Low Carbon Growth: Economic Progress from the Planet’s Perspective

The term “low carbon growth” does not appear explicitly in any of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals and the 169 associated Targets (UN General Assembly 2015). Instead, it is mentioned by means of a synonymous term in one of the associated Indicators, i.e., in SDG Indicator13.2.1. The Paris Agreement mentions the phrase “low greenhouse gas emissions development” in two articles of the treaty (UN Framework Convention on Climate Change 2015). It seems likely then that the Paris Agreement was the source of the above phrase for SDG Indicator 13.2.1. Low carbon growth refers to a type of growth that relies on lower carbon emissions per unit of economic output, compared to the business-as-usual type of economic growth. The switch to a low carbon growth path is undertaken in order to become a low carbon economy