Climate and Energy Policy in the eu and Germany at a cross roads

2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 95-115 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simon Marr
Keyword(s):  
Climate Policy ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Global Leadership ◽  
Energy Transformation ◽  
Political Leaders ◽  
International Climate Policy ◽  
Wide Energy ◽  
International Climate ◽  
Climate And Energy Policy ◽  
The Eu

For decades the eu claimed for itself political leadership in fighting climate change. Less than two years from now to the global climate conference in Paris (in 2015), however, the eu’s climate policy stands at a cross roads: The eu can leave its impact weak or it decides to strengthen it showing global leadership in international climate policy making again. The situation is similar in Germany. Europe’s self-styled climate policy leader and architect of an economy-wide energy transformation (“Energiewende”) that followed the Fukushima events in 2011, the country now finds itself embattled by industry, political interest groups and consumers, and it risks losing track. If political leaders wish to save the “Energiewende” – certainly one of the boldest political reforms in decades – they need to get serious about putting it into practice.

scholarly journals BRICS Countries in International Climate Policy

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 64-78
Author(s):  
Yuri Yurievich Kovalev ◽  
Olga Sergeevna Porshneva
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Policy ◽  
Oil And Gas ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Ecological Modernization ◽  
Carbon Intensity ◽  
Brics Countries ◽  
Climate Policies ◽  
International Climate Policy ◽  
International Climate

The article presents an analysis of the BRICS countries climate policies at the global and national levels. The authors consider the positions of these states within the framework of both international climate conferences (Conference of the Parties) held under the auspices of the UN since 1992, and the summits of BRICS member states in the years 2011-2020. The paper covers strategies and results of national climate policies implemented in these countries. Using structural, comparative, and content analysis methods, the authors emphasize that BRICS countries play a key role in stabilizing the climate of our planet today. It is impossible to achieve the main aim of the Paris Agreement without a comprehensive transformation of environmental practices in these societies. BRICS adheres to the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities in its position towards international climate policy; the BRICS countries stand for sustainable economic growth through the introduction of new environmental technologies, and against restrictive measures that impede their economic development. At the same time, the Russian economys dependence on the extraction and export of fuel resources complicates environmental transformation. Russia is dominated by a negative narrative of climate change, where the urgent ecological modernization of the economy is seen as a threat to key sectors (oil and gas) of the economy. The implementation of international agreements to reduce the carbon intensity of the Russian economy, the creation of conditions for the transition to climate-neutral technologies, would contribute not only to the fight against global climate change, but would become a powerful incentive for the modernization of the economy, accelerating innovation and increasing its competitiveness.

THE CHANGING ROLE OF CARBON PRICING IN THE EU

2020 ◽  
Vol 251 ◽  
pp. R13-R24
Author(s):  
Milan Elkerbout
Keyword(s):  
Climate Policy ◽  
Policy Instrument ◽  
Policy Mix ◽  
Carbon Pricing ◽  
International Climate Policy ◽  
Climate Change Mitigation Policy ◽  
International Climate ◽  
Changing Role ◽  
The Eu

Carbon pricing has been the most prominent climate change mitigation policy for the EU since the launch of its emissions trading system (ETS) in 2005. Since then, the context of international climate policy as well as of the socio-political and economical context of decarbonisation has changed considerably. The 2015 Paris Agreement engages virtually every country unlike its predecessor, while non-carbon pricing policies have led to rapid cost reductions in renewables, even if other sectors (particularly in energy-intensive industry) have not seen similar developments. This paper examines how the role of carbon pricing in the EU climate policy mix has evolved from its beginnings as a means to help achieve modest targets under the Kyoto Protocol, to a policy instrument increasingly augmented by a wider policy mix aimed at reaching no net emissions of greenhouse gases by mid-century.

scholarly journals Interests, Norms and Support for the Provision of Global Public Goods: The Case of Climate Co-operation

2017 ◽  
Vol 49 (4) ◽  
pp. 1333-1355 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael M. Bechtel ◽  
Federica Genovese ◽  
Kenneth F. Scheve
Keyword(s):  
Social Norms ◽  
Climate Policy ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Global Public Good ◽  
Behavioral Measures ◽  
Percentage Points ◽  
International Climate Policy ◽  
International Climate ◽  
Mass Attitudes ◽  
Specific Interests

