The Stern Report and Skateboarding...

[skategeezer]

If there was ever a reason to use less cars and more skateboards...

STERN REVIEW: The Economics of Climate Change

With strong, deliberate policy choices, it is possible to reduce emissions in both
developed and developing economies on the scale necessary for stabilisation in the
required range while continuing to grow.

Climate change is the greatest market failure the world has ever seen, and it
interacts with other market imperfections. Three elements of policy are required for
an effective global response. The first is the pricing of carbon, implemented through
tax, trading or regulation. The second is policy to support innovation and the
deployment of low-carbon technologies. And the third is action to remove barriers to
energy efficiency, and to inform, educate and persuade individuals about what they
can do to respond to climate change.

Climate change demands an international response, based on a shared understanding of long-term goals and agreement on frameworks for action.

Many countries and regions are taking action already: the EU, California and China are among those with the most ambitious policies that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto
Protocol provide a basis for international co-operation, along with a range of
partnerships and other approaches. But more ambitious action is now required
around the world.

Countries facing diverse circumstances will use different approaches to make their
contribution to tackling climate change. But action by individual countries is not
enough. Each country, however large, is just a part of the problem. It is essential to
create a shared international vision of long-term goals, and to build the international
frameworks that will help each country to play its part in meeting these common
goals.

Key elements of future international frameworks should include:

•

Emissions trading: Expanding and linking the growing number of emissions
trading schemes around the world is a powerful way to promote cost-effective
reductions in emissions and to bring forward action in developing countries:
strong targets in rich countries could drive flows amounting to tens of billions of
dollars each year to support the transition to low-carbon development paths.

•

Technology cooperation: Informal co-ordination as well as formal agreements can
boost the effectiveness of investments in innovation around the world. Globally,
support for energy R&D should at least double, and support for the deployment of
new low-carbon technologies should increase up to five-fold. International cooperation
on product standards is a powerful way to boost energy efficiency.

•

Action to reduce deforestation: The loss of natural forests around the world
contributes more to global emissions each year than the transport sector.
Curbing deforestation is a highly cost-effective way to reduce emissions; largescale international pilot programmes to explore the best ways to do this could get underway very quickly.