The Influence of International Economic Institutions on Fossil Fuel Subsidy Reform

International economic institutions, particularly the G20, the OECD and the IMF, have been vocal in advocating reform of fossil fuel subsidies. The question that the paper seeks to answer is how influential the institutions have been in inducing countries to reform their fossil fuel subsidies? Although studies of individual fossil fuel subsidy reforms point to the role of international economic institutions as one factor among many, no overarching study has studied their influence across countries. This gap deserves to be addressed, particularly given the power of these institutions. More specifically, the paper focuses on pathways of influence which go beyond legally binding multilateral agreements. Such influences include learning, ideational change such as socialisation, and commitments which have to be adhered to. Concerning fossil subsidy reform, these pathways may consist of adherence to the (non-binding) G20 commitment, learning about fossil fuel subsidies and the possibilities to reform them, or socialisation into the norm that such subsidies should be reformed. Case studies of the US, India, the UK, Indonesia, Sweden and Denmark showed that ideational change stemming from the G20 and the OECD helped move fossil fuel subsidies up the agenda in industrialised countries, IMF was decisive in one case of Indonesian fossil fuel reform, and that learning processes mattered in terms of workshops organised by the OECD and the World Bank

The Economisation of Climate Change

International economic institutions economise climate change, treating it as an economic rather than environmental issue. This book explores how three such institutions - G20, IMF, OECD - have addressed climate finance and fossil fuel subsidies, and the consequences of the economisation of climate change. Also available as Open Access

Limiting costs or correcting market failures? : Finance ministries and frame alignment in UN climate finance negotiations

Finance ministries are increasingly involved in UN climate finance negotiations,yet this development received very limited attention in the literature on climate finance or climate negotiations. It is not obvious from the literature on bureaucratic politics how these ministries will position themselves on climate finance: they may frame climate finance as expenditure to be limited or as an instrument for correcting the market failure of climate change. This paper investigates which frames have characterised the positions of finance ministries on key issues in the climate finance negotiations, and whether the use of a given frame corresponds to particular factors. Case studies of Denmark, India, Indonesia and the USA based on official documents and interviews show that the position of each finance ministry is generally consistent with one particular frame. The Indonesian and Danish finance ministries predominantly framed climate finance as a way of correcting a marketfailure. The Indian Ministry of Finance emphasised Common but Differentiated Responsibilities,which fits with the budget frame. The US Treasury’s position similarly fits with the budget frame while sharing elements of the market failure frame. Finance ministries that had the lead on climate finance were more likely follow the budget frame. The use of both frames cuts across the divide between industrialised and emerging economies. With the exception of the USA, left- and right-wing governments were equally likely to adopt either frame. These findings indicate that strengthening finance ministry forums built around the market failure frame can be a way of reducing norm fragmentation

Egyptens Muslimske Broderskab i bevægelse

Intet resum

A Religious Media Revolution? The Syrian Conflict and Mediated Sunni Authority

This article is a preliminary survey of the media usage of Sunni religious actors during the Syrian conflict.  It traces the adoption of new media by religious actors, and analyses the kind of authority these actors have sought to embody, whether regime supporting, oppositional or jihadist. It argues that the conflict has completely altered the means and modes of Sunni religious communication, transforming classical genres and bypassing them with new ones. It concludes that the lack of formal authority in the messaging of the jihadist groupings, and their failed efforts to build up credible religious leaders, is a weakness that could well be exploited in the period to come

Muhammedkrisen – set fra Cairo

Den 6. november 2007 modtog Jakob Skovgaard-Petersen, der er direktør for Det Dansk- Egyptiske Dialog Institut i Cairo, Ebbe Muncks Hæderspris. I sin takketale redegjorde Jakob Skovgaard-Petersen for nogle af de oplevelser han havde haft og de tanker han havde gjort sig om krisen om Muhammedtegningerne, som den tog sig ud i orkanens øje – i Cairo. Udenrigs har fået lov til at trykke det lille essay, og vi bringer det uredigeret og i sin helhed

Evaluering af Mobility Management kampagnen ”Få din del af kagen”

I efteråret 2012 igangsatte Movia en målrettet markedsføringsindsats for at motivere pendlere på større virksomheder til at overveje kollektiv trafik som alternativ til bilen. Projektet blev igangsat som et led i incitamentssamarbejdet mellem Region Hovedstaden, Nobina Danmark og Movia. Formålet med samarbejdet er at skabe et fælles grundlag for at få flere passagerer på linje 330E, 300S, 400 og 400S, og ved at målrette en kampagne mod erhvervsområderne langs linjerne, var målet at få flere flyttet fra bilen til bussen og øvrige kollektive transportformer. Den overordnede kampagne bestod af en ”privatdel” og en ”erhvervsdel”. Førstnævnte lagde sig i forlængelse af den igangværende overordnede S-bus kampagne som havde til formål at ramme ”light-users” af den kollektive trafik med information om det at tage bussen til oplevelser (shopping, fodboldkampen, biografen, etc.). Den ”private” del var målrettet større virksomheder langs linjerne og nærværende dokument indeholder en evaluering af denne del af kampagnen. Evalueringen indeholder en generel beskrivelse af projektet, et metodisk baggrundsafsnit, en evaluering af passagereffekter samt en beskrivelse af virkninger og effekter som kampagnen ligeledes har resulteret i. Slutteligt beskrives fremtiden for lignende tiltag. Movias arbejde med Mobility Management er ligeledes kort introduceret