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3 Ways the Ancient World Embraced the Circular Economy

Photo-illustration: Pixabay
  • Scientists show the circular economy has roots in ancient history.
  • Broken ceramics, Roman recycling and melting down glass all happened thousands of years ago.
  • Going circular could generate as much as $4.5 trillion in economic benefits, according to the World Economic Forum.
  • The Ellen MacArthur Foundation says our current system is no longer working for businesses, people or the environment.

Think the circular economy is a novel idea that’s just come into fashion? Think again.

There’s evidence that the mantra “reduce, reuse, recycle” has its origins with the Romans, Greeks or even in the Bronze Age. A circular economy is based on the principles of designing out waste and pollution, keeping products and materials in use, and regenerating natural systems, according to one of its key proponents, the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, which also says the idea isn’t new.

“The idea of feedback, of cycles in real-world systems, is ancient and has echoes in various schools of philosophy,” the Foundation says.

Here are three examples of how the ancient world embraced the circular economy:

1. Broken ceramics in Dubai 3,000 years ago

Polish scientists found tools in Dubai made from copper, bronze and iron refashioned from broken ceramic vessels. Broken ceramic vessels were not thrown away, the researchers told Science in Poland, instead they were modified and used as tools.

Here are three examples of how the ancient world embraced the circular economy:

Photo-illustration: Pixabay

2. Sorting out the trash in Pompeii

The Romans also recycled, according to a report in the Guardian newspaper. Mounds of rubbish preserved after the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD were “staging grounds for cycles of use and reuse,” says Professor Allison Emmerson, an American academic who works in Pompeii.

3. Glass recycling in Byzantine times

Archeologists working at the ancient city of Sagalassos, now part of Turkey, found glass chunks, fuel ash slag and kiln fragments, that indicate glass recycling, according to a paper in the Journal of Archaeological Science.

Even so, we should be careful not to overstate past populations’ commitment to recycling, argues Maikel Kuijpers, an assistant professor at the Max Planck Institute for the History of Science, on digital news site The Conversation.

“Our ancestors were no ecological saints,” he said. “They polluted their surroundings through mining, burned down entire forests, and they too created massive amounts of waste.”

And those themes are still relevant today.

A circular economy could result in as much as $4.5 trillion in economic benefits to 2030, according to the World Economic Forum. Just 8.6% of the world is currently circular, and the Forum’s work seeks to foster collaboration between private, public, civil society and expert stakeholders to accelerate the circular economy transition.

“The current system is no longer working for businesses, people or the environment,” the Ellen MacArthur Foundation says. “We must transform all the elements of the take-make-waste system: how we manage resources, how we make and use products, and what we do with the materials afterwards. Only then can we create a thriving economy that can benefit everyone within the limits of our planet.”

Source: WEF

Pakistan’s ‘Green Stimulus’ Scheme Is a Win-Win for the Environment and the Unemployed

Photo-illustration: Pixabay
  • Pakistan’s government are offering labourers, who are out of work due to the coronavirus lockdown, a chance to earn money by planting trees.
  • The project is part of Pakistan’s existing initiative to plant billions of trees to counter the effects of climate change.
  • Pakistan is badly affected by climate change, experiencing more than 150 extreme weather events between 1999 and 2018.

When construction worker Abdul Rahman lost his job to Pakistan’s coronavirus lockdown, his choices looked stark: resort to begging on the streets or let his family go hungry.

Photo-illustration: Pixabay

But the government has now given him a better option: Join tens of thousands of other out-of-work labourers in planting billions of trees across the country to deal with climate change threats.

Since Pakistan locked down starting March 23 to try to stem the spread of COVID-19, unemployed day labourers have been given new jobs as “jungle workers”, planting saplings as part of the country’s 10 Billion Tree Tsunami programme.

Such “green stimulus” efforts are an example of how funds that aim to help families and keep the economy running during pandemic shutdowns could also help nations prepare for the next big threat: climate change.

“Due to coronavirus, all the cities have shut down and there is no work. Most of us daily wagers couldn’t earn a living,” Rahman, a resident of Rawalpindi district in Punjab province, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

He now makes 500 rupees ($3) per day planting trees – about half of what he might have made on a good day, but enough to get by.

“All of us now have a way of earning daily wages again to feed our families,” he said.

The ambitious five-year tree-planting programme, which Prime Minister Imran Khan launched in 2018, aims to counter the rising temperatures, flooding, droughts and other extreme weather in the country that scientists link to climate change.

Big Risks

The Global Climate Risk Index 2020, issued by think tank Germanwatch, ranked Pakistan fifth on a list of countries most affected by planetary heating over the last two decades – even though the South Asian nation contributes only a fraction of global greenhouse gases.

As the coronavirus pandemic struck Pakistan, the 10 Billion Trees campaign initially was halted as part of social distancing orders put in place to slow the spread of the virus, which has infected over 13,900 people in Pakistan, according to a Reuters tally.

But earlier this month, the prime minister granted an exemption to allow the forestry agency to restart the programme and create more than 63,600 jobs, according to government officials.

While much of the country is still observing stay-at-home orders, local police and district authorities have been told trucks carrying trees should be allowed to travel and villagers permitted to leave their homes to work with the project.

A recent assessment by the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics found that, due to the lockdown, up to 19 million people could be laid off, almost 70% of them in the Punjab province.

Abdul Muqeet Khan, chief conservator of forests for Rawalpindi district, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation that the planting project is in “full swing”.

Much of the work is happening on 15,000 acres (6,000 hectares) of land near the capital Islamabad, he said, as well as on other tracts of state-owned forest land around the country.

This year the programme is employing triple the number of workers it did in its first year, said Malik Amin Aslam, climate change advisor to the prime minister.

Many of the new jobs are being created in rural areas, he said, with a focus on hiring women and unemployed daily workers – mainly young people – who were migrating home from locked-down cities.

The work, which pays between 500 rupees and 800 rupees per day, includes setting up nurseries, planting saplings, and serving as forest protection guards or forest firefighters, he said.

All the workers have been told to wear masks and maintain the mandated two metres (six feet) of social distance between them, he added.

“This tragic crisis provided an opportunity and we grabbed it,” Aslam told the Thomson Reuters Foundation in a phone interview.

“Nurturing nature has come to the economic rescue of thousands of people.”

Extended Help

According to Germanwatch, Pakistan reported more than 150 extreme weather events between 1999 and 2018 – from floods to heatwaves – with total losses of $3.8 billion.

Environmentalists have long pushed reforestation as a way to help, saying forests help prevent flooding, stabilise rainfall, provide cool spaces, absorb heat-trapping carbon dioxide emissions and protect biodiversity.

According to green group WWF, Pakistan is a “forest poor” country where trees cover less than 6% of the total area.

Every year thousands of hectares of forest are destroyed, mainly as a result of unsustainable logging and clearing land for small-scale farming, the group said on its website.

With 7.5 billion rupees ($46 million) in funding, the 10 Billion Trees project aims to scale up the success of an earlier Billion Tree Tsunami in Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, where the government has been planting trees since 2014.

About 30 million indigenous saplings have been planted in Punjab since the start of the 10 Billion Tree Tsunami – including mulberry, acacia and moringa – said Shahid Rashid Awan, project director for Punjab province.

This year, the project hopes to hit 50 million trees, he said.

Planting season usually ends in May, Awan noted, but programme organisers plan to extend the initiative to the end of June, to keep workers employed for longer.

“We can absorb all the unemployed labourers and workers who have fled the cities and returned to their villages in the past few weeks. This is unskilled work,” he said.

Recovering with Dignity

Rab Nawaz, of WWF-Pakistan, said the government’s move is “a very good idea to create green jobs and get people employed.”

But he cautioned that planting trees is just one tool in the fight against climate change, saying there also needed to be investment in improving the ability of farmers and city dwellers to adapt to the effects of a hotter planet.

