Critically assessing recent developments in environmental and tax legislation, and in particular low-carbon strategies, this timely book analyses the implementation of market-based instruments for achieving climate stabilisation objectives around the world.

Using the principles of responsible business conduct identified in the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises, this report reviews three key areas of corporate action accounting for greenhouse gas emissions, achieving emissions reductions and engaging suppliers, consumers and others.

This book addresses the global need to transition to a low-carbon society and economy by 2050. The authors interrogate the dominant frames used for understanding this challenge and the predominant policy approaches for achieving it. Highlighting the techno-optimism that informs our current understanding and policy options, Kirby and O’Mahony draw on the lessons of international development to situate the transition within a political economy framework. Assisted by thinking on future scenarios, they critically examine the range of pathways being implemented by both developed and developing countries, identifying the prevailing forms of climate capitalism led by technology. Based on evidence that this is inadequate to achieve a low-carbon and sustainable society, the authors identify an alternative approach. This advance emerges from community initiatives, discussions on postcapitalism and debates about wellbeing and degrowth. The re-positioning of society and environment at the core of development can be labelled “ecosocialism” – a concept which must be tempered against the conditions created by Trumpism and Brexit.

The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC) has been at the epicenter of global energy markets because of its substantial endowment of hydrocarbons. Yet countries in the region have also stated their intent to be global leaders in renewable energy. This collection explores the drivers for the widespread adoption of renewable energy around the GCC, the need for renewable energy and the policy-economic factors that can create success. All six countries within the GCC have plans to include renewable energy power generation in their energy mix for various reasons including: a growing demand for electricity because of increasing populations, an increasing government fiscal deficit due to inefficient subsidies, the need to diversify the economy and global pressure to meet climate change requirements. However, the decision of when and by how much to introduce renewable energy is fraught with complications. In this book, a stellar cast of regional policy and academic experts explore the reasons behind these renewable energy plans and the potential impediments to success, whether it be the declining cost of producing energy from hydrocarbons, an infrastructure which needs to be updated, social acceptance, lack of financing and even harsh weather. Weighing up all these factors, the book considers the route forward for renewable energy in the Gulf region. The Economics of Renewable Energy in the Gulf offers an excellent examination of the adoption of renewable energy in the area. It will be of great interest to academic researchers and policy makers alike, particularly those working in the areas of energy economics, public policy and international relations.

In this timely book, Sven Rudolph and Elena Aydos take an interdisciplinary approach that combines sustainability economics, political economy, and legal concepts to answer two fundamental questions: How can carbon markets be designed to be effective, efficient and just at the same time? And how can the political barriers to sustainable carbon markets be overcome? The authors advance existing theoretical frameworks and examine empirical data from various real-life emissions trading schemes, identifying strategies and policy windows for implementing truly sustainable ETS.

The book delves into the nascent field of renewable energy support law, with a focus on the European Union (EU). It critically interprets and analyses the rules and the legal system that govern the finance of renewable energy projects in the EU. The book scrutinises the different types of support schemes and elucidates how they work, what effects they generate, and how they have been applied in practice. It expounds the impact of EU secondary legislation on national renewable energy support policies, distinguishing three aspects: selection, design, and implementation of support schemes. For a complete comprehension of the field, the legal analysis is combined with law and economics analysis. Recent initiatives for the financing support of renewable energy projects at the EU level (EU Renewables Financing Mechanism, Hydrogen Bank, and ‘Auctions as a Service’) are also appraised and broader recommendations for the future consolidation and development of EU renewable energy support law are proposed. The book fills a gap in the study of the law governing the finance of renewable energy projects, and it is a valuable companion for jurists, both practitioners and academics, as well as for professionals and students who wish to decode the law of finance for renewable energy sources.

Combining theory, case studies and speculative fiction, a range of contributors, from leading UK academics to pioneering renewable activists, create a compelling picture of the potential perks and pitfalls of a low carbon future.

A growing number of GHG emissions trading schemes are being implemented at regional or national levels. However, even as the number of different schemes grows, few linkages exist between them. Major cap-and-trade proposals are currently at important stages in their development, especially in the United States, Japan and Australia, some of which explicitly emphasize the aim of linking with other schemes. One of the strategic goals of European climate policy is linking the EU ETS with other comparable schemes. The research presented in this volume is on actual economic, political and institutional constraints and implications. It examines the role of linking trading schemes for the development of the post-Kyoto climate architecture and for increasing linkage between schemes. This essential research will be relevant to both the scientific community and for policymakers who are involved in the design of emerging trading schemes and offset mechanisms, as well as in designing the post Kyoto climate regime. This volume focuses specifically on: o Economic, institutional/regulatory and legal dimensions of linking o Implications of linking on the design of emerging trading schemes o The role of linking trading schemes for the development of the post-Kyoto climate regime

The global economy is still struggling to emerge from the worst financial crisis and global recession since the Second World War. In this context, TUAC, ETUI, GURN and ITUC created a Task Force to define the parameters of a new growth model. This publication which is the initial result of its work, takes up the challenge of developing progressive alternatives to the failed neo-liberal model that has dominated economic policy for over three decades. It consists of contributions by more than 30 authors, all with links to the global labour movement, and a preface by Nobel Prize laureate Joseph Stiglitz. The different chapters analyse the causes and implications of the crisis and propose alternative ways toward more equitable and sustainable models of growth. A comprehensive approach is taken and the topics addressed include: the need for a new approach to macroeconomic policy to promote strong and stable growth and high employment; developing alternative welfare measures to GDP; how to re-regulate financial markets so that they serve the real economy; a development model for the global South; a new approach to labour markets that ensures that they deliver decent jobs and promote greater equality; the need for a comprehensive set of policies to make economic activity ecologically sustainable.

The global public health crisis of COVID-19 highlights the importance of digital technology. The digital economy is also booming during the pandemic, which has become one of the major driving forces of economic recovery. Given the vital importance of digital technology and the digital economy, this book provides an in-depth understanding of their implications for the sustainable development of ASEAN-China relations from various perspectives. In addition, authors also contribute their resourceful insights on the sustainable development of both China and ASEAN Member States (AMS) through the lens of eco-tourism, carbon neutrality, social inequality, and others.This book provides a series of high-quality policy recommendations. Specific policy recommendations include: 1) China and ASEAN should launch a project to identify connectivity gaps and detail how this might evolve in future investment in digital and ICT (science, technology and innovation). 2) Efforts should be intensified in digital literacy programs, capacity building, and promotion of digital skills to build workforce capacity in the digital age. 3) As a pacesetter in the digital inclusion agenda in the healthcare sector, China can cooperate with other AMS on digital healthcare projects. 4) Action plans should increase collaborative manufacturing and develop mutual trust in supply chains. 5) China and ASEAN should align STI policies with industrial policies and cooperate in adopting frontier technologies while diversifying their production bases by mastering many existing technologies.6) ASEAN and China should continue facilitating e-commerce, including paperless customs clearance, electronic transaction documents, digital authentication, and electronic and online payments.