Innovation investments

An international agreement to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions need not be fixated on targets for regulating greenhouse gas emissions – an end of pipe approach – but could shift focus to an agreement that incentivizes a shift to low-carbon development pathways. Investment targets for innovation and diffusion of low-carbon energy technologies can form the basis for such a new approach for a future UN climate change agreement. It is a viable alternative to the cap-and-trade approach, which shows few signs of being able trigger a fundamental transformation of the global energy system. The current pace of innovation is insufficient to secure globally shared energy and environmental goals. An international agreement could provide a push for research, development, demonstration and deployment (RDD&D;) by setting an investment target. To garner developing country support such an agreement could distribute responsibilities, for example, based on countries’ ability to invest, capacity for innovation and need for energy modernization

Innovation investments

An international agreement to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions need not be fixated on targets for regulating greenhouse gas emissions – an end of pipe approach – but could shift focus to an agreement that incentivizes a shift to low-carbon development pathways. Investment targets for innovation and diffusion of low-carbon energy technologies can form the basis for such a new approach for a future UN climate change agreement. It is a viable alternative to the cap-and-trade approach, which shows few signs of being able trigger a fundamental transformation of the global energy system. The current pace of innovation is insufficient to secure globally shared energy and environmental goals. An international agreement could provide a push for research, development, demonstration and deployment (RDDandD) by setting an investment target. To garner developing country support such an agreement could distribute responsibilities, for example, based on countries’ ability to invest, capacity for innovation and need for energy modernization

Adaptation decision-making in the Nordic countries: Assessing the potential for joint action

In a global context, the outlook for the Nordic region is relatively favourable, given its relatively stronger resiliency to climate change impacts in comparison to many other geo-political regions of the world. Overall, the projected climatic changes include increases in mean temperatures and in precipitation, although regional variations can be significant. The countries' robust institutions and economies give them a strong capacity to adapt to these changes. Still, the need for adaptation to the changing climate has been and still is substantial, and in most of the region, there has been progress on the issue. This paper explores the potential for Nordic cooperation on adaptation; specifically, for the development of a regional adaptation strategy. In particular, it addresses two questions (1) What is the current state of adaptation in the Nordic countries? and (2) What are the potential benefits and weaknesses of a Nordic strategy for adaptation? In order to answer these two questions, this paper examines reviews the current national adaptation policies of each Nordic country and discusses the challenges facing a Nordic strategy and finally assesses the potential for common Nordic adaptation policy and further cooperation

Stories of Transformation: A Cross-Country Focus Group Study on Sustainable Development and Societal Change

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Societal transformations in the face of climate change; research priorities for the next decade

Climate change creates new challenges for the global society. Responding to climate change is a complex process of societal transformations that should be studied as such. The contribution of the social sciences is crucial to the understanding of these processes of change. The growing body of knowledge on the physics of climate change, its causes and consequences is not matched by an equivalent understanding of the societal challenges it poses. The Joint Programming Initiative on ‘Connecting Climate Knowledge for Europe’ (JPI Climate) identifies key topics for future social science research

Reboxetine Enhances the Olanzapine-Induced Antipsychotic-Like Effect, Cortical Dopamine Outflow and NMDA Receptor-Mediated Transmission

Preclinical data have shown that addition of the selective norepinephrine transporter (NET) inhibitor reboxetine increases the antipsychotic-like effect of the D2/3 antagonist raclopride and, in parallel, enhances cortical dopamine output. Subsequent clinical results suggested that adding reboxetine to stable treatments with various antipsychotic drugs (APDs) may improve positive, negative and depressive symptoms in schizophrenia. In this study, we investigated in rats the effects of adding reboxetine to the second-generation APD olanzapine on: (i) antipsychotic efficacy, using the conditioned avoidance response (CAR) test, (ii) extrapyramidal side effect (EPS) liability, using a catalepsy test, (iii) dopamine efflux in the medial prefrontal cortex and the nucleus accumbens, using in vivo microdialysis in freely moving animals and (iv) cortical N-methyl--aspartate (NMDA) receptor-mediated transmission, using intracellular electrophysiological recording in vitro. Reboxetine (6 mg/kg) enhanced the suppression of CAR induced by a suboptimal dose (1.25 mg/kg), but not an optimal (2.5 mg/kg) dose of olanzapine without any concomitant catalepsy. Addition of reboxetine to the low dose of olanzapine also markedly increased cortical dopamine outflow and facilitated prefrontal NMDA receptor-mediated transmission. Our data suggest that adjunctive treatment with a NET inhibitor may enhance the therapeutic effect of low-dose olanzapine in schizophrenia without increasing EPS liability and add an antidepressant action, thus in principle allowing for a dose reduction of olanzapine with a concomitant reduction of dose-related side effects, such as EPS and weight gain