“The government should be very selective on how it spends money, and focus on resilience,” he urged.

For Aslam, the green jobs initiative is a way to help Pakistan’s workers recover from the coronavirus crisis “with dignity and avoiding handouts”.

“This has taught us the valuable lesson that when you invest in nature it not only pays you back, but also rescues you in a stressed economic situation,” he said.

Source: WEF

ABB Brings Fuel Cell Technology a Step Closer to Powering Large Ships

Photo-illustration: Pixabay

ABB signed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Hydrogène de France to jointly manufacture megawatt-scale fuel cell systems capable of powering ocean-going vessels. The MOU envisages close collaboration on the assembly and production of the fuel cell power plant for marine applications.

Photo-illustration: Pixabay

Building on an existing collaboration announced on June 27, 2018 with Ballard Power Systems, the leading global provider of proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell solutions, ABB and HDF intend to optimize fuel cell manufacturing capabilities to produce a megawatt-scale power plant for marine vessels. The new system will be based on the megawatt-scale fuel cell power plant jointly developed by ABB and Ballard, and will be manufactured at HDF’s new facility in Bordeaux, France.

Fuel cells turn the chemical energy from hydrogen into electricity through an electrochemical reaction. With the use of renewables to produce the hydrogen, the entire energy chain can be clean.

“HDF is very excited to cooperate with ABB to assemble and produce megawatt-scale fuel cell systems for the marine market based on Ballard technology,” said Damien Havard, CEO of HDF.

“With the ever-increasing demand for solutions that enable sustainable, responsible shipping, we are confident that fuel cells will play an important role in helping the marine industry meet CO2 reduction targets,” said Juha Koskela, Managing Director, ABB Marine & Ports. “Signing the MOU with HDF brings us a step closer to making this technology available for powering ocean-going vessels.”

With shipping responsible for about 2.5 percent of the world’s total greenhouse gas emissions, there is an increased pressure for the maritime industry to transition to more sustainable power sources. The International Maritime Organization, a United Nations agency responsible for regulating shipping, has set a global target to cut annual emissions by at least 50 percent by 2050 from 2008 levels.

Among alternative emission-free technologies, ABB is already well advanced in collaborative development of fuel cell systems for ships. Fuel cells are widely considered as one of the most promising solutions for reducing harmful pollutants. Already today, this zero-emission technology is capable of powering ships sailing short distances, as well as supporting auxiliary energy requirements of larger vessels.

ABB’s eco-efficiency portfolio, which enables sustainable smart cities, industries and transport systems to mitigate climate change and conserve non-renewable resources, accounted for 57 percent of total revenues in 2019. The company is on track to reach 60 percent of revenues by the end of 2020.

ABB (ABBN: SIX Swiss Ex) is a technology leader that is driving the digital transformation of industries. With a history of innovation spanning more than 130 years, ABB has four, customer-focused, globally leading businesses: Electrification, Industrial Automation, Motion, and Robotics & Discrete Automation, supported by the ABB Ability™ digital platform. ABB’s Power Grids business will be divested to Hitachi in 2020. ABB operates in more than 100 countries with about 144,000 employees.  www.abb.com

Source: ABB

Environmentally Conscious Tourists Are Attracted to Eco-Friendly Destinations

Photo: Milos Vujovic, Dusko Miljanic

If you are a fan of unspoiled nature hidden between the Montenegrin mountains and the Adriatic Sea, surely it must have happened to you, at least once, to be stuck for hours in traffic at the beautiful Bay of Kotor. It seems like such the hustle and bustle could end, especially if you decide to park your cars and use public eco-boats during your vacation. If you take another eco-friendly step and decide to stay in a “green” hotel, you will also have a variety of choices. There are 27 Green Key certified hotels in Montenegro

The owners of electric vehicles will be pleased by the fact that that UNDP has supported the installation of 11 chargers in Podgorica so far. We talked about the progress in the field of ecology, as well as the other innovative and sustainable projects to Mr Tomica Paovic, Democratic Governance & Economy and Environment Team Leader at UNDP.

EP: You have organised a network of eco-friendly hotels in Montenegro. How does a hotel get a Green Key certificate? What motivates hotel managers to enter a process of obtaining this document?

Photo: From private archive of Mr Tomica Paovic

Tomica Paovic: Montenegro currently has 27 certified hotels, and their number is constantly increasing. Doing business following the principles of environmental protection, rational use of resources, that is water and electricity, while continually improving the quality of offers – are prerequisites for obtaining the Green Key. Certified hotels are energy efficient; they use renewable energy, implement measures for the reduction of waste that hotel produces, have a responsible attitude to employees and the local community and are less harmful to the environment.

Due to all this, eco-certified hotels have lower operating costs, can operate throughout the year, and since they are competitive, they position more easily in the markets of Western and Northern Europe. Eco-conscious tourists expect a high quality of service and full experience, which is the reason why they are ready to spend more money to stay in a certified accommodation.

EP: Environmentally conscious tourists are attracted to the destinations that offer a stay in unspoiled nature and enjoy the wild beauty, which is exactly the thing distinguishes Montenegro. How many municipalities have participated in the UNDP’s “Low Carbon Tourism” program so far?

Tomica Paovic: Sustainable or “green” tourism in Montenegro has a great potential due to its relatively untouched nature and preserved cultural heritage. UNDP, in cooperation with numerous partners, successfully implemented 31 investment projects in 12 Montenegrin cities: Podgorica, Cetinje, Kolasin, Mojkovac, Savnik, Pluzine, Zabljak, Pljevlja, Budva, Tivat, Herceg Novi and Ulcinj.

These are very diverse projects, from supporting ecological water transport in the Bay of Kotor, through investing in the development and equipment of bicycle and pedestrian paths, the installation of solar water heating systems at hotels, the replacement of conventional public lightening with LED bulbs and the procurement of electric vehicles, to the introduction of modern, automated and highly energy-efficient heating and cooling systems. All projects have significantly contributed to the promotion and diversification of Montenegro’s touristic offer.

EP: What kind of program did you implement in these municipalities?

Tomica Paovic: In addition to the savings of 60 per cent on electricity bills, the modernisation of public lightning in Zabljak and Savnik achieved better illumination, increased safety of traffic participants and eliminated light pollution. Since last year, electric vehicles for the local transport of tourists have been available to visitors of Cetinje, Ulcinj and Zabljak and there are more and more electric vehicles inside hotel complexes.

Forty households in katuns (shepherds’ temporary summer house in the mountains) in Pluzine and Zabljak got access to electricity for the first time when solar power systems were installed in their households. Solar panels will contribute to creating better working and profit conditions for the farmers and shepherds who take their livestock to the katuns. In addition to the traditional role the katuns play, the tourists like to visit Montenegrin katuns, thus they are becoming an important part of the tourist offer of the northern part of the country.

This project has encouraged both the public and the private sector to implement concrete measures and introduce new technologies, contributing to the fight against climate change. The regulation dealing with carbon dioxide (CO2) reduction has been improved, and the framework was established for sustainable mechanisms of financing. I am here primarily referring to the Eco Fund, as support for innovative initiatives with a green background. With our partners, we have managed to raise over 13 million euros in investments in sustainable tourism, and a little bit more than 30 new “green” jobs have been created on the territory of these municipalities.

In focus:

Photo: UNDP

EP: Last summer, electric and hybrid ships started operating as part of the “Bella Boka” project on the route from Kotor to Herceg Novi. The company “Bella Boka” has announced that it will expand its fleet this year. To what extent has UNDP helped in the development of this project and will you continue to support this project?

