Bristol University Press
Seven ‘€1,000 Billion for the Climate?’ If It Is Really Needed, Yes, We Can Do It!
-
Anne Hessel
Abstract
To win the war against climate deregulation, we must obviously be able to finance this colossal project. For the moment, in all our countries, we meet a ‘financial cliff’ that prevents the best wills in the world from deploying actions at the level required.
The problem is the same everywhere. In Germany, in November 2017, it was the industry bosses who released the results of a year’s brainstorming on this issue. This is good news in itself, as it is the heart of the German economy that has got moving to succeed in the ecological transition: “It’s a moral obligation and an economic opportunity”, explained a spokesperson for the Bundesverbands der Deutschen Industrie (BDI).
After reading the executive summary, we understand that ‘the German economy will emerge stronger from the implementation of the ecological transition’ but that the country will be able to meet its commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions only at the cost of a ‘considerable additional effort’. An 80 per cent reduction of CO2 by 2050 should be achievable at the cost of €1.5 trillion over 30 years, or €50 billion per year; a 95 per cent drop in emissions would cost €2.3 trillion, or €75 billion a year. So, the captains of industry turned to Angela Merkel’s government to see how it would be possible to finance this €50–75 billion a year.
Abstract
To win the war against climate deregulation, we must obviously be able to finance this colossal project. For the moment, in all our countries, we meet a ‘financial cliff’ that prevents the best wills in the world from deploying actions at the level required.
The problem is the same everywhere. In Germany, in November 2017, it was the industry bosses who released the results of a year’s brainstorming on this issue. This is good news in itself, as it is the heart of the German economy that has got moving to succeed in the ecological transition: “It’s a moral obligation and an economic opportunity”, explained a spokesperson for the Bundesverbands der Deutschen Industrie (BDI).
After reading the executive summary, we understand that ‘the German economy will emerge stronger from the implementation of the ecological transition’ but that the country will be able to meet its commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions only at the cost of a ‘considerable additional effort’. An 80 per cent reduction of CO2 by 2050 should be achievable at the cost of €1.5 trillion over 30 years, or €50 billion per year; a 95 per cent drop in emissions would cost €2.3 trillion, or €75 billion a year. So, the captains of industry turned to Angela Merkel’s government to see how it would be possible to finance this €50–75 billion a year.
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Contents iii
- List of Tables, Figures and Boxes v
- Acknowledgements: The English Translation viii
- How We Can Win the Battle by Nicolas Hulot ix
- 2020: A Warning Shot by Anne Hessel x
- Foreword xiii
- ‘Our Home Is Burning and We Are Looking Elsewhere’ 1
- Global Warming: The Essential Cause Is Our Greenhouse Gas Emissions 14
- ‘Soon It Will Be Too Late…’, Say 15,000 Scientists 24
- The UN Environment Programme Denounces ‘This Catastrophic Climate Gap’ between the Reductions Needed and the National Pledges 35
- Zero Net Carbon Emissions? Yes, It Is Possible 40
- Can We Make a Colossal Development Programme Work? We Can Do It! 50
- ‘€1,000 Billion for the Climate?’ If It Is Really Needed, Yes, We Can Do It! 56
- Putting Finance Back at the Service of the Common Good: The European Climate Finance Pact 78
- Save the Climate and Save Europe? It Is Now or Never! 97
- Conclusion: Creating a New Development Model 110
- Notes 112
- Index 119
Chapters in this book
- Front Matter i
- Contents iii
- List of Tables, Figures and Boxes v
- Acknowledgements: The English Translation viii
- How We Can Win the Battle by Nicolas Hulot ix
- 2020: A Warning Shot by Anne Hessel x
- Foreword xiii
- ‘Our Home Is Burning and We Are Looking Elsewhere’ 1
- Global Warming: The Essential Cause Is Our Greenhouse Gas Emissions 14
- ‘Soon It Will Be Too Late…’, Say 15,000 Scientists 24
- The UN Environment Programme Denounces ‘This Catastrophic Climate Gap’ between the Reductions Needed and the National Pledges 35
- Zero Net Carbon Emissions? Yes, It Is Possible 40
- Can We Make a Colossal Development Programme Work? We Can Do It! 50
- ‘€1,000 Billion for the Climate?’ If It Is Really Needed, Yes, We Can Do It! 56
- Putting Finance Back at the Service of the Common Good: The European Climate Finance Pact 78
- Save the Climate and Save Europe? It Is Now or Never! 97
- Conclusion: Creating a New Development Model 110
- Notes 112
- Index 119
