Pre-conference Workshop: Increasing Global Climate Ambition – How to get Lower-Income Countries and Fossil-Fuel Exporters on Board?

Forum Climate Economics 9 | June 22, 2021 | 12:00 – 14:30 UTC+2 | online

Organizers: Karen Pittel (ifo), Waldmar Marz (ifo), Franziska Holz (DIW), Jan Steckel (MCC Berlin), Lena Bednarz (IfW), Franziska Weeger (IfW), Gernot Klepper (IfW), Christine Merk (IfW)

Organized by the “Dialogue on the Economics of Climate Change”, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research

Background and Aims

The new U.S. Administration’s return to the table has put the multilateral climate pro­tection process of the Paris Agreement back on the international agenda, but lower-income countries and fossil-resource rich countries are often overlooked. Their emissions trajectories are rising steeply and ratcheting up their targets would be essential to reach the Paris goals. But these two groups of coun­tries are facing particular challenges and obstacles.

In low-income countries, a fast-growing population and a high vulnerability to climate damages can in the eyes of decision makers create a trade-off between investing in the necessary energy transition and the fast creation of jobs and income. In addition, their political and financial institutions have difficulties to absorb international financial transfers and to allocate them efficiently to local zero-carbon projects.

In fossil-resource rich countries, by contrast, climate policy threatens the single most important source of income. Moreover, heavy fossil-fuel subsidies often boost domestic energy consumption and stabilize the political order of these major oil, gas, and coal exporters.

Together with the keynote speakers Laurence Tubiana and Adam Sieminski the Forum Climate Economics 9 will integrate perspectives from the global North and South to shed light on the specific needs and challenges of these countries for ratcheting up their climate goals. Addressing these questions: What can the global North contribute to overcome these challenges? Which policies can facilitate the transition to a low-carbon economy in low-income countries? And how to support fossil-resource rich countries so they can keep the oil, gas and coal in the ground?

The Forum Climate Economics 9 will take place on June 22, 2021, 12:00-2:30 pm without an on-site audience. It will be broadcasted live on the internet and offers the audience the opportunity for an exchange with the discussants.

Information and Participation

The Forum Climate Economics is an event series aiming at supporting the transfer of knowledge and to strengthen the exchange between scientists and practitioners. These fora address societal, commercial, (non-)governmental and academic stakeholders. As current topics of the climate and energy policy debate are taken up, the fora offer insights into recent research results and give the opportunity for discussion and informal exchange between science and practice.

More information can be found on the website: www.klimadialog.de

To register, please use the contact us by e-mail at klimaforum@ifw-kiel.de.

Programme