The New Climate Economy’s report: “Unlocking the Inclusive Growth Story of the 21st Century: Accelerating Climate Action in Urgent Times” is one of those reports that I’m reading from cover to cover, with lots of highlighting and written-in thoughts and ideas. So many insights and ideas, and really paths of how to get where we need to go in a good way. Here’s an excerpt:
We are entering a new era of economic growth. This approach can deliver growth that is strong, sustainable, balanced, and inclusive. It is driven by the interaction between rapid technological innovation, sustainable infrastructure investment, and increased resource productivity.
• At the heart of this new approach to growth are liveable, compact cities which have an economic dynamism that can attract creative talent, companies, and capital while higher densities enable cheaper service delivery and avoid costly urban sprawl. Powering the new growth will be affordable, clean, energy systems which are more productive and can expand energy access to the more than a billion people that currently lack it, replicating and amplifying the impact of mobile telephony on equitable growth. Agriculture and forests can become a third engine of economic growth, delivering greater food security, more nutritious food, greater rural prosperity and more equitable growth, strengthened resilience, and valuable ecosystem services. Industrial sectors, now waking up to the potential of the circular economy, will radically cut the demand for energy intensive primary materials, driving up both material productivity and cutting waste.
• This new growth approach will deliver higher productivity, more resilient economies and greater social inclusion. The poorest do not benefit from the current low-productivity agriculture nor from landslides resulting from deforestation. They do not benefit from inefficient cities where daily commutes often take hours a day, exposed to highly-polluted air. The poor are those most exposed to the impacts of climate change, with just one bad weather season having the potential to push low-income families below the poverty line.
• This new approach is the only economic growth path that is sustainable. It is the growth story of the 21st century.
Here’s their depiction of the “Global Benefits of a Decisive Shift to a Low-carbon Economy when Compared with Business-as-usual:”
This seems like a good deal to me. For inspiration, read this report, here’s the link again to the New Climate Economy Report (not associated with The Climate Economy but we respect them greatly!).
This is one vision of what The Climate Economy could resemble. There are people working on this stuff. We will provide many more visions in the future.
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