Articles

Steering towards a low-carbon economic future

By David Nash
New Era Economics Thinking Post - 21 February 2011
In the aftermath of the global economic crisis, governments worldwide are intervening in the economy to get growth back on track. But what can government intervention to stimulate key growth sectors, or industrial policy as it is more commonly known, teach us about responding to climate change? In this article, ippr's David Nash, outlines three lessons for policymakers seeking to embark on the transition to a low-carbon economy. 

Is it a matter of time before India signs up to binding carbon cuts?

By David Nash
globalclimatenetwork.info - 01 January 2011
In recent times, India has been particularly active in supporting international climate cooperation. Some Indian commentators are now suggesting that the government should consider taking on internationally-recognised carbon reduction commitments.

Technology, not targets, will save the planet

By Andrew Pendleton
Sunday Times - 12 December 2010
It's time to turn away from these annual environmental shindigs and concentrate on the territory about which people care most. The task is no longer about targets to cut emissions, but about defining how a more secure and growing economy can also be a low-carbon economy.

Cancún is climate change groundhog day

By Andrew Pendleton
New Statesman - 08 December 2010
Until the climate debate is better handled at the domestic level and the knotty question of who pays is resolved, it is hard to see how the climate cabal can escape their international negotiations groundhog day.

After Cancún: shifting climate gears

By Andrew Pendleton
Open Democracy - 06 December 2010

The loss of momentum in climate diplomacy reflects deep flaws in the way campaigners understand and frame climate change in relation to people's lives and interests.

UN must make the most out of clean energy investments

By David Nash
Left Foot Forward - 02 November 2010

On Thursday, the UN's High Level Advisory Group on Climate Change Financing is due to report back after eight months of deliberations on this thorniest of issues within the international negotiations. If the leak that emerged the week before last is anything to go by, the usual, intractable questions remain unanswered.

Taking on the Global Energy Investment Challenge

By John Podesta, Richard Caperton and Andrew Light
globalclimatenetwork.info exclusive - 02 November 2010
The clean energy investment challenge will only be solved through coordinated public and private effort. This investment challenge is now the world's greatest innovation challenge argue John Podesta, Richard Caperton and Andrew Light of Center for American Progress.

Mixed Feelings

By
China Dialogue - 02 June 2010

Yesterday, Thomas Hale and Scott Moore called for a “coalition of the willing” to drive emissions cuts as an alternative to the UN process. As climate talks continue in Bonn, a roundtable of experts including ippr's Andrew Pendleton responds.

In the race

By Van Jones and Pan Jiahua
globalclimatenetwork.info exclusive - 21 May 2010
The story of this decade can and must be about inventing and using new clean energy technologies. If this means a space-race style contest between big economies such as ours, then we are both up for that. But if there are also gains to be made through cooperation, then we're up for that too.

Feeling the heat in Australia

By Erwin Jackson, Global Climate Network
- 13 April 2010
Beyond the impact of global action on Australia's coal-export industry, a more fundamental debate is missing in Australia – and key questions remain to be answered. Does the nation remain Asia's quarry? Does it join global efforts to drive the clean-energy economy? And how does it remain competitive in a world that significantly reduces its emissions?

Visiting China, Seeing Green

By Julian L. Wong, Center for American Progress
americanprogress.org - 01 April 2010

The Center for American Progress, founding members of the Global Climate Network, go to China to meet with policymakers and companies that are driving its aggressive pursuit of clean energy technology development.

The new multilateralism of climate change

By John Connor, CEO of the Climate Institute, a member of the Global Climate Network
The Lowry Institute - 31 March 2010
Copenhagen shattered the holy grail of an ambitious and binding treaty, or even a short clear track to one. Perhaps it is for the better that we have to rely on more earthly vessels.

Nigeria’s silent energy crisis: The way forward

By Adeola ljeoma Eleri
ICEEDNigeria.org - 29 March 2010
Nigeria is experiencing a silent energy crisis. Despite a national policy to promote a transition away from wood energy use, prospects remain bleak.

A climate of opportunities: Domestic actions now

By Uloma Onuma, Global Climate Network
Daily Trust - 03 February 2010
Now is the time for Nigeria to act on climate change. In the light of the outcomes of the climate change conference held in December 2009, governments at all levels must plan for and implement mitigation actions. Mitigation actions are steps that are needed to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases that result in changes in the global climate. The 'Copenhagen Accord', reached by over one hundred world leaders in Denmark did not lead to legally binding emission reduction targets. Therefore, domestic actions in Nigeria must be prioritized, now more than ever.

U.S. Wind Industry takes big stride forward in 2009

By David Nash, Researcher, Global Climate Network
Global Climate Network - 29 January 2010
Despite dire predictions at the start of 2009, the U.S. wind industry battled the odds to make record gains last year. According to the American Wind Energy Association's end-of-year report, the industry installed nearly 10,000 megawatts of new capacity in 2009, which represents an annual increase of 39% compared to 2008 figures.

