimizes carbon emissions pollution reductions, improves energy usage, and ultimately prevents the loss of biodiversity within the ecosystem services for humankind. Implementing SD policies is paradoxically challenging for a Nigeria and other African countries due to significant factors affecting the success of such policies and efforts within its economy. This study examined 11success factors (SFs) that affects SD in Nigeria’s economy. The results show the huge impact of stakeholders on the success of the SD efforts in Nigeria. In addition, SD policy implementation, enforcement, and adaptability may take years or decades, but once embedded in overall economic sectors, organizational operations, and corporate social responsibilities, as well as the majority of the population’s respective activities, the positive social, economic, and environmental sustainability impacts, will be profound.
This study is aimed to assess the impacts of various climate induced events and the sustainability of adoption of coping and adaptive measures against these impacts. The study was conducted through participatory rural appraisal (PRA) and focus group discussion (FGD) in three sites of Kalapara Upazila (Sub-district), located along the Bay of Bengal in Southwest Bangladesh. Finding suggests that although flooding, cyclones, storm surges, and seasonal droughts have different attributes, they have commonality in bringing severe salinity in soil, sub-soil water, and surface water bodies that severely affects the livelihood security of natural resource-dependent coastal population. Indigenous knowledge and diffusion of vernacular technologies have helped a large majority of people to adopt various coping and adaptation strategies against the salinity problem for long. However, in a changing nature of salinity (i.e. a discrete isolated event has been turning to a perpetual event), which is resulting from climate change induced sea level rise (CC-SLR), most of their adopted coping and adaptation measures have failed to address their livelihood security on a sustained basis. To bolster their efforts toward adoption of adaptation strategies for sustainable livelihood, a range of avenues for interventions are identified.
Every economic development and progress entails wealth creation for the benefit of citizens sustainably. Sustainable development requires public and private investment in green assets and infrastructure that decreases carbon emissions, increases energy and resource efficiency, and preserves biodiversity and ecosystem services for humanity. Ghana is striving to transform its economic activities according to GE standards, although it faces challenges in meeting these standards. Moreover, adequate funding is limited or unavailable, especially for developing countries. This study uses a questionnaire survey to examine the relationship between SF and GE factors in Ghana. SF incorporates social and environmental issues into financial decision-making and performance. The result shows that the SFFs and the GEFs are significantly related. Ghana needs to strengthen its SF and GE policies from top to bottom to achieve remarkable green economic transformation and smooth transition.
Green Economy (GE) is among the sustainability trends meant to tackle challenges in the present norm. As such, for developing countries in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) to indulge and transform their economic activities in line with GE standards, there is a need for a workable and pragmatic framework for GE that the stakeholders agree and accept. Hence, this research identified and examined GE-related issues and developed a conceptual framework for a green economy to examine the GE related factors and stages in transitioning to GE in Nigeria. The framework identified and incorporated four stages: the formation, implementation, results and post GE stages by examining the factors at every stage. An exploratory desk study was adopted to analyze the secondary data to examine the linkages in factors that promote/accelerate or hinder/impede GE concepts. The research highlighted the framework’s feasible application and adaptability in Nigeria.
The links between the real and financial spheres are well recognized in the literature. However, under the conditions of sustainability, both the perception of the real and financial spheres, as well as the relations between them, change. The aim of this article is to show that sustainable finance has an impact on building a sustainable economy, and the model of sustainable finance increases the degree of adjustment of the financial sphere to the real economy. The research was conducted based on 86 articles. The methodology is based on log-linear models. As a result, it was proved that sustainable enterprises and finances are the factors that most frequently interact with other variables describing a sustainable economy. The study proposes the financial model for sustainable economy, this is the main novelty and contribution of the study. The original contribution of the study includes: the comprehensive analysis of the factors and relationships between sustainability, economy and finance; building a triple layered finance model for sustainable economy taking into account governance, society and environment from sustainable perspective; proposing the model of financing for the circular economy in terms of sustainability in terms of the process and defining the model of sustainable finance 4.0.
First published online 18 May 2022
Green growth is deliberated as an effective way for attaining environmental sustainability, but the nexus between fiscal spending and green growth is ignored in highly polluted Asian economies. To fill this gap, this study attempts to investigate the impact of public sector education and research and development expenditures on green economic growth for selected Asian economies for the period 1991–2019. The study employed FMOLS and DOLS methods to assess the association between public expenditures on education and research and development sectors and green economic growth. The study found that education and research and development expenditures both contribute significantly to enhancing green economic growth in most of the selected Asian economies. The study proposed some important policy implications for fostering green economic growth and environmental sustainability by mitigation of pollution emissions.
The study investigates the impact of renewable energy, international trade, foreign direct investments (FDI), and carbon dioxide emissions on gross domestic product growth (GDPG) by adopting the autoregressive distributed lag approach, error correction method, and Toda- Yamamoto approaches to determine the long-term relationship, short-term relationship, and direction of causality for the period 1984 to 2018 in Nigeria. The results of the study show the existence of a long-term and short-term relationship among the variables. The study found positive relationships between GDPG, international trade and carbon dioxide emissions. The Toda-Yamamoto tests also found a unidirectional causality from gross domestic growth to international trade and carbon dioxide emissions. On the other hand, the GDPG has a positive and insignificant relationship with renewable energy and foreign direct investment in the long term and short term. The study also found no causality between FDI, GDPG, and renewable energy. Therefore, based on the findings, this study puts forward policy strategies that are likely to reduce emissions without reducing GDP growth in Nigeria and other developing countries.