Mitigating climate change requires countries to provide a global public good. This means that the domestic cleavages underlying mass attitudes toward international climate policy are a central determinant of its provision. We argue that the industry-specific costs of emission abatement and internalized social norms help explain support for climate policy. To evaluate our predictions we develop novel measures of industry-specific interests by cross-referencing individuals’ sectors of employment and objective industry-level pollution data and employing quasi-behavioral measures of social norms in combination with both correlational and conjoint-experimental data. We find that individuals working in pollutive industries are 7 percentage points less likely to support climate co-operation than individuals employed in cleaner sectors. Our results also suggest that reciprocal and altruistic individuals are about 10 percentage points more supportive of global climate policy. These findings indicate that both interests and norms function as complementary explanations that improve our understanding of individual policy preferences.

scholarly journals Cooperation beyond the state: Constraints on linking regional emissions trading systems

2016 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Charlotte Unger
Keyword(s):  
Climate Policy ◽  
Emissions Trading ◽  
State Constraints ◽  
Nation State ◽  
Trading Systems ◽  
International Climate Policy ◽  
The Status ◽  
International Climate ◽  
Regional Emissions ◽  
The Eu

Recently many regions worldwide have implemented emissions trading systems (ETSs) to cap greenhouse gas emissions. These initiatives may hold the potential of providing a new bottom-up architecture for international climate policy. Cooperation or ‘linkage’ between regional emissions trading systems would improve their efficiency. Yet, linking has been realized only on very few occasions.This article deals with the question why linking of ETSs, especially between the EU and California, is still lagging behind. It seeks to go beyond common approaches and focuses on political difficulties that arise for regions that do not have the status and the mandate of a nation state.

scholarly journals Wald in der globalen Klimapolitik: Stand heute und Perspektiven

2019 ◽  
Vol 170 (1) ◽  
pp. 2-9
Author(s):  
Jürgen Blaser ◽  
Oliver Gardi
Keyword(s):  
Climate Policy ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Political Process ◽  
Climate Change Policy ◽  
Adaptation Strategy ◽  
Mitigation Measures ◽  
Adaptation Measures ◽  
Mitigation And Adaptation ◽  
International Climate Policy ◽  
International Climate

Forest in global climate change policy: state of today and perspectives Forests play an essential role in both strategies of global climate policy: mitigation and adaptation. Forest is the only CO2 reservoir that can be directly influenced by humans: if new forest area is created or the productivity of forest is promoted, it stores additional CO2 and thus becomes a sink. In contrast, when forest is degraded or transformed, significant amounts of CO2 are released into the atmosphere, and the forest becomes a carbon source. So adaptation measures in the forest always contribute to the mitigation strategy, and mitigation measures – properly planned and executed – contribute to the adaptation strategy. The article describes the evolution of international climate policy since its inception and the role of forests and trees in this political process. The article focuses on current instruments of international climate policy for the promotion of forest programmes in industrialised and developing countries (REDD+). It concludes that forests are so significant in terms of their metabolism, carbon content and extent that it is almost impossible to correct the trend of increasing CO2 levels in the atmosphere without fully considering forests and their sustainable management.

Climate Policy in European Union Politics

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tom Delreux ◽  
Frauke Ohler
Keyword(s):  
European Union ◽  
Climate Policy ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Member States ◽  
Climate Agreements ◽  
Industrial Sectors ◽  
International Climate Agreements ◽  
International Climate ◽  
The Eu

The fight against climate change has become a major area of action for the European Union (EU), both at the European and the international level. EU climate policy has gained importance since the 1990s and is today the most politicized issue on the EU’s environmental agenda. The EU is often considered a frontrunner—even a leader—in the adoption of climate policies internally and the promotion of such policies externally. Internally, the EU has developed the world’s most advanced and comprehensive regulatory frameworks, encompassing both EU-wide policies and targets to be achieved by the member states. The actual EU policy instruments fall into two categories: whereas emissions in certain industrial sectors are reduced through a carbon market and a “cap-and-trade” system (the Emissions Trading Scheme), emissions from non-ETS sectors are addressed through domestic policies by member states. These measures have led to a reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in the EU, but they will not suffice to achieve the EU’s long-term goals, which requires a major overhaul of some of the basic premises of the EU’s policies in sectors such as energy production and consumption, transport, agriculture, and industry. Externally, the EU has been advocating ambitious and legally binding international climate agreements. Desiring to “lead by example”, the EU has been an influential global climate player at important international climate conferences such as those held in Kyoto (1997), Marrakesh (2001), and Paris (2015), but its diplomacy failed at the Copenhagen conference (2009).

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