THE POLITICS OF CLIMATE CHANGE

Anthony Giddens
TEAM 6 - ENVIRONMENT
PRESENTING: VLAD FLOREA, EUGEN POPESCU, IOANA IONESCU

TABLE OF
CONTENTS
1The track record so far
2A return to planning
3
Technologies and taxes
4 Conclusions

The track record so far

In this chapter, Giddens studies how we
have fared so far in treating the
environment situation. He splits political
regimes into two large categories and
compares them, then he gives some
positive and negative examples and then
ends by stating the facts about how some
treaties tackled the problem.

Regime Comparacy
Giddens splits the regimes in
Democratic and Totalitarian ones.
Democratic
Totalitarian
More

keen on profit
Leaned towards materialistic goals
Positively encourage science development
Mobilization of sicial movements (NGOs)
Best performers
Poor/Disastrous environmental records
High degree of control over society
It does stimulate technological advances but for military
purposes

The Top EPI rank

Top 10 countries and score - 2014
Top 10 countries and score - 2008

Switzerland 95.5
Norway 93.1
Sweden 93.1
Finland 91.4
Costa Rica 90.5
Austria 89.4
New Zealand 88.9
Latvia 88.8
Colombia 88.3
France 87.8

Switzerland 87.67
Luxembourg 83.29
Australia 82.4
Singapore 81.78
Czech Republic 81.47
Germany 80.47
Spain 79.79
Austria 78.32
Sweden 78.09
Norway 78.04

The Top EPI rank

Top 10 countries by Trend EPI The
EPI rank is shown in parentheses
(ranking 132 countries) - 2012

Latvia (2)
Azerbaijan (111)
Romania (88)
Albania (15)
Egypt (60)
Angola (90)
Slovakia (12)
Ireland (36)
Belgium (24)
Thailand (34)

Worst 10 countries by Trend EPI The

EPI rank is shown in parentheses.

Turkmenistan (131)
South Africa (128)
Iraq (132)
Kazakhstan (129)
Kyrgyzstan (101)
Estonia (54)
Bosnia & Herzegovina (124)
Saudi Arabia (82)
Kuwait (126)
Russia (106)

Swedens reasons for being at the top

Oil efficiency after 1973 OPEC embargo.
Then knew the economy better not be dependent on oil so they:
Invested in better insulation, block heating, nuclear energy,
hydroelectric power;
Reduced fossil fuel imports(1970s 80% total energy supply
today 35%);
Greenhouse gases 9% lower in 2005 than 1990;
Adopted carbon tax;
Adopted 16 environment quality objectives
They want to become worlds first oil free country by 2020;
(Because) the economy grew by 44% in the meantime.

The treaties - Weaknesses

Policies about what to do not how to do it;
Organized in negative scenarios that we have to avoid;
They have to find a way to back the law even if the government changes;
The government politicized the Acts;
Difficulties about implementing laws for nuclear energy;
The fuel taxes have lost all environment connotations. It is viewed as just
another tax;
Some parts of the acts cannot be reconciled with other parts of the
government;
Little attempt to expand railway infrastructure or electrification;
Lack of stimulus;
Sanction the production of CO2;
The act does not take into consideration the insurance.

The treaties The points made by top

performers

They have energy security policies not climate change

policies;
Left-centered regimes drove best policies until now;
Carbon taxes do work;
Subsidize renewable tech;
Nuclear power has to have a part of the mix;
The climate change is not popular;
Difficult to maintain coherence;
Western countries have a decline in manufacture, China
taking the weight.

Conclusions
We still need immediate stimulus to take action;
Material incentives do work;
It will take time;
Due to the globalization phenomenon the pollution is
relocated and we have to take this into consideration.
The statistics and the improvements are important but
understanding the reasons behind them is the key.

A return to planning

The track record so far

Technologies and taxes

Technologies and taxes

Conclusions