Tomica Paovic: The project “Bella Boka” is of significant importance for the Bay of Kotor and Montenegro. It establishes sustainable water transport with electric and hybrid trimaran sailboats through the Bay of Kotor. That will have a positive effect on solving the problem of congestion in road transport, especially during the summer season, when you need an hour and a half or two hours at its best from Kotor to Herceg Novi due to traffic jams. From a cultural point of view, this project is important because it revives the tradition of using waterways for the transport of residents and tourists – which was forgotten in the past decades. Electric and hybrid trimaran sailboats, designed for short-distance tourist trips, are ideal for coastal cruising and interurban transport in coastal cities.

This project will reduce the emission of harmful gasses in traffic and offer visitors an exciting eco-friendly travel experience. More than 4 million euros have been invested in this unique project at the Adriatic, while co-funding through UNDP was 150.000 euros. The Investor has announced that this year another 9 such sailboats will be providing the service of public transport at sea.

Photo: UNDP

UNDP has supported the reconstruction of the 100-year-old-ship, which rock musician and environmental activist Antonije Pusic, also known as Rambo Amadeus, turned into a solar sailboat. With a sophisticated design, this sailboat is powered by solar energy, without CO2 emission, exhaust gases and noise. This venture combines the local nautical tradition with sustainable materials and clean technologies, and it is an example of how innovations in design, renewable energy and the private equity investment for the public good, combine economic opportunity with the need for environmental protection.

EP: Electromobility is on the rise in the Scandinavian countries and in the Balkans, it has just started developing. What is the role of UNDP Montenegro in the development of this sector?

Tomica Paovic: The increasing global awareness of climate change has led the automotive industry, which contributes significantly to environmental degradation, to put in great efforts in resolving this issue. One of the most important moves is the production of more environmentally-friendly vehicles. It is true that European countries, such as Norway and Sweden, advanced most in terms of electrification of the traffic. However, the road to full e-mobility, not only in Montenegro but also globally, is undoubtedly a long one, taking into account many challenges, which are primarily related to the inadequate offer of electric vehicles and the long period from ordering to delivery, then underdeveloped charging infrastructure, the absence of various incentives such as financial, economic and regulatory for e-vehicle owners. In order to make transport truly sustainable globally, society, as a whole, needs to re-examine the entire mobility system and to find innovative ways for the reduction of our dependency on vehicles. Here, I primarily refer to the implementation of the car-sharing model, development of better public transport infrastructure and greater use of low-emission or zero-emission transportation.

Alternative solutions that contribute to the sustainability of transportation are necessary, and the introduction of electric vehicles is just one of those. We have also helped the equipment of more than 70 km of hiking and biking trails throughout Montenegro, as well as the introduction of environmentally-friendly vehicles for the transportation of tourists in protected areas and touristic complexes.

EP: UNDP in Serbia mostly develops projects for the utilisation of biomass. Which type of the renewable source in principle has UNDP decided to support in Montenegro?

Photo: UNDP

Tomica Paovic: Renewable energy sources are one of the key tools for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. There is significant untapped potential in the field of renewable energy sources, especially in the field of solar energy, and more importantly in the sector of small producers, such as small and medium-sized enterprises, as well as individual households.

This year could be a significant milestone in the global effort for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in the energy sector. Namely, the signatory countries of the Paris Agreement, which are now updating their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), could raise their previously targeted ambitious by increasing the production of electricity from renewable sources.

The decarbonisation of the electric power system itself is not enough to meet climate goals set out in this Agreement. Instead, the entire energy sector must undergo a profound transformation by moving to renewable sources and adopting energy efficiency measures, as well as increasing the level of electrification of end-users. In this context, part of our focus is to improve the investment and development environment for the installation of solar panels, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises and households.

Interview by: Nevena Djukic

Read the whole interview in the new issue of the Energy portal Magazine NATURAL RESOURCES, march – may, 2020

IRENA’s Coalition for Action Calls for Green Recovery Based on Renewables

Photo-illustration: Unsplash (Laurel and Michael Evans)
Photo-illustration: Unsplash (Laurel and Michael Evans)

As COVID-19 rapidly devastates communities and livelihoods, effective response measures are urgently needed to address the immediate as well as the longer-term impacts of the crisis. Over 100 leading players in renewable energy, gathered under the IRENA Coalition for Action, have come together in a joint call for action, putting forward concrete recommendations on how governments can ensure a rapid and sustained economic recovery that aligns with climate and sustainability objectives.

IRENA’s recent Global Renewables Outlook finds that aligning COVID-19 recovery efforts with the objectives of the Paris Agreement and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development will require comprehensive policy packages, massive resource mobilisation, and enhanced international cooperation, but would result in massive socio-economic gains at the global level.

During a webinar organised by IRENA, Coalition for Action members echoed these findings as they discussed solutions and concrete policy actions in response to COVID-19. Members further emphasised that renewable energy can play a key role in strategies addressing COVID-19 by providing reliable, easy-to-mobilise, and cost-effective electricity for essential services.

Coalition for Action Key Messages

In the development of immediate response measures to the COVID-19 emergency, Coalition for Action members are calling on governments to:

  • Revisit deadlines for renewable energy projects that face contractual obligations for near-term delivery.
  • Designate the renewable energy industry and related infrastructure as a critical and essential sector.
  • Affirm and extend policies promoting renewable energy solutions, both centralised and decentralised.

In considering the stimulus packages needed for rapid and sustained economic recovery, Coalition for Action members recommend that governments:

  • Prioritise renewable energy in any stimulus measures and commit to phasing out support for fossil fuels.
  • Provide public financial support to safeguard the industry and mobilise private investment in renewable energy.
  • Enhance the role of renewable energy in industrial policies.
  • Revise labour and education policies to foster a just transition and help workers make the shift into renewable energy jobs.
  • Strengthen international co-operation and action to accelerate renewable energy deployment in line with global climate and sustainability objectives.

The IRENA Coalition for Action brings together over 100 leading renewable energy players from around the world with the common goal of advancing the uptake of renewable energy. The Coalition facilitates global dialogues between public and private sectors to develop actions to increase the share of renewables in the global energy mix, and to accelerate the global energy transition. IRENA acts as the Secretariat of the Coalition.

Read more about the IRENA Coalition for Action and its joint call for action on https://coalition.irena.org/

Read more about IRENA’s Global Renewables Outlook here.

Source: IRENA

The COVID-19 Crisis Has a Profound Impact Also on the Energy Sector

Photo-illustration: Pixabay

In three reports published today, the Energy Community Secretariat assesses the current status of financial liquidity of the electricity sector; compiles information about support from International Financial Institutions and commercial banks; and measures taken by energy regulators to address the ongoing issues, concluding that the COVID-19 crisis has a profound impact also on the energy sector.

Photo-illustration: Pixabay

The measures taken to contain the COVID-19 crisis have led to a persistent decrease in electricity supplier income due to non-payment of electricity bills in the majority of Energy Community Contracting Parties, putting pressure on the financial liquidity of utilities and market participants throughout the electricity supply chain. According to the report published by the Secretariat today on financial liquidity in the electricity sector, the drop in the collection rate ranged from 10 to 30% in March 2020 in most of the Contracting Parties, with Kosovo* and North Macedonia the hardest hit. Preliminary data for April 2020 show a further sharp decline.

In the coming months, electricity companies are expected to face additional pressure in their efforts to maintain financial liquidity due to decreased revenue and cash-flow because of non-payment and waiving of interest, lower consumption and a shift from commercial to residential consumption where electricity prices are often lower. In several instances, the pressure on working capital and lack of clarity on the distribution of the incurred loss of revenue gave rise to suppliers to activate force majeure provisions in their contractual arrangements with other market players

On the other hand, strong pleas by the prime ministers and suppliers for customers to pay their electricity bills helped keeping the payment rate high in Georgia, while it started to increase after an initial drop in Albania.

Suppliers that are facing an immediate risk of insufficient working capital have either entered into negotiations with commercial banks and/or international financial institutions (IFIs) for additional loans or with their governments to receive support either directly or as guarantor for commercial loans. The Secretariat has held calls with the International Financial Institutions active in the Energy Community and the European Commission to exchange views on the assessment of the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on the liquidity of energy utilities and local commercial banks as well as the resulting implications on the ongoing and future investments in the energy sectors.

