Environmental cost of sustainable development and climate change: can SAARC shift some liability with renewable energy and efficiency?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lijuan Chen
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Environmental Cost

scholarly journals Aligning Climate Change and Sustainable Development Goals With an Innovation Systems Roadmap for Renewable Power

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca R. Hernandez ◽  
Sarah M. Jordaan ◽  
Ben Kaldunski ◽  
Naresh Kumar
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Environmental Sustainability ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Innovation Systems ◽  
Low Carbon ◽  
Environmental Consequences ◽  
Research Themes ◽  
Development Goals

Energy development improves quality of life for humans, but also incurs environmental consequences. A global energy transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy may mitigate climate change but may also undermine the capacity to achieve some or all 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In this study, we use an innovation systems approach to construct a comprehensive roadmap for solar and wind energy to anticipate and improve impacts of a transition to a low carbon future in a manner ensuring climate goals and SDGs are mutually reinforcing. Our multidisciplinary approach began with an assessment of public investments in renewable energy followed by a 2-day research prioritization workshop. Fifty-eight expert workshop participants identified six research themes that proactively address the environmental sustainability of renewable energy. Next, we identified linkages between the six research themes and all 17 SDGs. Finally, we conducted a scientiometric analysis to analyze the research maturity of these themes. The results of these efforts elucidated the limits of existing knowledge of renewable energy-SDG interactions, informing the development of a research, development, demonstration, and deployment (RD3) roadmap to a renewable energy future aligned with both climate goals and SDGs. The RD3 roadmap has been designed to systematically develop solutions for diverse actors and organizations. Overall, our findings confer a broad vision for a sustainable transition to renewables to minimize unintended environmental consequences while supporting interoperability among actors particularly poised to influence its magnitude and direction.

scholarly journals Sustainable energy and fuels from biomass: a review focusing on hydrothermal biomass processing

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (9) ◽  
pp. 4390-4414
Author(s):  
Koray Alper ◽  
Kubilay Tekin ◽  
Selhan Karagöz ◽  
Arthur J. Ragauskas
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Sustainable Energy ◽  
Energy Resources ◽  
Renewable Energy Resources ◽  
Environmental Challenges ◽  
Biomass Processing

Fossil fuels must be replaced with renewable energy resources to ensure sustainable development, reduce the dependence on fossil fuels, address environmental challenges including climate change.

scholarly journals Renewable energy and adaptation to climate change

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 111-121
Author(s):  
Marta Stoian
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Energy Transition ◽  
Clean Energy ◽  
Energy System ◽  
Adaptation To Climate Change ◽  
Current Climate ◽  
Holistic Understanding ◽  
The Impact

Climate change is an unprecedented challenge in human history. It requires further immediate and concerted action. Understanding the stage of development of each energy resource, as the impact on the energy system to make informed decisions and prescribe a healthy energy future has thus become a priority. Decisions such as the phasing out of fossil fuels and the transition to an efficient and 100% renewable energy system, as well as increasing the storage capacity of greenhouse gases using environmentally sustainable approaches, maintaining natural ecosystems that generate environmental services, and restoring the degraded ones are now a top issue. Therefore, the relationship between energy and environmental policy is becoming essential. Accordingly, this paper will focus on the transition to renewable energy, the adaptation to climate change and the energy transition at EU level being strenuously debated, in order to build a holistic context of the actual situation. Adaptation to climate change requests a complex scientific study, given the diversity of uncertainties involved, and the interconnections between different areas, such as agriculture, sustainable development or energy industry. Therefore, the aim of research is to provide holistic understanding of the current climate issues, according to the mentioned fields. In this context, it is emphasized the benefits of clean energy by investigating the methods for achieving a prolific energy transition, from a conventional to a sustainable one. Carefully analysing the commitments and the transition to a low-carbon electricity system looking behind the causes and studying closely the underlying elements of all these topics, using the qualitative research method as a basis to indulge in further analysis and research, it was outlined a detailed analysis of the current climate context. In conclusion, the effect of the pressure brought into play by human exploitation of goods and services on the ecosystems was associated with the ongoing concerns of environmental degradation, climatic variations, natural and ecological distortions, and financial setbacks. Taking into account the drive toward accomplishing sustainable development and environmental quality, powerful policies are being implemented, but given the variety of investment conditions in each country and including the different characteristics of the financial markets, there is no unique solution that works for everybody. Therefore, the transition to a more sustainable energy system has a verity of implications but it is an essential condition for sustainable development.

scholarly journals Using Fuzzy Cognitive Mapping to Collate Expert Knowledge: Diverse impacts of renewable energy on biodiversity and the UN Sustainable Development Goals

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miriam Grace ◽  
Alexis Meletiou ◽  
Myriam Pham-Truffert ◽  
Marianne Darbi ◽  
Karla Estela Locher-Krause ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Cognitive Mapping ◽  
Expert Knowledge ◽  
Fuzzy Cognitive Mapping ◽  
Renewable Energy Technologies ◽  
Energy Technologies ◽  
Development Goals

