Holistic and integrated systemic policies and practices for decarbonization

A bold, visionary, transforming, systemic, holistic, integrated, caring, inclusive, equitable, sustainable, and resilient paradigm for fast transitions toward a clean energy and decarbonized future is imperative and urgently needed. Business as usual and silo approaches are not viable with the changes that are occurring. These changes are linked and interacting systems of physical, natural, health, social, economic, finance, governance, and institution. The effects and impacts are dire, existential, and pervasive. The 2021 IPCC Report Physical Science Basis: Summary for Policymakers, in clear language stated "it is unequivocal that human influence has warmed the atmosphere, oceans and land”. The scientific communities in the US, Europe, Asia and other regions all subscribe to this situation. Well documented global empirical evidence is also confirming the profound systems and systemic transformations that are occurring. Business, industry, and the general public, in particular youths, worldwide are all increasingly demanding actions – that transcend words of what needs to be done to deeds of how and now. In the US, the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, would allocate US 370 billion for combating climate change and clean energy production. The IRA is the largest climate spending package ever. President Biden has called for 100% clean electricity by 2035 and pledged to cut carbon emissions by 50%–52% below 2005 levels by the end of this decade, doubling the previous target. A decarbonized future was endorsed by Leaders at the 2021 G-7 Carbis, UK Summit. There is growing realization that the global climate change crisis requires strengthened and expanded global cooperation with new, innovative and non-bureaucratic mechanisms for collaboration. The 2021 IPCC Report summarized that global surface temperature will continue to increase until at least the mid- century under all emissions' scenarios considered. "Global warming of 1.5 and 2°C will be exceeded during the 21st century unless deep reductions in CO2 and other greenhouse gas emissions occur in the coming decades.” The UNEP and IEA contends reducing anthropogenic methane emissions will help mitigate climate change and is a cost-effective proposition. The release of methane and micro-organisms from melting of permafrost needs to be better studied and understood., The confluence of increased heat, humidity, fine particulates air pollution, water contaminants and the COVID pandemic, will exacerbate health burdens. This will have serious consequences for human wellbeing, and cascading into national and global security. With climate change, therapeutics and vaccines will not work. The article provides a brief overview of the unprecedented climate related hurricanes, storms, floods and wildfires disasters occurring in all regions of the world. It highlights of some of the key effects, impacts and consequences with current policies and practices with regard to the energy-climate conundrum. There is an imperative to change course toward a decarbonized future. A number of systemic expeditious interventions are delineated. These include actions by all on:. The* fundamental need to change behavior;*afforestation, reforestation, rehabilitation of wetlands, mangroves, wastelands and coral reefs to restore ecosystem functions which would also create significant number of employment and livelihoods' opportunities;*retrofitting existing structures to be more energy efficient, incorporate increasing renewable energy, sustainability and resiliency criteria, – to "build back better” and provide jobs;*the life cycle of food and agriculture practices need to be systemically examined to reduce adverse impacts on climate, Energy, environment and health. There are difficulties and challenges. The commensurate opportunities and benefits of a decarbonized paradigm include clean and safe jobs;healthy quality of life;and a sustained and resilient future for current and future generations. © 2023 American Institute of Chemical Engineers.

Trends in research: carbon footprint reduction in universities as a way to achieve a green campus

Purpose: Reducing our carbon footprint (CF) or decarbonizing is a sustainable development goal. Although there has been an increase in research on this topic, little is known about the status of CF research within universities. The purpose of this paper is to identify the initiatives implemented in universities aimed at reducing CF in their efforts toward creating a Green Campus. Design/methodology/approach: Using a bibliometric method, the status of this field of research was examined for the purpose of identifying the main publications and the most central researchers in terms of productivity and citations. Also, by using an exploratory factor analysis (EFA), the regions of the world with the most active research, as well as the direction of research, were identified. Findings: The survey identified the region that published the most on the subject in the past 10 years, as well as the most relevant authors in the publications. Through this factor analysis, it was possible to identify, among the 105 publications analyzed, four distinct factors (clusters) with different thematic strands that appear to define a difference between the related studies on this topic. These factors were identified as campus management: supply and consumption operations;greenhouse gases emissions assessment: CF calculation;university air travel;sustainable food systems. The changes in people's attitudes and in the use of university spaces during the COVID-19 pandemic in relation to the CF was also noted as a point that can be investigated in future research. As well as the reflection of the reduction in academic air travel and the "forced” occurrence of online events during the same period. Originality/value: The paper aims to innovate by applying the multidimensional scaling method and EFA to scientific articles on the topic of decarbonizing campuses and identifying the clusters that constitute this field of study. The research seeks to contribute to current metric knowledge on the topic and to the creation of a specific research agenda. © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited.