It became clear that the ongoing investment projects in large energy infrastructure, energy efficiency and renewable projects may be delayed because of supply chain disruptions and clients not being able to repay loans due to loss of revenues. In its report, the Secretariat assesses projects implemented by SMEs and households as the most vulnerable. The liquidity of local commercial banks through which IFIs disburse many of the investment credit facilities does not seem to pose an immediate problem if the payment delays are limited in time. The IFIs and the European Commission were unanimous in highlighting that energy sector reforms and the Green Agenda must continue.

Throughout the crisis, energy regulatory authorities of the Energy Community Contracting Parties have taken an active role to address the challenges the gas and electricity systems are facing. The third report published by the Secretariat today focuses on the actions and measures taken by regulators to protect and support gas and electricity users and market participants in the COVID-19 crisis, while striking a balance between protecting customers and not putting liquidity of energy companies at unnecessary risk.

(* This designation is without prejudice to positions on status and is in line with UNSCR 1244/99 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence)

Source: Energy Community

Two Thirds of World’s Citizens Agree Climate Change Is as Serious as Pandemic

Photo-illustration: Unsplash (Markus Spiske)
Foto-ilustracija: Unsplash (Markus Spiske)

A new Ipsos poll conducted in 14 countries finds that 71% of adults globally agree that, in the long term, climate change is as serious a crisis as Covid-19 is. The survey shows widespread support for government actions to prioritise climate change in the economic recovery after Covid-19 with 65% globally agreeing that this is important. The survey was conducted online among more than 28,000 adults between April 16th and April 19th 2020.

Another Ipsos survey, carried out online among more than 20,000 adults across 29 countries between Friday, February 21st and March 6th 2020, finds that while climate change remains the most important environmental issue for citizens globally, citizens are no more likely to say they plan to make changes to their own environmental behaviours than they were six years ago.

The top findings include:

  • Climate change remains the most important environmental issue globally, with 37% citing it as one of their three top environmental issues. Other environmental issues that are important to citizens are air pollution (33%) and dealing with the amount of waste we generate (32%), followed by deforestation (26%) and water pollution (25%). Concern for the top four issues has increased since two years ago.
  • A majority of the public globally (68%) agree that if their governments do not act now to combat climate change, they will be failing their citizens. Nearly six in ten (57%) say they would be put off from voting for a political party whose policies do not take climate change seriously.
  • Across a range of environmental behaviours, as many as two fifths globally feel they are already doing as much as they possibly can on specific behaviours. Areas where some feel they have no room to improve include recycling (40% state ‘I am already doing this as much as I possibly can’), saving energy at home (37%), and saving water at home (33%).

Agreement that human activity contributes to climate change has fallen in some European countries between 2014 and 2020 (by 14 percentage points in Germany, 9 percentage points in Italy and 8 percentage points in France), as well as elsewhere in the world (by 17 percentage points in Brazil, 16 percentage points in China and Japan, and 12 percentage points in Russia) (It is important to note that the profile of the online population has changed during this time, for example with an increase in the proportion of older people who are online). In other countries such as Great Britain and the US, however, there has been no significant change.

A majority of citizens feel they are likely to make changes to their own behaviour to limit personal contribution to climate change. However, the proportion saying they are likely to make such changes has not increased since Ipsos last asked this question six years ago. Citizens remain more likely to plan to take actions which are convenient and easier to achieve than they are to plan changes which are more far-reaching – such as avoiding flying or making changes to their diet.

  • The public are willing to exercise their spending power: avoiding products which have a lot of packaging is the most popular change, with 57% globally saying they are ‘likely’ to change their behaviour on this in the next year.
  • This is followed by avoiding buying new goods, mending what you have or buying used products instead (52%), saving energy at home (50%), recycling (49%) and saving water at home (49%).

Citizens are divided on how likely they are to undertake less comfortable and convenient lifestyle changes.

  • 41% say they are likely to avoid flying in the next year to limit their personal contribution to climate change, while a third (33%) say they are unlikely to make this change.
  • 41% say they are likely to eat less meat, or replace the meat in some meals with alternatives such as beans, in the next year. However, a similar proportion (39%) say they are unlikely to do this.
  • 35% say they are likely to eat fewer dairy products or replacing dairy products with alternatives such as soya milk. Nearly half (49%) say they are unlikely to do this.

There has been very little change since 2014 in how likely the public are to say they plan to change their behaviours to limit their personal contribution to climate change, across the 12 countries where Ipsos has trend data.

  • The lack of change is not because the public in these 12 countries have already taken action: rather, the proportion who report that ‘I am already doing this as much as I can’ across most behaviours has decreased since 2014. This lack of movement may relate to a heightened sense among the public of the difficulty of changing behaviours – increasing awareness of an issue can be accompanied by an increasing sense that little can be done to improve the situation.

Diet is the one area where there has been some movement (albeit small) since 2014. 18% in 2020 say they are reducing meat in their diets as much as they can, up from 14% in 2014, and the proportion who say they are unlikely to make this change has also fallen – from 44% in 2014 to 39% in 2020. Fewer now say they are unlikely to reduce their dairy product consumption in the next year – from 55% in 2014 to 49% in 2020.

Source: Ipsos

Here Is What COVID-19 Teaches Us About ‘Social Learning’ and the Environment

Photo-illustration: Pixabay
  • The dire social and economic impact of COVID-19 could worsen environmental destruction in the long run.
  • But the pandemic is also teaching us how to use individual choices to tackle a global disaster.
  • “Social learning” is a powerful tool for lasting change. It involves people learning from each other and adapting their behaviour as a result.

The horrors of the global human death toll of COVID-19 confront me daily in the news and through my concern for my own vulnerable parents. The economic and other hardships so many are facing due to physical distancing measures also deeply disturb me. Moreover, as a global change ecologist whose lens has been the whole wide world and everything in it —the millions of other species, the air we all share, and the water we all depend on—the environmental dimensions of COVID-19 are impossible for me to ignore.

Photo: UN

Let me be clear: COVID-19 itself is not good for any of the seventeen UN Sustainable Development Goals. Human wellbeing, the economy and the environment are all interrelated, and the pandemic is certainly not helping us achieve our goals for protecting them. However, the pandemic is teaching us lessons in human behaviour that could bring us closer to these goals in the future.

A mere year and a half ago, in October 2018, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) published an alarming Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5 degrees C. It started with a quote from The Wisdom of the Sands, by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry: “Your task is not to foresee the future, but to enable it.”

The report called for “rapid, far-reaching, and unprecedented changes” in all aspects of society to avert the worst disasters of climate change. It predicted dire consequences for human well-being, the economy and the environment if those warnings were not heeded. Despite the shift in language from “climate change” to “climate emergency” over the past year by many institutions, we have not seen these recommendations being implemented.

And yet, COVID-19 has forced us to make dramatic changes in every area of life in the space of only a few weeks. Cities and entire countries were shut down overnight, leaders declared national and international emergencies, people and institutions adapted to unprecedented societal change.

COVID-19 is also transforming our relationship to the environment. The origins of emerging infectious diseases, including COVID-19 but also HIV, Ebola, Nipah, SARS, pandemic influenza and others, are at least partly linked to the growing human impact on the environment. Acknowledging this is crucial as we try to address the root causes of pandemics. These days, many cities are reporting cleaner air and lower pollution. In some places, this is literally changing how we perceive nature. Some communities in India are able to see the snow-capped Himalayas for the first time in their lives. However, these changes are also revealing the magnitude of these chronic problems, and the importance of tackling them. As the pandemic limits access to green spaces such as parks and conservation areas, many are becoming painfully aware of how fundamental these natural oases are to their wellbeing.