The European Union (EU) is committed to tackling the issue of climate change, which poses serious risks to the global environment and human well-being. Supporting renewable energy is a key policy direction for the EU to lower its contributions to climate change. However, renewable energy technologies have diverse effects on the environment and on society. These effects can be considered a complex system of interacting elements and are challenging to assess. Conceptual models are a way of synthesizing this information to obtain an overview of the system and essential insights. We present the results of an activity to assess the impacts of EU renewable energy policies on overseas biodiversity and the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This was carried out as part of the EKLIPSE (EKLIPSE (Establishing a European Knowledge and Learning Mechanism to Improve the Policy-Science-Society Interface on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services) mechanism to synthesise environmental knowledge in response to specific requests by decision-makers at the European level. We carried out a participatory process to collate expert knowledge into a conceptual model using a Fuzzy Cognitive Mapping Approach (Özesmi and Özesmi 2004), with the Mental Modeler software for mapping (Gray et al. 2013). The participants were guided to connect significant EU policies associated with renewable energy, the technologies they support, and known impacts of these technologies on biodiversity and the SDGs, drawing on a preliminary review of the literature. The individual models obtained were integrated into a single model (see Suppl. material 1 for images). This was then subject to network analysis, which reveals the collective effects of different renewable energy technologies (RETs) on the wider socioecological system. Our findings highlight that RETs have complex and at times disparate effects on biodiversity and the SDGs, acting through a variety of mediating processes. They benefit the SDGs on balance, particularly climate-related SDGs. Mitigation of biodiversity impacts remains a concern, and processes such as habitat change were found to be influential here. Our results suggest that policymakers must focus on implementing appropriate environmental impact assessments, guided by these mediating processes. This would minimize any negative environmental impacts of RETs, while maximizing the benefits.

scholarly journals Picturing two modernities

2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-74 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jarkko Kangas
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Policy Research ◽  
The Political ◽  
Semiotic Analysis ◽  
Thematic Content Analysis ◽  
Ecological Modernisation ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
The Guardian

AbstractThe article analyses the discursive roles of two prominent themes of the habitual media climate change imagery: “the smokestack” and “renewable energy”. Through semiotic analysis of connotation and thematic content analysis of images inThe Guardian, the article argues that the constant reliance on these two themes and the particular ways of representing them sustain a definition of climate change as atechnological dualism.The article argues further that this dualism of “dirty” and “clean” technologies, as the predominant way of visualising direct causes of and responses to climate change, articulates ecological modernisation discourse and its central storyline of progressing from “defiling growth” toward “sustainable development” (Hajer, 1995). The article suggests (1) further research on conventional thematic imageries as a meaningful approach to studying policy discourses and (2) the relevance of applying concepts of policy research to understanding and challenging the political bearings of prominent visualisations.

scholarly journals The Emerging Threats and Opportunities for Implementing Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and Sustainable Development Goal 7: Policy Insights from sub-Saharan Africa and Malawi

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 23-52
Author(s):  
Dumisani Chirambo
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Clean Development Mechanism ◽  
Global South ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Climate Change Vulnerability ◽  
Nationally Determined Contributions ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Climate Change Governance

Aim: Despite the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) to reduce climate change vulnerability and inequality particularly in the Global South, it is probable that the SDGs and NDCs might not achieve their objectives. The aim of this article is to identify how countries in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) can address their climate change governance and cross-sector coordination challenges in order to reduce climate change vulnerability and augment SDG 7 (universal energy access) implementation.   Design / Research methods: A qualitative content analysis was undertaken using research articles, project reports, a case study and policy briefs exploring the nexus of climate change governance, SDG 7 implementation and SDG 13 implementation in the context of SSA and Malawi.   Conclusions / findings: The study suggests that climate change governance and attaining SDG 7 in the Global South might be improved by harmonising NDC activities so that NDC activities can be aggregated and monitored from a regional perspective similar to the case of the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) Programmes of Activities (PoAs).   Originality / value of the article: The paper is of value to global policy makers as it shows that increasing climate change ambitions and ratcheting-up in the context of SSA should include increasing the deployment of renewable energy technologies as well as initiating new international institutional arrangements for climate change governance through South-South Climate Change Cooperation modalities. Keywords: Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), climate finance, renewable energy, South-South Climate Change Cooperation, Sustainable Development, Malawi. JEL: G38, O13, O55, Q01, Q28, Q54, Q56.

Environmental impact assessment of CPEC: a way forward for sustainable development

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Iram Khalid ◽  
Tooba Ahmad ◽  
Sami Ullah
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Environmental Impact ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Environmental Cost ◽  
Environmental Laws ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Laws And Policies ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Induced Changes

Purpose Human-induced changes in climate have affected the environment to the extent that any more economic development at the cost of the environment will be too costly. Thus, sustainable development options posing no additional harm to the environment are the only viable option. This study aims to examine the likely environmental impacts of infrastructural developments through the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC). Design/methodology/approach There is a scarcity of academic debate and discussion on the environmental impact of CPEC developments in laws and policies on the environment. The qualitative approach is followed in this study and official documents and reports are used to investigate the environmental challenges posed by CPEC. Findings The findings show three possible environmental concerns which could increase the climate change vulnerability of Pakistan. The coal-fired power plants are the most prominent threat based on their CO2 contributions and smog. Second, cutting more than 54,000 trees for roads infrastructure will increase CO2 concentration along the CPEC route. Third, increasing vehicle trafficking by up to 7,000 trucks per day on Karakorum Highway alone will release 36.5 million tons of additional CO2. Originality/value It is essential to rethink the environmental cost of CPEC. The study suggests economic and legal cooperation between Pakistan and China as a way forward to deal with climate change issues. Environmental laws should be a vital part of CPEC projects to ensure their safety, security and sustainability.

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