2,198 research outputs found
EU 2020 Renewable Energy Goals Insufficient. IES Policy Brief Issue 2012/01/January 2012
Summary.
It is clear that any action to combat climate change must involve extensive efforts in reducing the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the energy sector. In the EU, nearly 80% of total GHG emissions come from the energy sector (European Commission, 2011, p. 21). Any credible action within the EU on combating climate change therefore requires deep shifts in the way we produce and use our energy. This paper highlights that renewable energy policies to 2020 are insufficient to meet the EUâs long-term climate policy objectives of reducing GHG emissions by between 80 and 95% by 2050, and thereby aiming to avoid an increase in global temperatures of more than 2°C. Such an ambition would likely require a very high share of renewable energy (in the range of 80 to 100%) in the overall energy mix of the EU, given current uncertainties about the feasibility of potential technological developments (e.g. carbon capture and storage technology)
When Decarbonisation meets Disinformation: EU-Russia Energy Relations. IES Policy Brief Issue 2016/15âą June 2016
The EU agreed in 2009 to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 80-95% by 2050, compared to 1990 levels. This âdecarbonisationâ objective means a massive shift away from fossil fuel consumption. Currently, EU-Russian energy relations are based on interdependence of fossil fuel import and export. As the EU promotes its climate and decarbonisation objectives, Russia has countered with tactics supporting a narrative in favour of the status quo. So far, the EUâs response to Russian narratives has been uncoordinated, but there is considerable potential for the conflicting narratives of decarbonisation and status quo fossil fuel consumption to move to an emphasis on âopportunitiesâ. In such a narrative, both the EU and Russia would benefit from the innovative and modernising effects of a serious engagement with decarbonisation, including continued relations based on renewable energy trade
EU climate and energy policy: hope for more and better climate policy integration? IES Policy Brief Issue 2014/02/January 2014
Summary.
With discussions on-going in the EU on the climate and energy policy framework to 2030, it is timely to assess the reality of climate policy integration into EU energy policy. Such an analysis can lead to lessons for the legislative process for the 2030 package, and even for policies in other sectors and beyond 2030. Climate change is a complex, crosscutting, long-term and global problem. Policymakers acknowledge that integrating climate policy objectives into the elaboration and agreement of measures in other sectors represents one method for striving towards coherent policies that respond adequately to the climate change problem. This policy brief presents the results and policy recommendations from the project âclimate policy integration into EU energy policyâ
Brexit and the EU in Global Climate Governance
Climate change governance is one of the EUâs priorities. The EU has developed a central (and arguably, a leading) role in global climate governance. The UK has been an important supporter of strong climate action both within the EU and in international climate negotiations. We investigate how/whether the EUâs role in global climate governance will be affected by Brexit by focusing on potential changes in three conditions for EU leadership: (1) credible and ambitious internal climate policy; (2) constant and effective international engagement through climate diplomacy; and (3) the ability to attract followers. We find that the UK has sometimes played the role of a pivotal outlier, either pushing for more internal policy ambition or blocking certain policy options. Brexit is likely to have cumulative effects on the EUâs role in global climate governance over the long term, through a series of changes in internal EU policymaking and climate diplomacy. The speed and scope of these changes depend on the nature of the future UKâEU relationship. We argue that the broader international context and strains on EU unity represent more urgent challenges to the EUâs role in global climate governance than those posed by Brexit
Paris climate conference: why the EU should redouble its efforts to reach full decarbonisation
The 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference will be held in Paris from 30 November to 11 December. Drawing on research in a recent edited volume, Sebastian OberthĂŒr and Claire Dupont assess the EUâs progress in reducing emissions in the lead up to the conference. They write that while the EU remains the world leader in efforts to tackle climate change, there are still some substantial challenges that will need to be overcome before the EU can reach full decarbonisation
Introducing the IES Brexit-Project. IES Policy Brief Issue 2016/4âą April 2016
By bundling the manifold policy expertise of the
researchers of the Institute for European Studies
(IES), this paper forms part of a series of analyses
investigating the potential implications of a âBrexitâ
scenario for different EU policies. All papers ask the
same three questions: 1) What is the state of the EU
policy in focus? 2) What is the UKâs role/interest in
this policy field? 3) What are the potential implications
of a âBrexitâ scenario at the policy-level?
After Claire Dupont and Florian Trauner introduce the
project, Richard Lewis sets the historical and cultural
context and explains how the UK and the EU have
come to such a low-point in their relations. Next, five
policy fields are analysed: justice and home affairs; free
movement policies; EU external representation; the
(digital) single market; and environmental policy
What if? The implications of a Brexit-scenario on different EU policies. IES Policy Brief Issue 2016/4-10âą April 2016
By bundling the manifold policy expertise of the
researchers of the Institute for European Studies
(IES), this paper forms part of a series of analyses
investigating the potential implications of a âBrexitâ
scenario for different EU policies. All papers ask the
same three questions: 1) What is the state of the EU
policy in focus
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