Photo-illustration: Pixabay

It appears that in times of crisis, we connect even more strongly with our natural surroundings. In the short term, this may well have a beneficial impact on some aspects on the environment. However, in the long term, the picture is more complex. Economic recession could exacerbate environmental degradation, as resources are diverted from efforts to protect and restore habitats. It could also worsen existing poverty traps. As the UN Climate Change Executive Secretary said: “COVID-19 is the most urgent threat facing humanity today, but we cannot forget that climate change is the biggest threat facing humanity over the long term.” The acting executive secretary of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity put it bluntly: “The message we are getting is if we don’t take care of nature, it will take care of us.”

Consider the quote from Antoine de Saint Exupéry, however: we need not foresee the future, we just need to enable it. This is where the lessons on human behaviour come in.

Some of my own research on the power of human behavior to shape environmental trajectories, such as biodiversity loss and climate change, suggests social learning is a significant factor in changing systems. That is to say, people learn from each other, and change their behaviour accordingly.

Right now, we are learning valuable lessons in resilience and human adaptability. We are learning how quickly humans can respond when faced with a common enemy, be it a novel virus or the well-established physics of climate change. Let us examine these lessons, reflect on our new respect for the natural world, and consider what enabled us to adjust to such profoundly challenging and unfamiliar new norms. Let us take note of how some of the ideas put forward by different countries now are very much in line with UN sustainable development goals, such as the elimination of poverty, good health and wellbeing, reduced inequality, and responsible production and consumption. And let’s imagine how we might be able to harness these lessons to reduce the risk of catastrophes – disease, climate change or other threats – in the future.

Author: Madhur Anand

Source: WEF

UNFCCC Work on Building Climate Resilience Continues – Virtually

Photo-illustration: Pixabay
Photo-illustration: Pixabay

Despite the COVID-19 crisis, work is continuing apace on efforts to build resilience to the inevitable impacts of climate change.

Last month, the UNFCCC’s Adaptation Committee (AC) hosted its first-ever virtual meeting, thereby showing its determination to continue delivering timely and high-quality products in the face of the pandemic.

Youssef Nassef, Director of the UNFCCC Adaptation Division, said: “The COVID-19 challenge is giving us the opportunity to rethink our perception of a lot of things including vulnerability, early action, rapid response and what timescales mean when confronted with a crisis. I’m hopeful that the AC will itself be an engine for the world to understand these lessons even after the crisis ends.”

Key issues discussed at the virtual meeting were:

  • How to most effectively recognize the adaptation efforts of developing countries through the lens of its synthesis paper on How developing countries are addressing hazards.
  • Considering approaches to reviewing the overall progress made in achieving the global goal on adaptation of enhancing adaptive capacity, strengthening resilience, and reducing vulnerability to climate change.
  • Reviewing an initial draft outline for supplementary guidance for voluntary use by governments as they prepare their adaptation communication and discussing how to ensure that this guidance does not create an additional burden on developing countries.
  • Finalizing the development—in partnership with the Least Developed Countries Expert Group (LEG), partner organizations of the Nairobi work programme, and other stakeholders—of an inventory of methodologies for assessing adaptation needs related to action, finance, capacity-building, technological support and other areas. Members brainstormed ways to ensure the inventory is user-friendly, accessible, and tailored to the needs of the practitioners who will use it on the ground.
  • Launching a discussion on the synthesis report the AC will prepare as an input into the global stocktake – a periodical assessment of progress  towards achieving the purpose of the Paris Agreement and its long-term goals.
  • Members also discussed the AC’s draft technical paper on data for adaptation and reflected on how the paper can highlight opportunities for international cooperation to improve data availability, use and quality.

All 16 AC members, hailing from 16 different countries, participated in the meeting.

To uphold the practice of ensuring transparency and enabling observer participation, the secretariat invited all registered observers to participate in the Zoom meeting and the floor was open to observers. In total, 29 observers joined the meeting via Zoom and the meeting was broadcast live and is available on demand on YouTube.

Source: UNFCCC

What Are the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs)?

Photo-illustration: Pixabay
Photo-illustration: Pixabay

The Paris Agreement and NDCs

2015 was a historic year in which 196 Parties came together under the Paris Agreement to transform their development trajectories so that they set the world on a course towards sustainable development, aiming at limiting warming to 1.5 to 2 degrees C above pre-industrial levels. Through the Paris Agreement, Parties also agreed to a long-term goal for adaptation – to increase the ability to adapt to the adverse impacts of climate change and foster climate resilience and low greenhouse gas emissions development, in a manner that does not threaten food production. Additionally, they agreed to work towards making finance flows consistent with a pathway towards low greenhouse gas emissions and climate-resilient development.

Nationally determined contributions (NDCs) are at the heart of the Paris Agreement and the achievement of these long-term goals. NDCs embody efforts by each country to reduce national emissions and adapt to the impacts of climate change. The Paris Agreement (Article 4, paragraph 2) requires each Party to prepare, communicate and maintain successive nationally determined contributions (NDCs) that it intends to achieve. Parties shall pursue domestic mitigation measures, with the aim of achieving the objectives of such contributions.

What does this mean?

The Paris Agreement requests each country to outline and communicate their post-2020 climate actions, known as their NDCs.

Together, these climate actions determine whether the world achieves the long-term goals of the Paris Agreement and to reach global peaking of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions as soon as possible and to undertake rapid reductions thereafter in accordance with best available science, so as to achieve a balance between anthropogenic emissions by sources and removals by sinks of GHGs in the second half of this century. It is understood that the peaking of emissions will take longer for developing country Parties, and that emission reductions are undertaken on the basis of equity, and in the context of sustainable development and efforts to eradicate poverty, which are critical development priorities for many developing countries.

Each climate plan reflects the country’s ambition for reducing emissions, taking into account its domestic circumstances and capabilities. Guidance on NDCs are currently being negotiated under the Ad Hoc Working Group on the Paris Agreement (APA), agenda item 3.

For more information on APA item 3, please click here.

Source: UNFCCC

Sweden Shutters Last Coal-Fired Generating Plant 2 Years Early

Foto-ilustracija: Pixabay

It’s good news when a nation makes plans to rid itself of electricity generated from burning coal. It’s even better news when it does so ahead of schedule. Swedish utility Stockholm Exergi announced some time ago it would shut down its KVV6 coal generating station in Hjorthagen in 2022. It actually took one of the facilities two boilers offline last fall. But a milder than expected winter led to lower demand for electricity and so the decision was made to close the entire facility now instead of waiting another two years, according to PV Magazine.

Photo-illustration: Pixabay

The issue is money. Carbon Tracker, a renewable energy advocacy group based in London, claims that 84% of coal generators in the EU that rely on lignite, or brown coal, are now operating at a loss, with 76% of those which burn hard coal also losing money. In 2017, Carbon Tracker reported “only” 46% of European coal plants were unprofitable. The difference is what it calls the “relentless” competition from solar and wind power. Combined, coal generators are on track to lose more than €6.5 billion in 2020.

Stockholm Exergi says from now on it will focus on carbon negative approaches. “We continue to work on the transition to climate neutral solutions and also solutions to create negative emissions,” says chief executive Anders Egelrud. “Here, the researchers agree: We don’t only need to reduce our emissions to zero but also … to develop techniques to specifically reduce carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.”

Europe Beyond Coal, based in the UK, also praised the moves, saying it indicates the fate awaiting coal in Europe. “With Sweden going coal-free in the same week as Austria, the downward trajectory of coal in Europe is clear. Against the backdrop of the serious health challenges we are currently facing, leaving coal behind in exchange for renewables is the right decision and will repay us in kind with improved health, climate protection and more resilient economies.”