Excerpts of an Interview with Professor Jiahua Pan

By Global Climate Network
People's Daily Online - 20 January 2010
Excerpts of an Interview with Professor Jiahua Pan, Executive Director of the Research Centre for Sustainable Development at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and member of the Global Climate Network.

Who Are The Key Players At Copenhagen?

By Erwin Jackson and Will McGoldrick, The Climate Institute
newmatilda.com - 11 November 2009
There will be a lot of wheeling and a lot of dealing at Copenhagen - and in the end it may be better if history is made behind closed doors, write Will McGoldrick and Erwin Jackson of The Climate Institute.

Miners digging their own graves to preserve profits

By John Connor, CEO of the Climate Institute, a member of the Global Climate Network.
The Courier Mail - 10 November 2009
Queenslanders, particularly in the regions, have been pounded with ads from the mining industry talking about job losses and closures should coal mines and other industries shoulder their share of efforts to reduce Australia's carbon pollution. But you don't need to scratch much below the surface to show the slipperiness and shortsightedness of such claims.

China expects leadership from rich nations

By Jiahua Pan, Research Centre for Urban and Environmental Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Science, a member of the Global Climate Network.
Nature - 22 October 2009
Greater emissions cuts by developed nations are the starting point for a successful climate deal at Copenhagen in December says Jiahua Pan of the Global Climate Network.

Development as China's environmental solution

By Jiahua Pan, Research Centre for Urban and Environmental Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Science, a member of the Global Climate Network.
Telegraph - 02 October 2009
China is determined to follow a low carbon development path - but only through development can China have the capacity to reduce emissions without negative impacts on living standars. Development here is multi-dimensional, involving economic, social, technological, institutional and human activities.

A Pittsburgh Protocol

By Rajendra Pachauri and John Podesta
globalclimatenetwork.info exclusive - 25 September 2009
The G20 Needs to Advance the Global Agenda on Climate Change. While current impacts of climate change may not have reached alarming proportions,  according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) that will happen soon enough if we do not take early action. What is causing increasing concern, as the December UN climate summit in Copenhagen draws ever nearer, is the continuing deadlock in political action to deal with this challenge.

Addressing Climate Change through Sustainable Development

By Jiahua Pan, Research Centre for Urban and Environmental Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Science, a member of the Global Climate Network.
US Department of State e-journal USA - Climate Change Perspectives - 01 September 2009
China has long suffered from climatic disasters throughout its history and will be more vulnerable to climate change. The key reason lies in the fact that the physical environment is highly fragile. Ever-increasing human population, physical resources, and infrastructure are exposed to climate risks, along with effects from China's development process. Sustainable development has been taken as the key approach to addressing climate change challenges, both adaptation and mitigation. China's experiences and challenges are of global significance, and international cooperation is needed for effective mitigation of and adaptation to climate change.

Counting the Real Progress on Climate Action

By Andrew Light, Senior Fellow, Center for American Progress, Washington D.C.; Erwin Jackson, Director, Policy and Research, The Climate Institute, Melbourne; Andrew Pendleton, Senior Research Fellow, Institute for Public Policy Research, London
Crikey - 16 July 2009
Last week saw some progress at the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate Change (MEF). For the first time, countries representing 80 percent of the world's emissions agreed to work towards ensuring that global temperatures do not exceed 2oC above preindustrial levels. Given the physics of the atmosphere this means that only very significant short-term action by all major emitters can make this possible and the MEF has set an important benchmark for a Copenhagen agreement in December. However the holy grail of global emissions target with ambitious carbon budgets for 2020 in industrialised countries remains elusive.

Governments must lead climate action

By Members of the Glboal Climate Network
The Guardian - 08 July 2009
The meeting in Italy in July of leaders of the world's major economies, chaired by President Obama, concluded with a statement of intent to scale-up clean-energy funding for developing countries and called for the establishment of a new 'global partnership' to drive transformational low-carbon technologies.

Australia’s Real Climate on Climate Change

By Erwin Jackson and Andrew Light, Global Climate Network
Center for American Progress - 07 July 2009
The U.S. House of Representatives has joined the Obama administration in its resolve to finally move forward and address the problem of global warming by recently passing the American Clean Energy and Security Act, or ACESA. With this legislation the United States will begin the process of achieving energy independence and transforming to a clean-energy economy. Just as important, however, passage of ACESA signals that the United States has rejoined the community of nations on addressing the critical issue of global climate change.

The global politics of climate-change: after the G8

By Andrew Pendleton, Climate Change
OpenDemocracy - 07 August 2008
The benign post-summit headlines conceal the G8's retreat from leadership on climate change. It's time for a global civil-society initiative.