Based on panel data from 30 provinces and cities in China from 2013 to 2019, this paper analyses the impacts of renewable energy technology innovation and industrial structure upgrading on green development using a spatial Durbin model (SDM). The results show that renewable energy technology innovation has a significant positive impact on green development, the rationalization of the industrial structure has a significant positive impact on the green development of the region, and the advancement of the industrial structure has a significant negative impact on the green development of the region. This article further examines the interactions between renewable energy technology innovation and industrial structure upgrading and finds that the combined effect of renewable energy technology innovation and the rationalization of the industrial structure inhibited their respective positive impacts on green development, resulting in a 1 + 1<2 effect. That is, there is a mutually exclusive effect between the two variables. The joint effect of renewable energy technological innovation and the advancement of the industrial structure can promote the positive impact of renewable energy technological innovation on green development while restraining the negative effect of the advancement of the industrial structure. There is a complementary effect between the two variables.
A smart city is a municipality that uses information and communication
technologies (ICT) to increase operational efficiency, share information with
the public and improve both the quality of government services and citizen
welfare. In practice, the Smart Cities challenge in India not only seeks
technological leapfrogging but a giant leap of faith. Unlike smart phones and
smart card technology, smart cities could neither be imported nor transplanted,
they probably need to be adapted to the local context and assessed for their
value to urban sustainability. The development of a country depends on the
City and village’s development. A part of the smart colony concept, we need
a system that helps in development of city in the areas. Funding is the biggest
challenge to implementing a smart city strategy. Making cities smart means
deploying smart, complex infrastructure for implementing digital
technologies. Besides, tons and tons of smart devices have to be integrated for
data collection. Smart another most-pressing challenge for smart cities is the
lack of skilled professionals. Cities should be taken as a logical opportunity to
realize this challenge, with sustainable urbanization as the over-arching goal.
In most socioeconomically wealthy countries, a high quality of life is associated with a high consumption of natural resources. It is, therefore, essential to define what constitutes sustainable quality of life—that is, quality of life that is simultaneously high as well as ecologically and socially sustainable. This issue was addressed in a study on the promotion of sustainable quality of life in rural regions of Switzerland. We interviewed 90 people with the intention of developing a concept of sustainable quality of life. The concept that emerged from our research consists of nine components: social relations and equality; nature and landscape; education and knowledge; participation, identification, and collective emotions; living; mobility; health and safety; leisure and recreation; and income and employment. Each component is formulated in an integrated way, combining social, environmental, and personal aspects. The concept provides a basis for managing regional development and promoting sustainable quality of life in rural areas. In this regard, we propose starting points in the areas of social relations and equality, nature and landscape, and education and knowledge.
Based on the panel data of eleven provinces and cities in the Yangtze River Economic Belt of China from 2008 to 2018, both the optimization index of the industrial structure and environmental performance indexes are calculated. Then, the impact of industrial structure optimization on the improvement of ecological environmental performance was investigated by applying the static panel model and threshold model. The results show that the optimization of the industrial structure of the Yangtze River Economic Belt has a significant role in promoting the improvement of environmental performance in general. Still, the rationalization of the industrial structure has a single threshold effect. The upgrading of regional industrial structure in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and the rationalization of regional industrial structure in the Yangtze River's upper reaches are more conducive to improving ecological environment performance. Therefore, in the transformation and upgrading of the industrial structure of the Yangtze River Economic Belt, the downstream region should strengthen scientific and technological innovation, strive to break through the core and critical technologies, and mainly build clean and efficient green service industries.
In this study, the effect of green jobs on youth employment is examined. In this context, firstly, the terms of green growth and green jobs are explained. In this context, the positive and negative effects of green growth in terms of a sustainable economy are mentioned. Additionally, the aspects that may be an opportunity or a threat for developing countries are explained. On the other hand, Turkey is examined in terms of green growth and green jobs-oriented strategies in this study. Moreover, a framework has been drawn regarding the possibility to evaluate the potential of young population in green areas, such as renewable energy. It is concluded that green job opportunities will be more significant for Turkey in the future to minimize youth unemployment.
Today we use the conventional macroeconomic indicators of GDP to understanding the overall economic position of a country, but GDP does not properly account for social and environmental cost and benefit. It is also difficult to achieve sustainable decision-making. If welfare is being considered from a purely financial point of view, sustainable development can be defined as “Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”. It is, therefore, it requires a clear and at the same time multidimensional indicators showing the link between a community’s economy, environment and society. The Green Economy is a new approach arising from summit in Rio de Janeiro, 2012 (Rio+20) to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the first Rio Earth Summit in 1992. The UNEP defines a green economy as one that results in “improved human well-being and social equity, while significantly reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities”. In its simplest expression, a green economy is low carbon, resource efficient and socially inclusive economy. In a green economy, growth in income and employment should be driven by public and private investments, that reduce carbon emissions and pollution, enhance energy and resource efficiency and prevent the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services. The green economy approach is an effort to focus sustainable development and poverty reduction effort on transforming economic activities and economies. Important components of this approach include the use of economic instruments, that creation of an investment- friendly environment and directing public and private investment towards building natural capital stocks. Green economy could be an overarching goal for both developed and developing countries in making future development more sustainable. While the concern of the industrialized economies is how to reduce environmental risks and keep the economy green. The concern of the developing economies is now growth can be promoted without degrading the natural resource base and with respect for the principles of low-carbon economy. For the mountain regions, particularly those are the developing economies where millions of people live in a fragile environment and depend mainly on natural resources for their living. The challenge is how to sustainably manage the ecosystems strengthens resilience to climate change and economic pressures and promote low-carbon based economic growth