Green growth is a concept in economic theory and policymaking used to describe paths of economic growth that are environmentally sustainable. It is based on the understanding that as long as economic growth remains a predominant goal, a decoupling of economic growth from resource use and adverse environmental impacts is required. As such, green growth is closely related to the concepts of green economy and low-carbon or sustainable development. A main driver for green growth is the transition towards sustainable energy systems. Advocates of green growth policies argue that well-implemented green policies can create opportunities for employment in sectors such as renewable energy, green agriculture, or sustainable forestry.
Several countries and international organizations, such as the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), World Bank, and United Nations, have developed strategies on green growth; others, such as the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), are specifically dedicated to the issue. The term green growth has been used to describe national or international strategies, for example as part of economic recovery from the COVID-19 recession, often framed as a green recovery.
Critics of green growth highlight how green growth approaches do not fully account for the underlying economic systems change needed in order to address the climate crisis, biodiversity crisis and other environmental degradation. Critics point instead to alternative frameworks for economic change such as a circular economy, steady-state economy, degrowth, doughnut economics and others.
Green growth and related concepts stem from the observation that economic growth of the past 250 years has come largely at the expense of the environment upon which economic activities rely. The concept of green growth assumes that economic growth and development can continue while associated negative impacts on the environment, including climate change, are reduced – or while the natural environment continues to provide ecosystem services –, meaning that a decoupling takes place.
This page is automatically generated and may contain information that is not correct, complete, up-to-date, or relevant to your search query. The same applies to every other page on this website. Please make sure to verify the information with EPFL's official sources.
Degrowth (décroissance) is a term used for both a political, economic, and social movement as well as a set of theories that criticise the paradigm of economic growth. Degrowth is based on ideas from political ecology, ecological economics, feminist political ecology, and environmental justice, arguing that social and ecological harm is caused by the pursuit of infinite growth and Western "development" imperatives.
Green New Deal (GND) proposals call for public policy to address climate change along with achieving other social aims like job creation, economic growth and reducing economic inequality. The following are some of the common points of the many Green New Deal proposals in the United States: 100% Clean Energy: The Green New Deal proposes a transition to 100% clean, renewable energy sources such as wind, solar, and geothermal power within 10 years.
Free-market environmentalism argues that the free market, property rights, and tort law provide the best means of preserving the environment, internalizing pollution costs, and conserving resources. Free-market environmentalists therefore argue that the best way to protect the environment is to clarify and protect property rights. This allows parties to negotiate improvements in environmental quality. It also allows them to use torts to stop environmental harm.
This course examines growth from various angles: economic growth, growth in the use of resources, need for growth, limits to growth, sustainable growth, and, if time permits, population growth and gro
In this seminar, students work in groups to prepare a report illustrating material taught in the first semester. Specifically, the groups will choose a significant environmental impact or resource use
This course examines the supply of energy from various angles: available resources, how they can be combined or substituted, their private and social costs, whether they can meet the demand, and how t
The provision of decent housing for all is a core sustainable development goal (SDG) and a fundamental human right. However, the construction sector is the world's largest consumer of raw materials, and 40% of global CO2 emissions are attributed to housing ...
We revisit the effective field theory of the two Higgs doublet model at tree level. The introduction of a novel basis in the UV theory allows us to derive matching coefficients in the effective description that resum important contributions from the Higgs ...
The green energy revolution may displace 1.7 million fossil fuel workers in the US but a Just Transition to emerging green industry jobs offers possibilities for re-employing these workers. Here, using 14 years of power plant data from the US Energy Inform ...