Trends in research: carbon footprint reduction in universities as a way to achieve a green campus

Purpose Reducing our carbon footprint (CF) or decarbonizing is a sustainable development goal. Although there has been an increase in research on this topic, little is known about the status of CF research within universities. The purpose of this paper is to identify the initiatives implemented in universities aimed at reducing CF in their efforts toward creating a Green Campus. Design/methodology/approach Using a bibliometric method, the status of this field of research was examined for the purpose of identifying the main publications and the most central researchers in terms of productivity and citations. Also, by using an exploratory factor analysis (EFA), the regions of the world with the most active research, as well as the direction of research, were identified. Findings The survey identified the region that published the most on the subject in the past 10years, as well as the most relevant authors in the publications. Through this factor analysis, it was possible to identify, among the 105 publications analyzed, four distinct factors (clusters) with different thematic strands that appear to define a difference between the related studies on this topic. These factors were identified as campus management: supply and consumption operations;greenhouse gases emissions assessment: CF calculation;university air travel;sustainable food systems. The changes in people's attitudes and in the use of university spaces during the COVID-19 pandemic in relation to the CF was also noted as a point that can be investigated in future research. As well as the reflection of the reduction in academic air travel and the "forced" occurrence of online events during the same period. Originality/value The paper aims to innovate by applying the multidimensional scaling method and EFA to scientific articles on the topic of decarbonizing campuses and identifying the clusters that constitute this field of study. The research seeks to contribute to current metric knowledge on the topic and to the creation of a specific research agenda.

Climate bond, stock, gold, and oil markets: Dynamic correlations and hedging analyses during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Adverse ecological effects have recently generated several eco-friendly investment opportunities including green and climate bonds. Although climate bonds have emerged as an appealing investment, little is known about their dynamic correlations and market linkages with US equities, crude oil, and gold markets, especially during stress times such as the COVID-19 outbreak, which are essential for asset allocation and hedging effectiveness. In this paper, we report time-varying correlations between climate bonds and each of the markets considered, which intensify during the COVID-19 pandemic. On average, climate bonds are negatively associated with US equities and have a near zero correlation with crude oil, whereas they are positively associated with gold. There is a bidirectional volatility linkage between climate bonds and the three indexes under study, whereas return linkages are marginal. The hedge ratio is positive for bond-gold, whereas it switches between positive and negative states for bond-stock and bond-oil, especially it switches more extremely during the COVID-19 outbreak. Although climate bonds provide the highest risk reduction in a portfolio containing US equities or gold as a part of a hedging strategy, their hedging effectiveness is considerably reduced during the pandemic. The findings have implications for markets participants aiming to green their portfolios and make them robust during stress times, enabling a smooth and speedy transition to a low-carbon economy.

Yes, there is enough money to decarbonize the economies of high-income countries justly and sustainably.

This year a number of factors have converged to substantially increase the impetus for a credible, effective programme to radically decarbonize the economies of high-income countries, particularly in the EU but also more broadly, in ways that would reduce economic inequality and are just and sustainable. These include the European Commission's European Green Deal, Coronavirus Recovery Plan and revamped Hydrogen Strategy; international calls for a green, sustainable and just coronavirus recovery; a global revival of Keynesian supply-side economics; and increasing interest in direct central bank funding of government stimulus programmes. In this essay I offer a first attempt to draw these elements together to suggest what might be a coherent strategy for action, at least for countries with stable, resilient currencies. One of the key elements would be for central banks to finance their governments' decarbonization programmes directly by buying government bonds and holding them in perpetuity as insurance against misallocation of funds. The losers in such a strategy would be elements in the finance sector which have come to rely on virtually free bailouts and handouts from central banks via quantitative easing programmes. Resistance to the proposed strategy would probably be fierce from these quarters.