and social justice. India can make green growth a reality by putting in place strategies to reduce environmental degradation at the minimal cost of 0.02% to 0.04% average annual GDP growth rate. According to a New World Bank Report, 2013, this will allow India to maintain a high pace of economic growth without jeopardizing the future environmental sustainability. The annual cost of environmental degradation in India, amounts to about Rs. 3.75 trillion ($ 80 billion) equivalent to 5.7% of GDP. It focuses on particle pollution from the burning of fossil fuels, which has serious health consequences amounting to up to 3% of India’s GDP along with losses due to lack of access to clean water supply, sanitation and hygiene and natural resource depletion. Of this, the impacts of outdoor air pollution account for the highest share at 1.7% followed by cost of indoor air pollution at 1.3%. The higher costs for outdoor/indoor air pollution are primarily driven by an elevated exposure of the young and productive urban population to particulate matter pollution that results in a substantial cardiopulmonary and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease mortality load among adults. Further, a significant portion of diseases caused by poor water supply, sanitation and hygiene is borne by children under 5. Above 23% of child mortality in the country could be attributed to environmental degradation. Also, according to the World Bank Report, 2013 “Diagnostic Assessment of select Environmental Challenges in India” is green growth, affordable in India, 10 % particulate emission reduction by 2030 will lower GDP modestly, representing a loss of merely 0.3% to the GDP compared to business as usual, on the other hand, a 30% particulate emission reduction lowers GDP about $ 97 billion, or 0.7% with very little impact on the growth rate. There are significant health benefits, the savings from reduced health damage range from $ 105 billion in the 30% case to $ 24 billion with a 10% reduction. This, to a large extent, compensates for the projected GDP loss. The report also emphasized that green growth is measurable and important as India is a hotspot of unique biodiversity and ecosystems. The study undertook a first ever comprehensive assessment of the value of ecosystem services from various biomes across India. Based on conservative estimates, it amounts to about 3.0% to 5.0% of GDP. Conventional measures of growth do not adequately capture the environmental cost, which have been found to be particularly severe at the current rapid growth rate. In this backdrop, it is essential to evaluate the state of the green economy. Therefore, the present study tries to examine the state of the green economy with reference to India through empirical analysis and a comparative study with reference to selected developed and developing countries, using appropriate indicators of green economy for the latest study period.
Transition metal-oxide spinels find applications in chemical, aerospace and automobile industries. Due to high manufacturing cost of spinel materials and adverse impact on environment, process innovation becomes essential. In this work, a green strategy was employed in the synthesis of mesoporous, free standing MAl2O4 (M = Fe, Co, Ni, Cu) spinel films. It includes use of aqueous solvent, novel disc furnace and parameters like viscosity (1–2 Pa-s), contact angle (120°-125°) of boehmite sol in controlling cracking, and deformation during processing of air-dried film. The precursor material was calcined at 600 °C using the disc furnace. Formation of AB2O4 type spinel structure was confirmed by employing advanced characterization tools. The surface area, pore size and particle size of the calcined films were 275 m² g⁻¹, 5 nm and 17.5 nm, respectively. Morphological study of the calcined free-standing films revealed textured array and ordered growth of spinel lattice.
Environmental quality and economic growth are important factors that need to be balanced for sustainable development, especially in developing countries where technology is relatively backward. Many studies have shown that technology imports may be beneficial to economic growth, but once the resources and environment are taken into consideration, the role of technology imports becomes blurred. Based on provincial panel data of China from 2004 to 2019, this paper investigates the influence mechanism of domestic and foreign technology imports on the green economic efficiency (GEE) of 30 provinces in China. There are two main conclusions: First, GEE is spatially related and the impact of technology imports on GEE has a significant spillover effect. Besides, the relationship between technology imports and GEE is non-linear, both in terms of direct and indirect effects. Second, independent innovation plays an important role in the influence mechanism of technology imports on GEE. As the level of independent innovation increased, the impact of technology imports on GEE turns from negative to positive, and it is strengthened through the channel of “transfer-absorption-diffusion-re-innovation.” In this regard, some measures should be taken to enhance the role of technology imports in improving GEE.
To date, issues related to the effective exploitation of the resource potential are becoming in-creasingly important for Russia. Gradual depletion of the mineral and raw material base and high level of ecological risks make this issue particularly relevant in the current conditions. The study deals with the development of organizational and economic mechanism that ensures the involvement and complex use of multicomponent ores to provide domestic industrial branches with important types of mineral raw materials. The theoretical aspects and main di-rections of the complex use of mineral raw materials are discussed. Critical analysis of modern frameworks is provided, key problems and barriers both economic and managerial (legal and regulatory policy) are identified. The possible measures to improve the CUMR projects’ eco-nomic efficiency are examined. The scheme of organizational and economic mechanism is presented. The study makes a number of recommendations aimed at the development of the complex use of mineral raw materials direction in Russia.
This study considers the sustainable development goals with the help of sustainable practices followed by seven different industries in G7 economies from 2010 to 2018 using panel estimators. During the study period, sustainable practices have been measured through environmental, social, and governance (ESG) pillars. The role of green financing, clean energy, and green economic volatility is observed as key determinants. The overall findings confirm that clean energy, green financing, and green economy development are significant and positive indications towards a cumulative measure of sustainable practices. Similarly, green bonds, clean energy, and green economy development play a constructive role when all three pillars of sustainable development practices are analyzed individually. This association is also consistent after controlling the effects of environmental regulations, economic growth, and foreign investment. These findings have significant implications for the related industries, the government in G7 economies, ecological activists, and other stakeholders. Besides, this research also contributes to the literature of sustainable practices from the context of G7 countries while creating a linkage between sustainable practices, green financing, clean energy, and green economy.
COVID-19 has caused great devastation in Europe and internationally. Governments worldwide are now spending vast sums of money on the economic recovery which will significantly influence our ability to deliver a green and resilient recovery. In this report, experts who are part of the European Science and Technology Advisory Group (E-STAG), analysed the COVID-19 recovery stimulus packages in the European Union through the Next Generation EU (NGEU) program. The analysis examines the steps taken to deliver a green and resilient recovery and indicates that current action is not commensurate with the sheer scale of the challenge – the rapid accumulation of disaster risk that is systemic, interconnected and cascading.