Other European nations plan to exit coal in the next few years. France expects to shut its last coal-fired facility by 2022, Slovakia and Portugal in 2023, the U.K. in 2024, and Ireland and Italy a year later. Greece, the Netherlands, Finland, Hungary, and Denmark also plan to eliminate coal-fired power generation this decade as a way of complying with the commitments they made in Paris in 2015. Germany is lagging behind the others as its current plans do not call for a complete phase out of coal until 2038, but economic pain in the coal sector may do before then what politicians cannot do today.

Author: Steve Hanley

Source: Clean Technica

Sustainable Energy Solutions for a Thriving World

Photo: E3 International

The development of sustainable energy projects, including finance and advisory services, makes the core business of E3 International (E3I). Bonnie Norman, president of E3 International and well-known advisor on the creation of green banks, has more than two decades of experience in strategic consulting. We talked with Bonnie about use of renewable energy sources and energy efficiency, and she filled us in on new program that should enable creating of energy farms at abandoned land in Serbia.

EP: What projects are in focus and how long has E3I been present in this region?

Photo: E3 International

Bonnie Norman: E3I collaborates with clients to create and scale up bankable sustainable energy solutions for a healthier and more resilient world. We offer sustainable energy project development, finance, and advisory services from offices in Belgrade, the EU, and the US, where we’re headquartered. Our team has been working in Southeast Europe and the Western Balkans for the last 20 years. We are a motivated group of experts dedicated to making a difference locally, regionally, and beyond.

The E3I team began its regional involvement in 1999 as the implementing partner for the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development’s (EBRD’s) Municipal Energy Efficiency Program in Bulgaria. In 2010, E3I expanded its regional work, as implementing partner for EBRD’s Western Balkans Sustainable Energy Finance Facility (WeBSEFF). Through WeBSEFF, E3I has supported over 400 energy efficiency and renewable energy projects for commercial, industrial, and municipal enterprises and over EUR 200M in investment, and are developing new projects in Serbia for WeBSEFF financing. E3I is also pleased to serve as local implementing partner for the United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID’s) activity in Serbia to increase energy efficiency and the use of renewables in district heating.

EP: What’s your latest initiative?

Bonnie Norman: E3I recently kicked off its Sustainable Lands Initiative (SLI) for Serbia. The Serbia SLI puts government-owned abandoned and degraded agricultural land back in productive use, creating sustainable energy farms to support rural jobs and economic development and to improve the environment—air, soil and water quality, flood resilience, biodiversity, and native forest protection. Our goal is to catalyze EUR 3 billion in private investment—through the SLI’s planned Sustainable Serbia Finance Facility—to improve tens of thousands of hectares of abandoned land and associated rural lives, with a positive return for investors projected in 5-6 years on a 20-year project life.

EP: What’s the driving forces behind the Sustainable Lands Initiative (SLI)?

Bonnie Norman: Several factors are contributing to why the time is right for the Serbia SLI. We’re in a climate crisis—globally glaciers are melting, annual average temperatures are at record highs, extreme weather events are increasing, and locally air quality in Serbia this year has been a focal concern. We have only a short time to avert disaster, to keep global warming under the 2 degrees Celsius threshold by 2030.

Importantly, Serbia has 1. 6 million hectares of abandoned and degraded agricultural land no longer suitable for food production. This land could quickly help provide a natural capital solution to Serbia’s climate challenge as locations for fast-growing wood biomass plantations for energy or for other renewable energy “farms”, like solar, wind and geothermal. Use of cleaner fuels would improve air quality, and co-firing of wood biomass in coal boilers–which can be done right now–would dramatically reduce the contributors to smog in the near term.

The demand for wood pellets and chips regionally and globally is growing beyond the limits of what Serbian forests can sustain. Harvesting fast-growing willow or poplar after 3-4 years makes more sense than depleting forests of mature trees. Creating a stable and predictable biomass market through the creation of biomass centers, as in Lithuania, will protect individuals and businesses from price spikes due to supply constraints – price spikes which would affect the most vulnerable populations disproportionately.

At the Energy and Investment Days in Novi Sad, held in February, biomass expert Professor Glavonjic called fast-growing wood biomass plantations “Serbia’s oil”. Wood chips and pellets from these plantations can be used as a secure local energy source and for export.

Photo: E3 International

Serbia has rural economic challenges which this initiative would address, including declining rural village populations with farmers needing additional sources of income and youth seeking more opportunities. Fast-growing wood biomass plantations are harvested in the winter, when the farmers do not have work, and use conventional farm equipment. Since these plantations (or coppices) will be grown on abandoned, degraded land, they will add to what is currently under cultivation. Adding solar PV, wind, or geothermal farms, where best suited on abandoned, degraded land tracts, will improve the overall investment opportunity and provide next generation local jobs.

EP: What synergies support SLI’s intended transformative results?

Bonnie Norman: The Serbia SLI has synergies with EU programs to support its advancement from donors and partners. It aligns with the objectives of the new European Green Deal, the EU Energy Barge initiative for the Danube, as well as the Dendromass4EU project, which highlights bioeconomy innovation along with cultivation of short rotation wood biomass plantations for sustainable energy. Ikea is a partner in that ongoing effort, along with the European Commission, University experts, and others.

In addition, the Serbia SLI will adapt from the State University of New York (United States) its proven model for commercial short rotation wood biomass production. The SLI targets including Development Credit Authority guarantees currently available through USAID in Serbia for small farm enterprises.

Lastly, the SLI will be structured to spark much new private investment, by securing large credit worthy biomass supply off-takers such as electricity, district heating, or industrial companies. A blended finance approach through the SLI’s planned Sustainable Serbia Finance Facility will result in flows of capital to achieve results at scale, leading to a green bond and further investment. We will build on the learnings of two similar successful (at scale) land recovery finance facilities created by now Assistant Secretary General of UNEP, Satya Tripathi, who has been an inspiration and SLI advisor from the start.

In focus:

EP: Who else is on board?

Bonnie Norman: E3I has received interest and support from the Republic of Serbia at the highest levels, an MOU with the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina, where much suitable abandoned land is located, industry partners, leading NGO partners, international and local development finance institutions, local associations, the Serbian Chamber of Commerce, the banking community, and a wide variety of other stakeholders. We welcome all partners to create impact at scale for the Serbia SLI as quickly as possible.

EP: What’s next?

Bonnie Norman: With donor support, we are completing our feasibility analysis on several key components ahead of project initiation and demonstration starting later this year. With the support of the United Nations in New York, we have targeted a formal launch at COP26, the United Nations’ pre-eminent annual climate convening of which Serbia is a Vice President in 2020. The goal is for the SLI to highlight Serbia’s innovation and leadership in addressing its climate change objectives at scale.

This interview was published in the new issue of the Energy portal Magazine NATURAL RESOURCES, march – may, 2020

Can Electricity Decarbonize the Energy Sector?

Photo-illustration: Unsplash (Alex Jones)
  • The energy sector currently accounts for two-thirds of global carbon emissions;
  • Expedited progress on energy efficiency and low-carbon sources in the energy mix is required to achieve deep decarbonization;
  • As the demand to “electrify everything” grows, the carbon footprint associated with every step of the electricity generation process must be assessed and reduced.
Photo-illustration: Unsplash (Alex Jones)

A transition to green energy is essential if we are to win the fight against climate change. The energy sector currently accounts for two-thirds of global carbon emissions, with more than 80% of the world’s energy supply coming from non-renewable sources such as coal, oil, and natural gas.

Despite massive investments and innovation in clean technologies like solar and wind power, the overall trend shows no sign of abating. The share of fossil fuels in total energy supply has remained stable for the past three decades.

How can we move the needle? The answer may lie on the demand side. There is a growing trend globally toward “electrifying everything”, from cars, buses and trains to food production, heating and air conditioning – using electricity instead of fossil fuel to power their uses.

