Appendix A: Transition to a Low-Carbon Economy Overview of a Low-Carbon Economy
Figure 14: Decarbonisation Performance of G20 Countries
The concept of a low-carbon economy has arisen in response to contemporary climate change, and the need to limit anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to mitigate future global warming. 123 The 2015 Paris Agreement was the first universal, legally binding global climate deal between all countries within the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to combat the climate change and accelerate the actions and investments needed for a sustainable low carbon future.124 The Agreement’s central aim is to keep a global temperature rise this century well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels.125 In October 2018, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reported on the impacts of global warming of 1.5°C and related emissions pathways.126 This report states that, in order to limit warming to 1.5°C (with no or low overshoot), CO2 emissions must decrease by about half from 2010 levels by 2030. While this target is still technically feasible, it requires rapid and far-reaching transitions in energy, land, urban, and industrial systems. Making this monumental shift will require substantial new investments in low-carbon technologies and efficiency.
Source: Chart created by Cambridge Centre for Risk Studies with data from PwC UK.127 Note128
127 (PricewaterhouseCoopers n.d.) 128 G7 consists of the seven largest advanced economies in the world, including Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States. E7 groups together major emerging economies, including China, India, Brazil, Mexico, Russia, Indonesia and Turkey.
123 (“Low-Carbon Economy” 2019) 124 (UNFCCC n.d.) 125 (UNFCCC n.d.) 126 (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change 2018) Cambridge Centre for Risk Studies
51
Scenario Applications: Stress Testing Companies in the Energy Value Chain
