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Energy Subsidies - International

From the UNFCCC to the SDGs, and from the G20 to APEC, GSI is involved in international processes and fora to push for Fossil Fuel Subsidy Reform and transparency.

Research

Collaborations

GSI works with CSO coalitions for action on reform alongside ODI and OCI. GSI supports the work of the Friends of Fossil Fuel Subsidy Reform.

Commentary: A Commentary on the SDGs, Fossil-Fuel Subsidy Reform and The Future We Want

The most recent draft of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), an outcome from Rio+20 and The Future We Want, now includes international cooperation and potentially financial support towards cleaner fossil-fuel technologies; however, the draft goals no longer recognise the need to phase-out inefficient fossil-fuel subsidies, which stood at $554 billion in 2012 (IEA, 2013). That is four times the level of aid from the OECD DAC in 2013 ($134 billion). This is a step backwards.

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Commentary: Electricity Generation Mixes of the Future: Roles for Nuclear or Renewables? Or Both? Or Neither?

Nuclear power will be the featured energy source in the International Energy Agency’s 2014 World Energy Outlook (WEO).1 To gather input, the IEA convened 100 experts in Paris on 31 March for an informal meeting—“The Future of Nuclear Power”—to help shape the three chapters of the upcoming WEO, which is standard reading for all in the energy policy field. The IEA’s Chief Economist, Fatih Birol, introduced the session noting that the WEO was always objective and does not lobby for any energy source or technology.

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Blog: COP19 Side-Event: Fossil-Fuel Subsidies and Climate Change

19 November 2013: An interactive session on 'Reaping Emissions Reductions from Fossil-Fuel Subsidy Reform: Learning from Success Stories' was organized by Friends of Fossil-Fuel Subsidy Reform and the IISD Global Subsidies Initiative, on the sidelines of the Warsaw Climate Change Conference.

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Commentary: The Policy Paradox: Why Parties to the UNFCCC Have to Address Fossil-fuel Subsidies

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) circulated its draft Fifth Assessment Report among peer reviewers last weekend. While the draft revises down the low-end of the range of this century’s projected temperature rise to 2.7°C, most scientists find that greater than 5°C is more likely, given the current trends that could double CO2 concentrations in the coming decades.

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Blog: G-20 Responds to Civil Society Recommendations on Progressing Fossil Fuel Subsidy Reform During Moscow Summit

The Russian Presidency held the G-20’s first “Civil Summit” in Moscow, 13-14 June 2013. Three hundred and fifty delegates from across civil society discussed how the G-20 could deliver “Strong, Sustainable, Balanced and Inclusive Growth”. Recommendations were presented to Russian Federation President Vladimir Putin at a 1½ hour meeting in the Kremlin on 14 June 2013.

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