A new world order

A matter of principle: the EU’s forgotten mantra

The European Union’s “Energy Efficiency First Principle” was designed to maximise the potential of energy sources and increase investor appetite but it has struggled to jump from principle to practice. But new rules and a shift in geopolitics look set to propel the efficiency maxim to top billing

A new way to count greenhouse gas emissions

Regulators normally only keep tabs on the climate-bashing emissions produced within a country’s territory—discounting or even completely ignoring the carbon emitted during the manufacturing and shipping of imported goods. Sweden is bucking that trend with an ambitious new policy

Mobilise funds now to avoid the big cheques

The cost of the energy transition as it stands is astronomical. But the returns are even greater. The longer investment targets are missed and policy frameworks are neglected, the pathway to a decarbonised economy becomes longer and more expensive. Added support for the developing world is also needed

Not a silver bullet

Carbon prices at sufficiently high levels can push firms to internalise the costs of greenhouse gas emissions while providing a long-term price signal to drive investments needed for decarbonisation. Emission trading systems and carbon taxes feature in a growing number of climate strategies, but even the most well-designed instruments must be accompanied by other policy measures if emissions reductions goals are to be reached

The political stars have aligned but are not shining

The world's largest economies risk missing the window of opportunity to maximise the global recovery from the pandemic and accelerate the energy transition, says Dileimy Orozco from think tank E3G

Japan’s relationship with nuclear clouds net-zero plans

Japan is one of more than 130 nations pledging to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. However, its path may be more complicated than anticipated given Japan’s reliance on both fossil fuels following public scepticism over nuclear power

The EU cannot ‘go it alone’ on Border Carbon Adjustments

Border carbon adjustments (BCAs) are technically difficult to design and politically challenging to implement. If BCAs are going to succeed, the European Union (EU) will need to engage trade partners from the start, says E3G’s Johanna Lehne

After years of stalling, can CCS finally get going in 2021?

The past 12 months have shown that even drastic changes to our daily lives are not enough to sufficiently reduce emissions and avoid catastrophic global warming. Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) will now have to start playing a role, says Suzana Carp, political strategy director at Bellona Europe

Wind turbines in a race to become even cleaner

The growth of wind power capacity is accelerating globally, with 2020 a record year for new installations. But with the expansion comes a growing mass of production waste, emissions from manufacturing and transport, and discarded components from retired machines. The industry’s turbine makers are facing up to the problem but proposed solutions remain commercially immature

Central banks swept up in climate action debate

Many believe the ECB and other central banks should bring climate considerations into the rulebook governing what they support and how

The dirty British energy secret

The UK is often cited as a leader in the transition to a clean energy economy, even though some British public money still flows to oil and fossil gas projects overseas

Expensive oil means we are failing

By competing with each other in clean transport technology, Europe and China have the opportunity to keep oil prices, demand and production down, says Carl Pope, environmentalist and climate advisor to Michael Bloomberg

American Green New Deal faces gridlock

Political and physical barriers will make it difficult for US Democrats to turn proposals for a Green New Deal in to reality

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