With the strong resonance for sustainable development and cleaner production, biofuel has been recognized as one of the promising solutions to substitute depleting fossil fuels. Nonetheless, the biomass supply chain for biofuel production is associated with multiple challenges, including the variation in biomass availability, distinct characteristics of each species, uncertainties of the technology performance, logistics and transportation issues. External factors such as high upfront capital, difficulties to secure financing to start-up or sustain its operation, social awareness and acceptance of biofuel contribute to the complication of its supply chain management. Thus, the Hazard and Operability Analysis method, originated from process safety review technique, is adapted to systematically review the complex elements in the biomass supply chain and the current development of biomass supply chain optimization models. Mitigation and management solutions are then proposed to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of the biomass supply chain management.
In the past 30 years, China’s industrialization level has developed rapidly, and agricultural green development (AGD) is facing severe challenges. The research on the temporal and spatial features of the coupling and coordination of industrialization and agricultural green development is a key issue to promote the sustainable development of agriculture. This paper takes China’s industrialization and AGD level as the research object, and uses panel data from 31 provinces in China from 1990 to 2019 to construct an evaluation index system for industrialization and AGD. This paper uses the coupling coordination degree model and spatial autocorrelation analysis method to calculate, test and analyze the temporal and spatial features of the coupling coordination level of industrialization and AGD. The results show that: this paper compares the industrialization and AGD levels during the study period and finds that China’s industrialization development level is on the rise as a whole, and the AGD level shows a downward trend first and then rises later. Through the horizontal comparison of different regions, this paper finds that there is a large regional imbalance in the level of industrialization and AGD. The coupling and coordination level of industrialization and AGD has always been primary. From the time point of view, coupling coordination degree shows a trend of first decline and then rise. From a spatial point of view, coupling coordination degree varies greatly among provinces, with the eastern, central and western regions decreasing successively. The level of coupling coordination has obvious positive autocorrelation in spatial distribution, and presents significant spatial agglomeration characteristics in space. The research results can provide a theoretical basis for regionally differentiated governance of the coordinated development of industrialization and AGD, and promote coordinated development.
This paper investigates the impact of foreign direct investments, energy consumption and economic growth on CO2 emissions in Turkey for the period of 1974-2015 by using autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) model with a structural break. FMOLS and DOLS estimations are employed to check robustness of the model. The findings reveal a long-run relationship between the variables, and show that FDI contributes positively to CO2 emissions, validating pollution haven hypothesis. Economic growth has significantly positive relationship with CO2 emissions whereas impact of its square on CO2 emissions is also significant, but negative which confirms Environmental Kuznets Curve hypothesis. Energy consumption is also positively associated with CO2 emissions, meaning that higher levels of energy consumption lead to a higher environmental degradation. The dummy variable including the structural break is also statistically significant and positive. It is concluded that because of FDI inflows engender an increment in carbon emissions, Turkey should adopt cleaner technologies to avoid environmental pollution.
The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) have lofty expectations regarding the impact of official development aid. Are these expectations valid? This paper surveys the literature on aid and growth. It finds that practically all aid studies since the late 1990s conclude that aid increases economic growth. By implication, therefore, it can be inferred that poverty would be higher in the absence of aid. As such the above- mentioned expectations are, to a certain extent, valid. The paper then reviews volumes of and trends in official development assistance since 1960, highlighting flows to Sub-Saharan Africa. A downturn in volumes in the 1990s is demonstrated. It asserts that poverty is higher and the MDGs are hard to achieve because of this downturn. It also asserts that while aid will be important, other sources of external finance are required to achieve the MDGs. The paper concludes by examining recent proposals regarding new sources of such finance. [Research Paper No. 2005/09]
The performance of the European Union's Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) to date cannot be evaluated without recognizing that the first three years from 2005 through 2007 constituted a 'trial' period and understanding what this trial period was supposed to accomplish. Its primary goal was to develop the infrastructure and to provide the experience that would enable the successful use of a cap-and-trade system to limit European GHG emissions during a second trading period, 2008-12, corresponding to the first commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol. The trial period was a rehearsal for the later more serious engagement and it was never intended to achieve significant reductions in CO emissions in only three years. In light of the speed with which the program was developed, the many sovereign countries involved, the need to develop the necessary data, information dissemination, compliance and market institutions, and the lack of extensive experience with emissions trading in Europe, we think that the system has performed surprisingly well. Although there have been plenty of rough edges, a transparent and widely accepted price for tradable CO emission allowances emerged by January 1, 2005, a functioning market for allowances has developed quickly and effortlessly without any prodding by the Commission or member state governments, the cap-and-trade infrastructure of market institutions, registries, monitoring, reporting and verification is in place, and a significant segment of European industry is incorporating the price of CO emissions into their daily production decisions. The development of the EU ETS and the experience with the trial period provides a number of useful lessons for the U.S. and other countries. 27 refs., 7 figs., 5 tabs.
Increasing recognition that the overall goals of environmental conservation and economic development are not conflicting but can be mutually reinforcing, has prompted calls for ‘environmentally sustainable’ economic development. Although there are difficulties in defining sustainable development in an analytically rigorous way, there is still a need to evolve a concept of sustainability that both distinguishes it from other post-war meanings of development and is useful for practical analysis and policymaking.
