The transition to a green economy requires nothing short of a revolution, transforming society from a culture based on extraction and consumption into one based on sustainability and low carbon energy, transport and agriculture.
This week’s Special Report will investigate some of the many challenges faced by citizens, politicians and industry in making the change to a climate-safe economy.
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Paris Agreement drives shift to green economy but huge challenges remain
When world leaders in Paris last December agreed on a landmark deal to cap global warming, it was hailed as the starting gun on an irreversible path to a low-carbon economy.
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Workers will lose jobs in green revolution, admits EU’s energy boss
Workers will lose their jobs as Europe shifts to a green economy, European Commission Vice-President Maroš Šefčovič has admitted, amid warnings the world faces political and economic turmoil not witnessed since the 1930s.
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Investors fear next financial crisis will be climate-related
A rushed transition to clean energy triggered by extreme weather events linked to global warming “will be very expensive” to swallow for the economy, investors warned policymakers at an event in Bratislava last week.
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James Nix: Brexit could pave the way for EU-wide carbon tax
Originally, the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) only came into place because the UK was opposed to using taxation as a policy instrument to reduce global warming. With Brexit, there is now an opportunity to look again at an EU-wide carbon tax, according to James Nix.
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Norway minister: ‘Petrol and diesel engines in cars are a thing of the past’
Politicians should be less concerned with protecting the polluting industries of the past and invest instead in the future, said Vidar Helgesen, calling on policymakers to speed up the transition to a green economy with environmental taxation schemes.
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PVC boss: ‘We will not change our reputation in one day’
IKEA’s decision in the 1990s to ban PVC from its furniture and textile products had a devastating impact on the industry’s reputation. But 15 years after phasing out the most toxic chemicals, the PVC sector believes it is now ready to gain acceptance as a sustainable material, says Brigitte Dero.
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Germany wants to scrap EU recycling targets
EXCLUSIVE / Germany, the EU’s most influential country and its leading recycler, has called for recycling targets in the European Commission’s Circular Economy package of green laws to be scrapped.
