Smart ICT and Internet applications have the potential to improve the environment and tackle climate change. Top application areas include manufacturing, energy, transport and buildings. Information and communication also foster sustainable consumption and greener lifestyles. At the same time, direct and systemic impacts related to the production, use and end of life of ICTs require careful study in order to comprehensively assess “net” environmental impacts. A better understanding of smart ICTs provides policy makers with options for encouraging clean innovation for greener economic growth. This summary was prepared by Eldis.
This report provides an update on recent developments in the field of Regional Trade Agreements and the environment. Issues arising in the implementation of RTAs with environmental considerations are examined as well as experience in assessing their environmental impacts. It is the fourth update prepared under the aegis of the Joint Working Party on Trade and Environment. The report covers developments over the period from late 2009 to December 2010 and is based on publicly available information.
This UNCTAD publication covers policy responses to meeting the challenge of climate change and the changes to the economic system that need to take place in order to do so. The report asserts that the greatest challenge to mitigating climate change is not the macroeconomic costs, but the lack of policy, regulatory and institutional structures to support the shift to a more sustainable economy that combines low‐carbon growth with job and income creation in developing countries.
The report presents three overarching ‘growth poles’ that can provide opportunities for low‐carbon economic growth and place the global economy on a path to more sustainable development. These growth poles are:
• Energy efficiency
• Sustainable agriculture
• Renewable energy technologies
Each pole is explored in great detail and policy options for the identified initiatives are discussed. The report includes an energy efficiency case study from Brazil.
The Development Co-operation Report is the key annual reference document for statistics and analysis on trends in international aid. The Development Co-operation Report 2012 seeks to provide insights into how to address today’s sustainable development challenges, with a focus on inclusiveness and good governance to ensure that the world's finite resources are equitably distributed, now and in the future. Sharing finite resources among a growing number people – and consumers – is a critical challenge. It is in this spirit that J. Brian Atwood, Chair of the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC), invited several intellectual leaders on the challenges of inclusive, sustainable development to contribute to this year’s report.
Half of the world’s population — 3 billion people — lives below the poverty line, and Asia has the largest share. In pursuit of sustainable economic development and poverty alleviation, there is great potential among low-income households for green consumption, production, innovation, and entrepreneurial activity. This paper shows how an inclusive green growth model can uplift the poor through entrepreneurship and fiscal policy reforms. To make the case, this paper cites examples of institutions and policies in Asia that have successfully generated and tapped into the potentials of low-income households. Low-income households are recognised as resilient, value-conscious consumers and creative entrepreneurs in the inclusive and green growth paradigm. Low-income households can be the engine of a new development strategy; they can be a source of innovation for providing basic services in a green way. Evidence suggests that, without effective financial systems, not all market actors can sustain their businesses.
The need to reform water policies is as urgent as ever. Water is essential for economic growth, human health, and the environment. Yet governments around the world face significant challenges in managing their water resources effectively. The problems are multiple and complex: billions of people are still without access to safe water and adequate sanitation; competition for water is increasing among the different uses and users; and major investment is required to maintain and improve water infrastructure in OECD and non-OECD countries. Despite progress on many fronts, governments around the world are still confronted with the need to reform their existing water policies in order to meet current objectives and future challenges. Building on the water challenges identified by the OECD Environment Outlook to 2050, this report examines three fundamental areas that need to be addressed whatever reform agendas are pursued by governments: financing of the water sector; the governance and institutional arrangements that are in place; and coherence between water policies and policies in place in other sectors of the economy.
Improving energy-efficiency is essential to any strategy to reduce global emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs). New generations of household appliances are becoming ever more energy-efficient due to continuing technological advances, often spurred by government policies. These products are manufactured, sold and used on a global scale not imagined a decade ago. Yet achieving the full market potential of these best-available technologies has proven elusive, due to a variety of factors, some of which are trade-related. This paper considers these factors and looks at ways of addressing them. It examines four products in the residential sector that have considerable potential for significantly reducing GHG emissions: refrigerators, televisions, lighting, and air conditioners. These technologies are also widely traded globally. To develop a better understanding of how improvements in energy efficiency could affect CO2 emission reductions, the paper draws on work undertaken by Japan’s Research Institute of Innovative Technology for the Earth (RITE), using their DNE21+ model.
Public expenditure remain crucial for addressing environmental problems and, more broadly, promoting a greener model of development in the countries of Eastern Europe, Caucasus and Central Asia (EECCA). Traditionally, however, the environmental sector in the EECCA countries has not been very effective in attracting domestic public financing. As the global economic and financial crisis imposes ever-tighter constraints on public budgets in the region, and as donors shift to new approaches of delivering aid via country systems, this sector becomes increasingly vulnerable to underfunding.
The concept of a green economy has become the new buzz word in sustainability discourses, particularly in light of the Rio+20 Conference. Because of the current economic crisis and the perception that sustainability politics cannot be implemented efficiently, politicians have set their hopes on greening the economy. However, there are major problems with the aims and strategies linked to this concept. Specifically, if political, economical, and cultural constraints are not considered, green economy strategies will not be successful in their goals to end environmental degradation and reducing poverty.