Global climate policy initiatives are now being proposed to compensate tropical forest nations for reducing carbon emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD). These proposals have the potential to include developing countries more actively in international greenhouse gas mitigation and to address a substantial share of the world's emissions which come from tropical deforestation. For such a policy to be viable it must have a credible benchmark against which emissions reduction can be calculated. This benchmark, sometimes termed a baseline or reference emissions scenario, can be based directly on historical emissions or can use historical emissions as input for business as usual projections. Here, we review existing data and methods that could be used to measure historical deforestation and forest degradation reference scenarios including FAO (Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations) national statistics and various remote sensing sources. The freely available and corrected global Landsat imagery for 1990, 2000 and soon to come for 2005 may be the best primary data source for most developing countries with other coarser resolution high frequency or radar data as a valuable complement for addressing problems with cloud cover and for distinguishing larger scale degradation. While sampling of imagery has been effectively useful for pan-tropical and continental estimates of deforestation, wall-to-wall (or full coverage) allows more detailed assessments for measuring national-level reference emissions. It is possible to measure historical deforestation with sufficient certainty for determining reference emissions, but there must be continued calls at the international level for making high-resolution imagery available, and for financial and technical assistance to help countries determine credible reference scenarios. The data available for past years may not be sufficient for assessing all forms of forest degradation, but new data sources will have greater potential in 2007 and after. This paper focuses only on the methods for measuring changes in forest area, but this information must be coupled with estimates of change in forest carbon stocks in order to quantify emissions from deforestation and forest degradation.
1] Alternative mechanisms for water transfers will differ in the types of transaction costs incurred as well as their magnitudes and incidence. This article presents a framework for including transaction costs as well as transfer costs in the evaluation of alternative mechanisms. The work on measurement of transaction costs associated with water markets has underestimated these costs by only focusing on the costs incurred once a market exists. The framework presented here also includes the costs associated with the development of a market mechanism. Once the appropriate framework has been developed, there are a number of measurement issues involved with incorporating transaction costs in the overall assessment of the efficiency of water allocation mechanisms. While the costs involved with the final transaction are relatively easy to measure, those involved with the initial information gathering, policy enactment, and design and implementation of a formal market mechanism are rarely documented. Similarly, it is much easier to measure transaction costs after the policy is implemented; however, it is necessary to predict costs to inform decision-making and improve policy design. Citation: McCann, L., and K. W. Easter (2004), A framework for estimating the transaction costs of alternative mechanisms for water exchange and allocation, Water Resour. Res., 40, W09S09, doi:10.1029/2003WR002830.
Rules governing the REDD (Reductions of Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation) scheme have yet to be established. Different national interests compete within the debate on baselines in order to maximize expected gains. The scheme could have a deleterious impact on the carbon
market through massive hot air creation (fake emission reductions), and ultimately on the current international climate change regime derived from the cap-and-trade architecture adopted by the Kyoto Protocol. The political economy of avoided deforestation is frequently overlooked as is the
issue of additionality, although both of them are more critical with deforestation at national level than they could be with project-based CDM. An alternative REDD architecture which relies on a special fund would not only allow protection of the carbon market against massive flooding by non
additional credits, but could also help finance potentially efficient policies and measures. Sustaining long-term adequate funding is still an issue to be addressed on a multilateral basis.
Tropical deforestation is estimated to cause about one-quarter of anthropogenic carbon emissions, loss of biodiversity, and other environmental services. United Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change talks are now considering mechanisms for avoiding deforestation (AD), but the economic potential of AD has yet to be addressed. We use three economic models of global land use and management to analyze the potential contribution of AD activities to reduced greenhouse gas emissions. AD activities are found to be a competitive, low-cost abatement option. A program providing a 10% reduction in deforestation from 2005 to 2030 could provide 0.3–0.6 Gt (1 Gt = 1 × 10⁵ g) CO2·yr⁻¹ in emission reductions and would require $0.4 billion to $1.7 billion·yr⁻¹ for 30 years. A 50% reduction in deforestation from 2005 to 2030 could provide 1.5–2.7 Gt CO2·yr⁻¹ in emission reductions and would require $17.2 billion to $28.0 billion·yr⁻¹. Finally, some caveats to the analysis that could increase costs of AD programs are described.
• carbon sequestration
• climate change
• reducing emissions from deforestation and ecosystem degradation (REDD)
• marginal cost
• tropical forest
The global market failure problem of international biodiversity loss can be mitigated through the use of trade interventions or by the creation of new international markets and institutions for the global environmental benefits generated by the biodiversity conserved by host countries. However, it may be difficult to reach a mutually agreed “trade for nature” deal when the biodiversity in the host country is threatened mainly by habitat conversion. On the other hand, if the threat is from over-exploitation, unilateral trade interventions by the recipient countries are also likely. Although there may be strong incentives for the latter countries to negotiate an international biodiversity agreement, if such incentives exist, then these countries may act unilaterally to compensate host countries for their conservation efforts. Rich countries therefore need convincing that they are likely to gain from reducing global biodiversity loss.
In February, 2005, the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change came into force, but without participation by the United States. Its impacts on emissions of greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide (CO2), the primary anthropogenic driver of climate change, will be trivial; but scientific and economic analyses point to the need for a credible international approach.Because the Kyoto Protocol's ambitious targets apply only to the short term (2008-2012) and only to industrialized nations, the agreement will impose relatively high costs and generate only modest short-term benefits while failing to provide a real solution. For these reasons, most economists see the agreement as deeply flawed, although some see it as an acceptable first step. Virtually all agree, however, that the Protocol is not sufficient to the overall challenge.We describe the basic features of a post-Kyoto international global climate agreement, which addresses three crucial questions: who, when, and how. The respective elements are: first, a means to ensure that key nations, industrialized and developing, are involved; second, an emphasis on an extended time path of action (employing a cost-effective pattern over time); and third, inclusion of market-based policy instruments.