But can “deep electrification” of all sectors of the economy equate to deep decarbonization? The answer is not that simple: there will be an increased demand for electricity globally; however, for a while, at least, that increased demand is likely to be met by natural gas and coal. An effective reduction in carbon emissions associated with this deep electrification of the global economy will still require expedited progress on energy efficiency and low-carbon sources in the energy mix.

Energy efficiency

Energy efficiency has helped reduce the overall demand and supply of energy, and therefore CO2 emissions too. It is estimated that for every dollar spent on energy efficiency we avoid spending more than $2 on energy supply. Yet globally, progress on energy efficiency has been slow – on average, 2% annually. Moreover, this may have slowed down the transition toward cleaner sources by extending the operational lifetime of existing (fossil-fuel) power plants and network components.

Energy efficiency is needed, but alone will not bring about enough decarbonization; the remaining energy demand will need to be met by near-zero carbon options.

Increased low-carbon sources in the energy mix

As the demand for electricity from end-use sectors increases, it is essential that we reduce the carbon footprint of the electricity grid. There is, unfortunately, a long way to go: coal and natural gas are still by far the most common electricity sources. At the same time, renewables currently account for less than a quarter of worldwide production and even though half of the G20 countries increased the share of renewables in electricity generation up to 2015, nine saw declines in 2015 or preceding years. The global community needs to double down on its efforts to make electricity generation cleaner.

Improvements on the storage side can also ease the pressure on the electricity grid and, ultimately, on the climate. Let’s take the example of new digital platforms, such as smart-charging technology to manage both electricity generation and consumption. With these platforms, it has become technically possible to shift the charging of electric vehicles (EVs) to when the demand for electricity is low (during off-peak times) and low-cost (generated by wind and solar power). This kind of technology could provide a way for countries to optimize existing capacity and meet part of the new demand without building additional power plants, translating into potential infrastructure savings of $100 to $280 billion between 2016 and 2040.

But how much additional electricity demand are we looking at? That could vary significantly based on how fast we embrace this trend of global electrification. Let’s take the example of electric vehicles (EVs). Notwithstanding the hype, EV penetration remains pretty limited at the moment. The US has fewer than 1 million electric cars on the road; by comparison, the country’s gasoline car fleet totals 260,000 units, with another 17 million vehicles sold every year. Even in China, the world’s largest manufacturer and buyer of electric vehicles, EVs account for less than 5% of the domestic car market.

One thing is clear: energy and all other sectors like transport will need to tackle a reduction in carbon emissions from all angles. Electricity can become the fuel of the future, but to make a lasting impact, we will need to look at the full picture. That means supporting green electricity production, optimizing storage and distribution, reducing the carbon footprint of battery manufacturing and pushing for more significant energy efficiency gains across all major industries.

This may all sound like a tough proposition, but working to power the global economy with green electricity is a promising avenue for reducing carbon emissions. Based on recent projections, electrification of energy services, combined with the increased use of renewables and improvements in energy efficiency, could deliver a whopping 90% of the reduction in energy emissions that we need to achieve to meet global climate targets.

This can’t happen soon enough.

Source: World Economic Forum

The Delicate Relationship Between People, Wildlife and the Pathogens

Photo-illustration: Unsplash (Capyvara)

In the past, coronaviruses that circulated in humans caused only mild infections. This changed in 2002, when the SARS-CoV virus presented itself in humans as the disease we now know as SARS. In 2020, SARS-CoV-2–a relative of the same virus–has presented itself in humans in the disease we now call COVID-19.

Bernard Bett leads research on neglected and emerging infectious diseases at the International Livestock Research Institute as part of the research portfolio under the Improving Human Health flagship.  His studies of zoonoses–diseases that are transmissible between animals and humans–informed the UNEP Frontiers 2016 Report and drew attention to the issue that now concerns just about everyone. In this interview, Bett discusses the delicate relationship between humans, wildlife and the pathogens that circulate among them.

Photo-illustration: Unsplash (Capyvara)

COVID-19 seems to have caught much of the world by surprise.  What is your reaction?

I’m not surprised by its emergence.  Many emerging diseases have been reported in the last 10 years but we haven’t seen anything like COVID-19, which has affected nearly every country in the world.  What is surprising is the rapid spread of this virus across the world.

Zoonotic diseases seem to occur more frequently than before.  Why is this?

Zoonotic diseases are increasing. A review of the global trends of emerging infectious diseases since 1940 confirms that their outbreaks have been increasing with time. About 60 per cent of these diseases are zoonotic and slightly over 70 per cent of the zoonotic infections are caused by pathogens that originate in wildlife. Some of the reasons why the frequency of the diseases is increasing is because of the increased close contacts between wildlife and humans, encroachments of lands, urbanization and socio-economic development. As the human population increases and economies develop, the demand for food and other goods increases. Industries like agriculture are intensified. Land use, climate change, economic development, population growth and people living in densely populated areas are all contributors for zoonotic emergence, making it easy for diseases to spill over from animals to humans.

Can you break that down?  Exactly how do pathogens merge?

Emerging diseases occur due to changes in the biological structure of a pathogen, the ability of hosts to resist infection and/or the ability of environment to control outbreaks.

A virus that might be harmless today could evolve into a much more pathogenic form, either through genetic mutations or recombination with other organisms that carry critical pathogenic traits. Small mutations often occur as viruses multiply, or as a mechanism to enable these viruses to survive better in their hosts.

For humans, we think of changes in livelihood practices—mainly socio-economic development, which typically promotes intensive agriculture where many animals are raised in a small, dense environment. Animals and birds that are often raised in such farms are of a narrow genetic diversity. Genetically homogenous host populations are more susceptible to diseases.

Land use and climate changes degrade the ability of an environment to control diseases. They destabilize pathogen-hosts interactions that occur in pristine environments, therefore increasing opportunities for zoonotic spillovers. Increased utilization of protected areas for example for horticulture, illegal grazing of livestock or bushmeat hunting bring humans and domestic animals into direct contact with potentially infected environments. When people degrade wildlife habitats or establish their own settlements in some areas, then they become part of the ecosystem. They become part the sylvatic cycle–the cycle of virus transmission that happens between animals in forests.

If you tie these three things together, you have an ideal environment for zoonotic diseases.

Would you say humans are diminishing the boundaries between human and animal life?

Urbanization influences disease occurrence in peculiar ways. Poor drainage and waste disposal systems provide conditions for arthropod vectors, rodents and birds that can transmit pathogens to thrive. The high human population densities in peri-urban settlements is another critical factor that increases effective contacts that would enhance infectious disease transmission.

How does climate change play a role in this dynamic?

There is a great link between climate change and disease transmission. Climate change is driven by the rising mean global temperatures. Its effects on disease transmission is complex. In general, a rise in temperature increases the development rates of vectors and pathogens up to a point (around >40°C), where a further increase in temperature would kill most vectors. Climate change also increases the incidence of extreme events, such as high rainfall and flooding, that have substantial impacts on disease transmission. Flooding, for example, boosts vector abundance, leading to an upsurge in arthropod-borne infections.

The relationship between humans and nature is quite delicate.  Where do we go from here?

In terms of diseases, biodiversity is key to maintaining the health of people, animals and the environment. Research has shown that when you conserve nature and when you have multiple host species in place, you reduce the overall risk of transmission of a pathogen through what scientists call dilution effect. This is because in a mixed population of hosts, some would be “dead end” hosts, which don’t allow an infection to occur, hence conserving nature is a way to mitigate disease transmission.

What are some practical lessons we might draw from the response to COVID-19 so far?

Firstly, we need to report these diseases as soon as they occur and mount an effective intervention. Secondly, it’s good to continue what we are doing now–developing drugs and vaccines which can be availed during epidemics. Thirdly, we should be thinking of incentives that allow communities to participate in disease control. Social distancing works well in some areas, but in others where livelihood practices require people to move from one place to another, it’s difficult to implement this measure.

What should we be doing differently, to reduce the occurrence and mitigate the impact of zoonotic diseases in the future?

