Brussels, 17/09/2014 (Agence Europe) - Connie Hedegaard, the European Commissioner for Climate Action welcomed the publication on Tuesday 16 September in New York, of the most recent report by the Global Commission on the Economy and Climate, which argues that reducing carbon emissions and improving economic performance at the same time is now possible.
This new report, “Better Growth, Better Climate: The New Climate Economy report” demonstrates that the rapid pace of technological innovation and new investment in infrastructure is contributing to climate protection and economic growth. The report was published on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, in the presence of the UN's Secretary General. The official launch took place with exactly a week to go until the global climate summit organised by Ban-Ki-moon in New York, which seeks to increase the targets for all the different parties taking part in the UN climate conference in Paris (COP 21, December 2015).
Hedegaard's immediate reaction was: “Why pursue a growth strategy that delivers either a better economy or a better climate when leading economic experts conclude in this report that we can achieve both better growth and better climate at the same time? The political choice should not be that difficult”.
The Global Commission on the Economy and Climate is chaired by Felipe Calderon, former president of Mexico. It consists of 24 global political leaders (former prime ministers or ministers of finance) and the industry, finance and economic sectors in 19 countries. The study was carried out over a period of a year and was headed by research institutes in seven countries (Brazil, China, Ethiopia, India, South Korea, the United Kingdom and the United States). The institutes received advice from an international panel of economists chaired by Nicholas Stern. (AN)