Innovation in mitigation technologies is seen as a critical contributor to achieving the ambitious GHG reduction goals of countries outlined in the Paris Agreement. The CARISMA project has analysed collaboration initiatives from governments, industries, and regions, each with different characteristics, to identify criteria for effective collaborations between the EU and emerging countries. The main finding of the analysis is that there is no unique pattern that could correspond to every good practice of collaborations.
Policy
An assessment of national, regional, and local needs for the implementation and improvement of energy efficiency policies in the EU was conducted regarding policymakers’ needs were identified and analysed to help Member States to implement useful and successful sustainable energy policies. A SWOT analysis was conducted for experiences in the development and implementation of energy efficiency policies at regional and local levels.
The poorest people still struggle to have access to sanitation and clean energy. However, as incomes rise in developing countries, access to electricity, clean cooking energy, water, and sanitation, also improves but not as quickly as income growth. The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) aim to achieve universal access to clean energy, water, and sanitation by 2030. This study highlights the challenges of achieving SDGs, but also points to policy directions that could help.
Models are tools which help to assess the positive and negative impacts of a low-emission pathway for the country. Interview questions formed the basis for a series of model runs to obtain a better understanding of the implications of the energy efficiency pathway in Poland. The goal of the model run was to shed light on the macroeconomic impacts of investment in energy efficiency in Poland in the built environment.
Institutional, economic, and social contexts influence the formulation and implementation of climate policy instruments. Three categories of contextual factors that are especially relevant to climate change mitigation in EU policymaking: institutions and governance, innovation and investment and attitudes, behaviour, and lifestyle. Different factors or conditions may facilitate or hinder effective policy implementation as so much depends on the institutional, economic, and social contexts. In addition, not only international pressures but also local barriers.
The Paris Agreement requires the world to keep climate change below 2°C above pre-industrial levels, with an aim to stay below 1.5°C. The 1.5° target is particularly demanding and would require both major and rapid change in energy demand and consumption. A key element is to analyze Green House Gas Emissions of consumer-based options in the EU, such as food, buildings and transportation. The Carbon-Cap project explores the effects of applying different policy options.
Europe has taken a leading position in relation to reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by adopting ambitious policies for the development and diffusion of renewable energy technologies. However, research and development (R&D) in new technologies is increasingly taking place on a global scale. This increasingly also involves the relocation of R&D and value-adding innovative activities to emerging economies, such as China, India and Brazil, by multinational companies (MNCs) from Europe.
Research often focuses on creating and modelling hypothetical scenarios. However, public knowledge and opinions are crucial for the successful uptake of research findings. In this article, we explore how quantitative tools are used for producing scenarios, whereas qualitative tools are used to identify stakeholder preferences.
Interactions between EU climate and energy policies have been analysed based on France, Austria, Greece, and EU-level for policy interaction examples. The analysis resulted in 6 main findings.
It is unclear whether the large variety on data sources and information on policies mitigating climate change matches the expectations and needs of stakeholders. It is concluded that the data and information available suffers from numerous shortcomings.