This paper discusses short-run and long-run effects of"green stimulus"efforts, and compares these effects with"non-green"fiscal stimuli. Green stimulus is defined here as short-run fiscal stimuli that also serve a"green"or environmental purpose in a situation of"crisis"characterized by temporary under-employment. A number of recently enacted national stimulus packages contain sizeable"green"components. The authors categorize effects according to their a) short-run employment effects, b) long-run growth effects, c) effects on carbon emissions, and d)"co-benefit"effects (on the environment, natural resources, and for other externalities). The most beneficial"green"programs in times of crisis are those that can stimulate employment in the short run, and lead to large"learning curve"effects via lower production costs in the longer term. The overall assessment is that most"green stimulus"programs that have large short-run employment and environmental effects are likely to have less significant positive effects for long-run growth, and vice versa, implying a trade-off in many cases between short-run and long-run impacts. There are also trade-offs for employment generation in that programs that yield larger (smaller) employment effects tend to lead to more employment gains for largely lower-skilled (higher-skilled) workers, so that the long-term growth effects are relatively small (large). Ultimately, the results reinforce the point that different instruments are needed for addressing different problems.
This insightful book explores the limits of the two opposing paradigms of sustainability in an accessible way. It examines the availability of natural resources for the production of consumption goods and services, and the environmental consequences of economic growth. The critical forms of natural capital in need of preservation given risk, uncertainty and ignorance about the future are also examined. The author provides a critical discussion of measures of sustainability. As indicators of weak sustainability, he analyses Genuine Savings and the Index of Sustainable Economic Welfare, also known as the Genuine Progress Indicator. Indicators of strong sustainability covered include ecological footprints, material flows, sustainability gaps and other measures, which combine the setting of environmental standards with monetary valuation.
With increasing greenhouse gas emissions, we are embarked on an unprecedented experiment with an uncertain outcome for the future of the planet. The Kyoto Protocol serves as an initial step through 2012 to mitigate the threats posed by global climate change. A second step is needed, and policy-makers, scholars, business people, and environmentalists have begun debating the structure of the successor to the Kyoto agreement. Written by a team of leading scholars in economics, law, and international relations, this book contributes to this debate by examining the merits of six alternative international architectures for global climate policy. Architectures for Agreement offers the reader a uniquely wide-ranging menu of options for post-Kyoto climate policy, with a concern throughout to learn from past experience in order to maximize opportunities for future success in the real, ‘second-best’ world. It will be an essential reference for scholars, policy-makers, and students interested in climate policy.
This paper provides insight into the relevance of market forces to typical problems found in irrigated agriculture. It first considers the theoretical basis for the use of economic instruments, such as volumetric water charges and tradable water rights, then considers their usefulness in the context of five case studies of irrigated areas, in Egypt, India, Indonesia, Morocco and Ukraine. The case studies confirm that competition for scarce water and shortage of funds are widespread. To assess the suitability of economic instruments to achieve water management objectives, insight is provided into the current price paid for irrigation water, the cost of service provision and the value to irrigators. It becomes clear that there is a big gap between the price and value of irrigation water. This means that a considerable increase in the price of water is needed to balance supply and demand, which would reduce farm economic welfare substantially. This socio-political problem, plus the technical and administrative complexity of measuring water, make water pricing an unsuitable approach to balance supply and demand.
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For more than a decade, the Global Environment Facility (GEF) has provided critical support to developing countries for fighting global environmental problems such as climate change and the loss of biodiversity. But recent developments do not bode well for the ability of the GEF to continue playing its pivotal role in support of implementing multilateral environmental agreements. Its already modest resource base has been declining in real terms, and a December 2005 deadline for the conclusion of the fourth replenishment of the GEF (GEF4) passed without a compromise between major donors. The adoption of a resource allocation framework in September 2005 is likely to complicate how the GEF can program its resources in the future, even if replenishment negotiations can be completed by June 2006. Current events reinforce the need for a close look at what the future role of the GEF should be and how resources for addressing global environmental problems in developing countries should be raised.1
This study reviews different approaches to the political and economic control of global public goods such as global warming.
It compares quantity-oriented control mechanisms like the Kyoto Protocol with price-type control mechanisms such as internationally
harmonized carbon taxes. The analysis focuses on such issues as the relationship to ultimate targets, performance under conditions
of uncertainty, volatility of induced carbon prices, the inefficiencies of taxation and regulation, potential for corruption
and accounting finagling, and ease of implementation. It concludes that price-type approaches such as carbon taxes have major
advantages for slowing global warming.
For two generations, policy makers, environmental groups, industry associations and other stakeholders have given global forest deterioration concerted and sustained attention. Widespread disappointment over the failure to achieve a binding global forest convention at the 1992 Rio Earth
Summit has been followed by frustration over the relatively limited impact to date of post-Rio forest-related global policy initiatives, including intergovernmental and non-state efforts. This paper argues that reduced emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD) initiatives
will yield significant impacts only if decision makers are committed to a results-based dual effectiveness test, addressing both forest degradation and global emissions reductions, and involving significant and measurable global-scale targets. While the importance of such a commitment may
appear obvious, lessons from past forest and climate efforts suggest that greater results-based accountability is needed to overcome short-term and narrowly defined organizational and national self-interest.
This paper reviews evidence that energy technologies and systems adapt over time to accommodate external pressures: that technical innovation and systemic change in the energy sector is largely induced by need, and restrained by potentially large transitional costs. A simple integrated model of optimal greenhouse gas abatement over time is presented, in which the abatement cost depends on both fixed and transitional elements. It is shown that the optimal current response and long-run prospects differ radically between the classical economic case — in which the cost of a given cutback in emissions is fixed exogenously — and the adaptive case — in which the response is ultimately adaptive but heavily constrained by inertia (ie low fixed but high transitional cost). If energy systems are indeed to a large degree adaptive, the results demonstrate that as compared with the classical non-adaptive case: long-run stabilization of atmospheric CO2 may be optimal even with moderate damages from climate change; greater near-term abatement efforts are justified; and the cost of a given delay in response may be several times higher. Neglect of the issue of induced technical change and other adaptive responses may invalidate the policy implications drawn from most integrated assessment models developed to date.
Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation and through the conservation, sustainable management, and enhancement of carbon stocks (REDD+) offers unprecedented potential funding for forest conservation and associated biodiversity. However, as a growing number of biodiversity conservation projects link with carbon emissions mitigation efforts, they might also be exposed to significant financial risks. REDD+ projects currently face uncertainty over future demand for carbon credits, the potential for inconsistent donor support in the long-term, carbon market volatility, investor preference for low-cost emissions mitigation over cobenefits, and the possibility of a short-lived REDD+ mechanism. The private sector is aware of the associated financial risks, which remain largely unaddressed within the conservation literature. Biodiversity conservationists need to identify a balance between maximizing near-term REDD+ opportunities and insulating themselves from long-term financial risks. We describe some of the prospective financial risks for biodiversity conservation efforts linked with REDD+, and propose initial strategies for financial resilience.
summary The 1992 Rio Earth Summit established a sustainable development plan of action, Agenda 21, but failed to achieve a global governance and finance system strong enough to implement it. Experience suggests that the additional funding needed for global-scale investments in environ-ment and sustainable development is unlikely to come from the public sector alone. New efforts to fund the necessary initiatives must therefore come from enlightened citizens, social entrepreneurs, and the growing segment of the business community that associates shareholder value with sustainability and corporate social responsibility. This chapter highlights a series of policy reforms that must underpin any improvements in global environmental governance. It argues, in addition, that funding must be increased significantly, and proposes the creation of 1) a Johannesburg Commission on Sustainable Development Finance, and (2) a new global financing mechanism – a Sustainable Development Exchange Facility.
This paper discusses both the opportunities for and the challenges associated with integrating economics and ecology in the study of ecosystem services. We distinguish between integration in positive versus normative analysis. There is rapid growth in positive research that combines the two disciplines to provide insight and better understanding of the bidirectional linkage between economic and ecological systems. This research is a crucial part of addressing growing large-scale environmental challenges. This integration is equally important, but potentially much more difficult, in normative analysis, especially when interdisciplinary groups include individuals with different views regarding appropriate normative criteria. In such cases, reaching consensus can be difficult and slow, even when the practical implications of the different perspectives (i.e., the general policy prescriptions they imply) are the same. We suggest an approach for increasing the scope for collaboration among economists and ecologists in normative analysis.
This paper studies a market in pollution permits launched in Los Angeles in 1994. This tradable permit market has been projected to lead to substantial cost savings due to the flexibility it provides firms in terms of compliance with environmentarl egulation. This paper shows that transaction costs can play an important role in the initial years of the program. The transaction cost variables have been defined to include search costs and information costs. These costs are significant in explaining non-participation of some firms in the market. The study also draws policy implications for the development of future emissions trading programs.
An international payment for ecosystem service (IPES) schemes may be one of the only mechanisms available to stimulate the provision of vital non-marketed ecosystem services at the global level, as those nations that benefit from global ecosystem services (GES) cannot readily force other sovereign nations to provide them. Currently, international trade offers trillions of dollars in incentives for countries to convert natural capital into marketable goods and services, and few payments to entice countries to conserve natural capital in order to sustain critical non-marketed ecosystem services. We examine the biophysical characteristics of climate change and biodiversity to understand the obstacles to developing effective IPES schemes. We find that none of the existing schemes for providing GES are adequate, given the scale of the problem. A cap and auction scheme for CO2 emissions among wealthy nations could fund IPES and simultaneously deter carbon emissions. To disburse funds, we should adapt Brazil's ICMS ecológico, and apportion available funds to targeted countries in proportion to how well they meet specific criteria designed to measure the provision of GES. Individual countries can then develop their own policies for increasing provision of these services, ensured of compensation if they do so. Indirect IPES should include funding for freely available technologies that protect or provide GES, such as the low carbon energy alternatives that will be essential for curbing climate change. Markets rely on the price mechanism to generate profits, which rations technology to those who can afford it, reducing adoption rates, innovation and total value.
Sustainable energy supply, climate change and poverty are three critical, interrelated global problems that require urgent action, including substantial investment. We examine the feasibility of using an international carbon tax to finance an integrated investment programme in sustainable energy technology (including climate change mitigation) and the reduction of poverty (including climate change adaptation). A simple evaluation of responsibility for anthropogenic climate change based on cumulative greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to stabilisation per capita (using current populations) suggests that currently India and China remain under-spent by 99% and 78% for stringent, 445–490 ppm CO2-equivalent (CO2-eq) targets, respectively, whilst the USA and EC are already overspent for targets of 710–855 and 545–590 ppm CO2-eq, respectively. It would therefore appear equitable to charge the tax only in developed nations. The potential advantages and disadvantages of an integrated investment programme and available policy instruments for a tax of this type are discussed, drawing on relevant literature. Although a cost-benefit analysis using suitable simulations that include revenue recycling is required, revenues estimated from documented carbon tax simulations appear sufficient to meet a significant proportion of the estimated investment requirement. With increasing public awareness and an integrated campaign, obtaining agreement for this type of ambitious international measures could soon become realistic.
