Chapter 4. Sustainability and Climate Policy, Culture and Governance Flashcards
What is the greenhouse effect?
The fact that gases such as carbon dioxide trap heat in the atmosphere
What did Svante Arrhenius, a Swedish scientist, propose in 1896?
He proposed that fossil-fuel combustion, and the resulting increase in atmospheric CO2 concentrations, would result in global warming.
What does DICE stand for?
Dynamic Integrated Climate-Economy
What does the original formulation of William Nordhaus’ DICE model from the early 1990s suggest?
The DICE model suggests that a warming of 3.5°C would be optimal in terms of not unduly hampering economic growth while still mitigating the worst climate impacts.
What questions does understanding and wide recognition of the fact that human-caused emissions are warming and disrupting the global climate prompt?
- What is the optimal level of emissions reduction?
- Over who the allocation of (moral) responsibility is?
- What is the potential trade-off between emissions and economic development?
- How to overcome collective action problems?
What does COP stand for?
Conferences Of Parties.
They are subsequent summits of the UNFCCC.
Where and when did COP1 take place?
COP1 took place in Berlin in 1995.
What did the Kyoto Protocol require of “Annex 1” countries?
To attain 5% emissions reductions compared to 1990 levels by 2008–2012
What are the three market-based mechanisms that Kyoto Protocol offer countries to meet their emission targets?
- International Emissions Trading
- Clean Development Mechanism (CDM)
- Joint implementation (JI)
These mechanisms ideally encourage GHG abatement to start where it is most cost-effective, for example, in the developing world.
For the Kyoto Protocol, what does the International EmmisionsTrading mechanism about?
To allow Annex 1 countries that had made deeper emissions cuts to sell surplus emissions allowances to other Annex 1 countries.
What is the Joint Implementation (JI) mechanism for the Kyoto Protocol?
It was meant to be between Annex 1 countries, where one country could undertake a project involving technology transfer in a fellow Annex 1 country.
What is the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) for the Kyoto Protocol?
To provide a way for emissions cuts to spread to developing economies. Under the CDM, an Annex 1 country could get credit for conducting an emissions reduction project in a non-Annex 1 country.
Where and when did COP15 take place?
In Copenhagen in 2009
On which COP was the aspirational goal that global warming should be kept to below 2°C established?
In COP15
Where and when did COP21 take place?
In Paris in 2015
What is the commonly agreed aspiration on which the Paris Agreement is based?
To keep global temperature rise “well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels” and to “pursuing efforts” to limit the rise to 1.5°C, combined with national efforts by each individual party in this direction.
What does NDC stand for?
Nationally Determined Contribution
What are the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC)?
The means and plans from all Parties’ best efforts to meet the Paris Agreement’s aspirational goal. They are submitted to the UNFCCC and periodically re-evaluated at every COP meeting.
What is the ratchet mechanism the Paris Agreement established to re-evaluate the NDCs?
The countries are expected to tighten their NDCs every five years, and these are to be evaluated at COP meetings
What is the purpose of the High-Level Champions?
To connect the work of governments with the many voluntary and collaborative actions taken by cities, regions, businesses, and investors, as per nations’ decision.
What do NDCs require to be achieved?
Domestic climate change policies. They can be economic-wide or sector-specific.
What are the types of Carbon Pricing policies?
- Carbon taxes, which impose a price per ton of CO2 emitted
- Emission-trade schemes, or cap-and-trade schemes, in which the amount of emissions is capped (and the cap gradually lowered), but emissions permits can be traded between participants
According to the World Bank, how many pricing initiatives are there worldwide?
Currently, there are 64 carbon pricing initiatives (taxes and emissions-trading schemes) worldwide, covering 46 countries and 65 subnational jurisdictions.
What is the needed price per ton for pricing initiatives to be effective?
USD100 per ton. Japan’s carbon tax is at the lower end, less than USD10 per ton, whereas Sweden’s is currently the world’s highest, at around USD125 per ton
What are the main types of Power generation climate change policies?
Renewable Portfolio Standards and Feed-in tariffs
What does RPS stand for?
Renewable Portfolio Standards
What are the main sectors regulated by sector-specific climate change policies?
Power generation and Transport
What are the central Transport climate change policies?
- Fuel efficiency standards
- CO2 emission standards
- Electric Vehicles purchase subsidies