Nature takes care of itself so the best way to manage zoonotic diseases is to conserve nature and protect biodiversity.

Interventions for emerging infectious diseases should be implemented through multi-agency collaborations espoused under the One Health framework. Zoonotic diseases affect humans, livestock and wildlife at the same time. Medical experts must come together with veterinary and environmental experts and stakeholders to find solutions to these diseases. Social scientists should also be part of these interventions because we need to better understand behaviour in order to implement any changes in communities working in hotspots for zoonoses.

Finally, we need to diversify our focus–look at the economy, look at livelihoods. Because at the end of the day when we want to recover from the epidemics or pandemics, we will go back to our livelihoods. It would be good for governments to think of multi-pronged approaches to managing COVID-19.

Source: UNEP

Renewable Energy Can Support Resilient and Equitable Recovery

Foto-ilustracija: Pixabay
Photo-illustration: Pixabay

Advancing the renewables-based energy transformation is an opportunity to meet international climate goals while boosting economic growth, creating millions of jobs and improving human welfare by 2050, finds the first Global Renewables Outlook released by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) recently.

While a pathway to deeper decarbonisation requires total energy investment up to USD 130 trillion, the socio-economic gains of such an investment would be massive, the Outlook reveals. Transforming the energy system could boost cumulative global GDP gains above business-as-usual by USD 98 trillion between now and 2050. It would nearly quadruple renewable energy jobs to 42 million, expand employment in energy efficiency to 21 million and add 15 million in system flexibility.

IRENA’s Director-General Francesco La Camera said: “Governments are facing a difficult task of bringing the health emergency under control while introducing major stimulus and recovery measures. The crisis has exposed deeply embedded vulnerabilities of the current system. IRENA’s Outlook shows the ways to build more sustainable, equitable and resilient economies by aligning short-term recovery efforts with the medium-and long-term objectives of the Paris Agreement and the UN Sustainable Development Agenda.”

“By accelerating renewables and making the energy transition an integral part of the wider recovery, governments can achieve multiple economic and social objectives in the pursuit of a resilient future that leaves nobody behind.”

The Global Renewables Outlook examines building blocks of an energy system along with investment strategies and policy frameworks needed to manage the transition. It explores ways to cut global CO2 emissions by at least 70 per cent by 2050. Furthermore, a new perspective on deeper decarbonisation shows a path towards net-zero and zero emissions. Building on five technology pillars, particularly green hydrogen and extended end-use electrification could help replace fossil-fuels and slash emissions in heavy industry and hard-to-decarbonise sectors.

Low-carbon investment would significantly pay off, the Outlook shows, with savings eight times more than costs when accounting for reduced health and environmental externalities. A climate-safe path would require cumulative energy investments of USD 110 trillion by 2050 but achieving full carbon neutrality would add another USD 20 trillion.

The Outlook also looked at energy and socio-economic transition paths in 10 regions worldwide. Despite varied paths, all regions are expected to see higher shares of renewable energy use, with Southeast Asia, Latin America, the European Union and Sub-Saharan Africa poised to reach 70-80 per cent shares in their total energy mixes by 2050. Similarly, electrification of end uses like heat and transport would rise everywhere, exceeding 50 per cent in East Asia, North America and much of Europe. All regions would also significantly increase their welfare and witness net job gains in the energy sector despite losses in fossil fuels. However, economy-wide, regional job gains are distributed unevenly. While regional GDP growth would show considerable variation, most regions could expect gains.

Raising regional and country-level ambitions will be crucial to meet interlinked energy and climate objectives and harvest socio-economic welfare. Stronger coordination on international, regional and domestic levels will be equally important, the Outlook concludes, with financial support being directed where needed including to the most vulnerable countries and communities. As partner of the Climate Investment Platform, launched to drive clean energy uptake and mobilise clean investment, IRENA will advance collaborative action targeted to help countries create enabling conditions and unlock renewable investment.

Source: IRENA

 

Knowledge From Sarajevo Becomes the Development Potential of the Region

Photo-illustration: Unsplash/ADEV

About 300 km from Belgrade, there is one city which I love a lot. Sarajevo is located on the coast of the Miljacka – which would perform a miracle indeed if it demolished bridges as said in a famous folk song. There, I learned about the relevance of making a difference between a pie and a burek (traditional meat pie) and the irrelevance of making a difference between people. In Sarajevo, I discovered an enterprise who makes lives and environment of its present and future residents more comfortable and healthier as well. The company in question is Enova, the leading provider of energy, environmental and security services in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Already in its name and slogan “Inspired by the future”, it shows a commitment to innovative ideas. I had the opportunity to speak with a young, curious and ambitious team of Enova experts who have been implementing projects in their country and region for ten years to transform knowledge into development potential.

Their success is established on the most valuable resource – people, and they base their business on integrity, a culture of collaboration, commitment, excellence, willingness to learn and adaptability. They believe that if they want to be useful to society, they should not only do better or more but work differently.

Photo: Enova

Enova’s business portfolio includes major international institutions, for instance, the European Commission, the World Bank and the International Finance Corporation. With this in mind, it is not surprising that the City of Sarajevo and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) have entrusted them to design smart urban planning andpublic opinion analysis tools through the Sarajevo – Smart City initiative funded by the Swedish Government.

The smart urban planning tool is a numerical simulation of airflow and is based on computational fluid dynamics. The software enables the dynamic calculation of air currents and the dispersion of pollutants in space and time in real orography. It includes details of urban amenities in critical meteorological conditions such as temperature inversions or wind-free situations, they explained to me in Enova, noting that the simulations would show how urban amenities also affect airflow and pollutant concentrations.

No matter how complex the process of obtaining this information seemed to me as a layman, Enova’s team assured me that the results would be easy to understand for decision-makers and citizens alike. Besides, they are also developing an easy-to-use tool that will enable the analysis of civic expectations when it comes to urban amenities, such as recreation zones, changes in modes of transport, construction of facilities, parks and the like. Citizens will be
able to download the application through social networks, or they will be able to express their opinions on screens placed in public places. Enova’s intention is to encourage citizens to think and get involved in the decision-making process. The ultimate goal, in order to encourage the city’s inventiveness and thoughtfulness, is to implement sustainability into urban planning. They also hope to expand it to other cities.

In focus:

Focusing on Enova’s inspiration, Sarajevo seeks to green its surfaces and enrich biodiversity and to use geothermal energy and energy-from-waste.

Hydropower is a fairly represented renewable source in our neighbour’s energy mix, so I was interested in the public’s perspective on small hydropower plants. In all likelihood, the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina are concerned

A smart city also requires transportation with the same epithet, and members of Enova notified me that the Sarajevo Cantonal Government recently signed a loan arrangement for the procurement of low-emission vehicles for public transport. Enova has been involved in the development of the Green Action Plan that involves a series of proposed sustainable mobility measures. These include the extension of bicycle lanes, the creation of pedestrian corridors, multimodal (combined) transport with suburban connectivity, and more.

Photo-illustration: Pixabay

According to company representatives, a comprehensive strategic approach is needed to raise awareness of the effects of air pollution. First of all, it involves identifying the target groups. Enova advises that youth should be motivated to turn bike pedals more instead of a steering wheel but draws attention to the need for time and dedication to educating the population, as well as monitoring technological progress and change in the community.

The company believes that there are several challenges on the path of Bosnia and Herzegovina towards more innovation, more extensive use of renewable energy sources and higher levels of energy efficiency. These include outdated technology, a lack of funding, insufficient cooperation between government, industry and the scientific sphere, and the associated lack of technology parks and hubs that would “build” a bond between stakeholders, all for the welfare of the community that would be achieved strengthening energy security.

Prepared by: Jelena Kozbasic

This article was published in the new issue of the Energy portal Magazine  GRINNOVATIONS, December 2019 – February 2020.

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