Meno di un minuto

While climate change negotiations are under way at the UNFCCC COP16 meeting in Cancún, Mexico, from 29 November to 10 December 2010, FEEM is pleased to announce new publications by FEEM researchers illustrating the latest developments of FEEM research and forthcoming initiatives in this field.

The Policy Briefs "Winter-break in Cancún: will the EU carry its leadership?", by A. Favero and C. Rogate, and "Cancún: don’t look back in anger", by M. Davide, A. Favero, C. Rogate, pave the way for a thorough understanding of the hot issues under discussion in Cancún, highlighting the role that Europe may strategically play in future climate policies.

Complementing this policy analysis with modelling results, the recently published FEEM working paper, "Beyond Copenhagen: A Realistic Climate Policy in a Fragmented World", by C. Carraro and E. Massetti, proposes a realistic approach to maximise the environmental effectiveness of the Copenhagen Accord, estimating the potential of its financial provisions to sponsor mitigation efforts in developing countries.

FEEM is one of the world’s leading climate modelling research centres involved in an unprecedented partnership to draw up the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Emissions Gap Report, launched to the media last 23 November, aimed to spell out what the pledges of the Copenhagen Accord might actually mean in terms of putting the world on track to limit global temperature rises.

To simulate the effects of alternative climate policy scenarios on sustainability, two more Policy Briefs, "Sustainability: the road not (yet) taken beyond GDP?", by C. Cruciani and E. Lanzi, and "The hidden trade-off between climate policy and Sustainability: an obstacle or a source of incentives to achieve an agreement?", by E. Lanzi and R. Parrado, investigate the economic path "beyond GDP" and propose the use of an innovative sustainability index, namely the FEEM Sustainability Index, to estimate the impact of expected future climate policies on the social, environmental and economic dimensions of sustainability, as well as across world regions and over time.

As a partner of the International Center for Climate Governance (ICCG), FEEM also contributes to  the "ICCG Policy Monitor" with a weekly column, "Climate Policy News", a bimonthly report,  "Climate Policy and Carbon Markets", and an update of countries position in the negotiating process, "Negotiation Watcher".

On the road to Cancún FEEM organized several events, among which the most recent “European Dialogue on Climate and Energy”, held in Venice on 25-26 October 2010 and the International Workshop on "The State of International Climate Finance: Is It Adequate and Is It Productive?", held in Venice on 14 October 2010, both providing a platform for actors from both the public and private sector to initiate a concrete dialogue on climate and energy, as well as on climate finance.

With the aim to comment on the outcome of the negotations in Cancún and the way forward, on 10 December FEEM will organize a round table in Milan for high-level scientists, stakeholders and representatives of public authorities and institutions involved in the climate debate.

To keep upfront in the scientific and policy debate after Cancún, FEEM has already planned several events in Venice for 2011, including the International Workshop on "Economics of Natural Disasters – Bridging Disaster Risk Reduction and Climate Adaptation Efforts and Strategies", 10-11 February; the International Workshop on "The Role of Nuclear Power in Meeting Future Climate and Energy Challenges", 7-8 April; the International Workshop on "Innovation in Energy Technologies: What Can We Learn from Patent Data", 19-20 May; and the International Workshop on "Modeling and Policy of CO2 Removal from the Atmosphere", 30-31 May.

To keep updated on the climate change negotiations in Cancún, please visit the COP16 official web-site.

Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei