Business cycles

We are deeply concerned with global climate change, the higher frequency of extreme weather conditions, the rise of sea level, land losses and floods in coastal regions, the intrusion of saltwater into the freshwater of small islands, the dramatic reduction in biodiversity, ubiquitous pollution. However, we are optimist that mitigation is still possible if the world reacts with extreme energy and cohesion.

We are late and COP17 recognizes the large gap between future GHG reduction emission pledges and what is required by science to keep the world in a safe environmental space. New approaches and policies are badly needed to raise ambition and effectiveness in mitigation and adaptation.

400 ppm of CO2 concentration in the athmosphere: the deadly news we tried hard to avoid

The world is quickly going into the climate catastrophe. We need innovation in policies and coalitions to avoid the worst.

COP17 Durban on Climate Change: the full text of the outcome on mitigation, adaptation, climate finance, technology transfer and already painful losses and damages

In Durban, the international community has chosen to recognise the current shortcomings in the fight to climate change and launch a process aimed at increasing the GHG emission reductions, including with the operationalisation of the Green Climate Fund (whose origins date back to the Copenhagen Green Climate Fund) and improved cooperation in technology innovation and diffusion.

Decisions

Policy options for mainstreaming forest-based mitigation measures in EU rural development

EWI director explores alternatives. Presentation at RomaForest2011, a major meeting of the forest sector in EU.

Essay

DG Clima statement

How to write action plans for mitigation and adaptation in BSEC countries - the Athens conference full paper and the presentation by Valentino Piana

Small islands' approach to climate change mitigation and adaptation - The cases of Mauritius and Singapore (2010)

On the faces and phases of eco-innovation - on the dynamics of the greening of the economy by Maj Munch Andersen

The final outcome of LCA in Cancún on climate change mitigation, adaptation, finance, technology and capacity-building

2011 Compilation of NAMAs (Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions) by non-Annex I countries

Nagoya Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) decisions (30 October 2010)

Biodiversity and climate change: the COP 10 decision

The full final text of the Nagoya protocol on access to genetic resources and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from their utilization to the convention on biological diversity

CBD Strategic plan for the period 2011-2020 "Living in harmony with nature" - including the list of targets

Book

Innovative Economic Policies for Climate Change Mitigation

More than 20 policies to foster the transition towards a low-emission economy in developed and developing countries, with a wide spectrum of measures and solutions targeting firms, sectors, households and governments. They can be used as building blocks for NAMAs (Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions).

Instead of framing "climate change mitigation" as a cost, as the traditional carbon tax and the cap-and-trade system do, we feel it is a huge opportunity for innovation, profits, employment, wages and improvement of real quality of life.

Now available!

A synthesis

Adaptation

Climate Change and Adaptation: The Italian Case

Innovative Schemes for Financing Adaptation and Enhancing Technology Tranfer

Adaptation strategies to minimize climate risk in companies

Finance

The conclusions of the High Level Panel on Climate Change Finance (November 2010) - with further background papers here

Copenhagen Green Climate Fund - A Comment (Dec. 2009-Feb. 2010)

Our COP15 side-event

The Economics Web Institute, IESP and the Club of Rome - EU Chapters organised this side-event to the Climate Conference in Copnehange (December 2009)

Just transition to a low-carbon economy

Climate change and social justice: recommendations to policymakers

The King Baudouin Foundation has invited our EWI director, among many other stakeholders and experts, in laying down recommendations to EU, national and sub-national policymakers to order to strike the right balance and synergies between social policies and climate change mitigation.

The process has been very transparent and inclusive, with final results being a far-sighted, clear, articulated and fairly detailed document fruit of real interaction. In particular, we are pleased that the need for transformational policies aimed at a fair and universal switch towards a low-carbon economy has been underlined, as our book has systematically suggested.

While not necessarily agreeing on each line of the text, the Economics Web Institute supports the widest diffusion of the recommendations, as it will be doing soon in public events in Russia and in Italy.

A decarbonisation path for Germany 2050

PDF [English]

PDF [German]

The Germany official position to reach 100% renewable energy in 2050

PDF

Migrations, bio-diversity and climate change

"Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions is vital if we are to avoid unmanageable levels of climate change." This is the final and key message of a June 2010 UNEP report on migratory species and their devastating vulnerability to climate change.

The state of the debate on climate change

The authors use an extensive dataset of 1,372 climate researchers and their publication and citation data to show that (i) 97–98% of the climate researchers most actively publishing in the field support the tenets of ACC outlined by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and (ii) the relative climate expertise and scientific prominence of the researchers unconvinced of ACC are substantially below that of the convinced researchers

Essay

Climate change as a major obstacle to development: the Human Development Report 2010

Clean energy technology (CETs)- a map of patents

Patenting rates in the CETs have increased at roughly 20 per cent per annum since 1997. In that period, patenting in CETs has outpaced the traditional energy sources of fossil fuels and nuclear energy. The surge of patenting activity in CETs coincided with the adoption of the Kyoto Protocol in 1997, which provides a strong signal that political decisions setting adequate frameworks are important for stimulating the development of CETs. The fields experiencing the most intensive growth include solar PV, wind, carbon capture, hydro/marine and biofuels.

Report - Presented on 30th November 2010 at Cancun COP16

Durban COP17 final outcome

The final outcome of LCA in Cancún

The draft of the decisions (produced at Tianjin - October 2010 and updated in Cancún - 4 December 2010)

The LCA negotiating text - 13th August 2010

LCA text 17 May 2010 - an attempt to integrate the Copenhagen Accord and the larger previous LCA Text.

and its updated version of 10th June 2010

Copenhagen Accord - Full Text (19th Dec)

Leaked US vs. China positions (8th and 10th Dec)

The text that has not been signed - submitted by AWG-LCA

Other proposals on the table that were not signed (from USA, Tuvalu, AOSIS , African Group, etc.)

Secretariat internal assessment of reduction pledges and their effects on total emissions and temperature rise (15/12/2009)

The 2009 negotiating texts towards COP15

Consolidated text of AWG-LCA (15 September 2009)

June 2009 Text in preparation of August talks (all working groups)

It's a major update of the following texts:

The long-term shared vision, goal, and provisions for mitigation, adaptation, technology, finance and capacity-building (19 May 2009)

National positions

Towards a comprehensive climate change agreement in Copenhagen: the EU position on 28.1.2009

Proposed amendments to Kyoto Protocol

Declaration on climate change issued by world leaders at the Major Economies Forum on July, 9th, 2009

Other proposals

A Proposal for a Copenhagen Agreement by Members of the Environmental NGO Community

A comprehensive outcome with clear and ambitious goals, funding, mechanism. Legal text

The proposal by the Wuppertal Institute for the post-2012 regime

The carbon budget proposal by the German Advisory Council on Global Change (WBGU) (July 2009)

The full text of Tony Blair - backed report of Climate Initiative demonstrating that “ambitious” greenhouse-gas reductions would spur economic growth and create as many as 10 million jobs by 2020, based on the model by the Cambridge Centre for Climate Change Mitigation and Cambridge Econometrics (20th September 2009)

Towards COP15: UN note about climate change tools and their consequences (16 March 2009)

Hyogo Framework for Action: International Strategy
for Disaster Reduction

World Bank: World Development Report 2010: Development and Climate Change [27 MB] - Full Text

UNCTAD - Climate change mitigation and development - Trade and Development Report 2009 - Full Text

Strategy for Australia: a safe transition plan

A zero carbon plan for Australia

The full text of the IMF Green Fund proposal

The International Monetary Funds is exploring how to raise large funds for green purposes.

Bali Action Plan

Kyoto Protocol

UNFCCC Convention

IPCC, 2007: Summary for Policymakers. In: Climate Change 2007: Mitigation. Contribution of Working Group III to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

IPCC - Full report on Mitigation [20 MB]

Confronting Climate Change: Avoiding the Unmanageable and Managing the Unavoidable - Scientific Expert Group Report on Climate Change and Sustainable Development [15 MB]

Time for Plan B - Cutting Carbon Emissions 80 Percent by 2020 [3 MB] Brochure [0.7 MB]

Stern Review - Full text [12 MB]

Key Elements of a Global Deal on Climate Change

The Shanghai Declaration 2010