Mitigating Climate Change and
Reducing Poverty as
Development Pathways:
a Zero-Sum Game?
June 14, 2016
What is poverty?
What is wealth – and how do we
manage it?
in reality … not so well…
Growing GDP, growing wealth?
How are we investing in our wealth?
…in renewable energy…
Investment
- Jobs in renewable energy
in 2014 increased 18%
from 2013 (6.5 million).
- Estimates suggest that by
2030, 12 million people
could be employed in the
biofuels sector, 2.1 million
in the wind sector and 6.3
million in the solar PV
sector
Jobs in renewable energy in
2014
… and in trade …
Developing countries’ share in global exports of
renewable energy goods more than doubled
from 2004 to 2011…
Growth in trade of renewable energy
equipment v. merchandise products
75
%
50
25
0
2004
2011
… increasing South-South and South-North
directionality of trade in solar PV cells and
modules as a share of global trade.
- Trade in energy and energy
products is estimated to account
for more than 20 % of world trade
by value
- The global market in low-carbon
and energy efficient technologies
is projected to nearly triple to US$
2.2 trillion by 2020
…because the financing is available…
Sustainable finance: taking a systemic view
…and fiscal policies critical …
APPROACH
FOCUS
• Selecting and driving transformation in
• On enabling conditions (finance, subsidies,
key sectors - critical or highly material
for greening the global economy
taxes, regulations, and related reforms that
achieve GE objective)
taxes, regulations
Enabling
Conditions
finance
subsidies
UNEP – GREEN ECONOMY INITIATIVE
UNEP – GREEN ECONOMY INITIATIVE
…for addressing both environmental and
distributional issues …
Everybody on the bus?
…so we have to grow, smarter…
Peru - BioTrade
…and greener …
Uganda - Organics
…joining over 65 countries globally
pursuing green economy strategies…
UNEP advisory
services
National strategies, and
other GE initiatives
PAGE countries
…harnessing new platforms for
cooperation and knowledge sharing …
…and coming together with a common
purpose….
…and new frames of reference for
concerted action…
The Sustainable Development Goals
…to achieve greener and more inclusive
economies
…leaving us with some key questions
• How do we move from a mindset of zero sum, to growing
opportunities?
• How to best engage with the economic players of tomorrow,
the investors and policy champions of today?
• How to make the transition to greener economies more just
and inclusive, in an age of increasing returns to scale?
Thank you!
Steven Stone
UNEP
[email protected]