Criteria and indicators (C&I) have emerged as a powerful tool in implementing sustainable forest management. In a relatively short period, around 150 countries have adopted C&I. Some processes have used C&I in forest management and produced progress reports. Six of the seven thematic areas common to all processes are also being used as a basis for reporting progress towards sustainable forest management [e.g., the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in its Global Forest Resource Assessment 2005]. However, there are significant problems in the wider application of C&I. A number of countries are not using C&I at all, and in some countries where they are being used, it is not done in an effective manner. Areas that need improvement in order to promote the use of C&I include: (1) strengthening concepts and definitions; (2) rationalising criteria and indicators; (3) further research on indicators; and (4) utilising C&I in more effective ways. The future development of C&I must be based on an active link between research effort and operational needs in order to prevent a waste of resources and effort. Some of the research undertaken to date has led to the adoption of innovative approaches to optimise resource use and simplify application. This paper identifies areas needing more research and draws from ongoing work to show where progress is being made.
Policy choice and policy design need to take account of transaction costs in order to increase the efficiency and sustainability of policies. However, transaction costs must first be measured to be included in the evaluation of alternative environmental or natural resource policies. While a number of studies measure transaction costs, there has been no systematic treatment of the fundamental issues involved. This article examines the issues involved in transaction cost measurement and makes recommendations regarding a typology of costs as well as the measurement methodologies themselves. In particular, methods used for nonmarket valuation of environmental goods may have potential for the measurement of transaction costs.
The study aims to analyze the sectoral marginal abatements cost curves for a number of EU countries as well as to examine the efficiency aspects and the economic impacts for the major sectors of the ETS under different carbon market configurations in 2010 and 2020. To produce a consistent and realistic assessment, we employ sources such as GHG National Inventories, NAPs and POLES world energy model to constitute the sectoral base year and 2010, 2020 emission levels in different countries and regions. We then use the market analysis tool ASPEN, which enables to derive supply and demand from sectoral MACCs produced with the POLES model, and to evaluate the economic impacts on the carbon market participants. The paper shows that, in compliance with the Kyoto targets, the benefits of an enlarged carbon market are significant, since more than 50% of the abatement in the short term have to be achieved in ETS sectors, which may indeed use CDM or JI credits. A second major conclusion is that in 2020 the new flexibility margins provided by the adjustment of investments in new capacities compensate for the increase in pressure towards stronger emission reductions. This reduces the relative importance of the enlarged carbon market.
Over its 17 years, the UN's Global Environment Facility (GEF) has allocated US $7.5 billion intended to develop and implement scientifically and socially credible solutions to key global environmental problems such as climate change, biological diversity loss and degradation of transboundary aquatic systems. We studied 906 GEF projects to analyse the challenges that it is facing in delivering solutions that are likely to be sustainable in the long-term. The research included desk reviews of relevant documents and follow-up interviews with a wide range of stakeholders. Some of the challenges the GEF faces are deeply rooted in temporal and spatial mismatches of scale between human economies and their environmental consequences and the strongly sectoral way current society is managed. We conclude that the GEF obtained impressive results for tackling problems of limited complexity and easily quantified benefits but progress is slower on more complex and less tangible problems impeding sustainable development. Potentially, the GEF could enable adaptive management through a ‘learning by doing’ process, transforming it into an innovative mechanism for delivering global benefits. Continued emphasis on ‘easy wins’ would not allow it to achieve this goal.
Transaction costs and institutional rigidities will reduce the attractiveness of the Kyoto Protocol flexibility mechanisms compared to domestic greenhouse gas abatement options. The clean development mechanism (CDM) in particular is likely to entail considerable costs of baseline development, project registration, verification and certification. The activities implemented jointly pilot phase and the prototype carbon fund programme give indications about these costs. There is evidence that projects with high implementation costs have high transaction costs as well. Moreover, CDM projects have to be approved by host country institutions, and so far only a small share of host countries has been able to set up these institutions. Several of the larger host countries intend to only approve projects if the market price is above a certain threshold. Some governments will also levy fees to finance costs of approval bodies. We assess these issues using a quantitative model of the Kyoto Protocol permit market. We conclude that while changes in demand from Annex B countries remain the crucial factor, the size of the CDM will depend to a significant degree on transaction costs and institutional barriers in host countries.
This insightful book explores the limits of the two opposing paradigms of sustainability in an accessible way. It examines the availability of natural resources for the production of consumption goods and services, and the environmental consequences of economic growth. The critical forms of natural capital in need of preservation given risk, uncertainty and ignorance about the future are also examined. The author provides a critical discussion of measures of sustainability. As indicators of weak sustainability, he analyses Genuine Savings and the Index of Sustainable Economic Welfare, also known as the Genuine Progress Indicator. Indicators of strong sustainability covered include ecological footprints, material flows, sustainability gaps and other measures, which combine the setting of environmental standards with monetary valuation.
Cost-effectiveness analysis, which ranks projects by quality adjusted life years gained per dollar spent, is widely used in the evaluation of health interventions. We show that cost effectiveness analysis can be derived from two axioms: society prefers Pareto improvements and society values discounted life years, lived in perfect health, equally for each person. These axioms generate a unique social preference ordering, allowing us to find the cost effectiveness threshold to which health projects should be funded, and to extend cost effectiveness analysis to give a consistent method of project evaluation across all sectors of the economy.
Recent changes in European agri-environmental policy allow farmers' transaction costs (TCs), also called private TCs, to be taken into account when calculating compensation payments for agri-environmental schemes (AESs). This gives rise to questions as to the significance of these costs and the methodologies used to measure them. In this paper, private TCs are measured and analysed using two methodologies: (1) through a survey of general perceptions of TCs and (2) through a one-year registration system for monitoring labour hours, operational and administrative costs and differences in revenue between a parcel of land in an AES and a comparable area of land not in a comparable scheme. The results obtained with both methodologies show that private TCs are significant and not to be underestimated. They represent about 15% of the total AES-related costs and about 25% of the compensation payment. The most important cost factor resulting from an AES-uptake is the income foregone which represents more than 50% of the total costs.