The Green Growth

Strategy
OECD Forum 2010
26-27 May 2010, Paris
 What is green growth?
 Green growth can be seen as a way to
pursue economic growth and
development, while preventing
environmental degradation, biodiversity
loss, and unsustainable natural resource
use.


OECD Forum 2010, 26-27 May 2010, Paris. For more information, see www.oecd.org/greengrowth
 Why green growth?
• Short-term: transform the opportunity
of the crisis to ensure a more sustainable
economic recovery


• Long-term: promote new, greener

sources of growth

OECD Forum 2010, 26-27 May 2010, Paris. For more information, see www.oecd.org/greengrowth
What key environmental challenges will it address?

OECD Forum 2010, 26-27 May 2010, Paris. For more information, see www.oecd.org/greengrowth
What are the key elements of the Strategy?
 What about green innovation?
• A key driver of green economies and job creation


• Can help lower the cost of responding to

environmental problems


• Need to promote entrepreneurship  small firms

are a large source of radical innovations


• Accelerating green R&D and international

technology transfer will enable global green
growth
OECD Forum 2010, 26-27 May 2010, Paris. For more information, see www.oecd.org/greengrowth
 Clear policy signals are essential to
incentivise eco-innovation

Source: OECD (2010), The Invention and Transfer of Environmental Technologies

 Example: International transfer
of solar photo-voltaic technology

Transfer is measured as the relationship between source country of inventions (“inventor country”) and countries in which protection
of the intellectual property has been sought. See also ENV/EPOC/WPNEP(2009)1/FINAL (www.oecd.org/environment/innovation).
 Some preliminary findings on green taxes
• They are spreading, but there is considerable scope
for increased use to encourage greener activities


• If all industrialised countries cut emissions by 20%

by 2020 relative to 1990 – via taxes or emissions
trading schemes – proceeds could be as high as
2.5% of GDP


• Revenues could be used to generate welfare gains

OECD Forum 2010, 26-27 May 2010, Paris. For more information, see www.oecd.org/greengrowth
 Environmentally-related tax revenues, 2000/2008

1. In Mexico, fluctuations of consumer prices on motor vehicle fuels are smoothed out. In 2008, when world market prices were
particularly high, the excise tax on fuels turned into a subsidy – equalling 1.8% of GDP.
Source: OECD/EEA database on instruments used for environmental policy and natural resource management.
 What about green jobs?
• Green stimulus measures can help create jobs in the
short-term
• The long run impact on total employment is still
uncertain
• Labour will be reallocated across sectors, firms and
regions
• Emerging demand for new ‘green’ skills
• An active role for labour market and training
policies

OECD Forum 2010, 26-27 May 2010, Paris. For more information, see www.oecd.org/greengrowth
 How can we measure green growth?

Economic activities (production, consumption, trade) Economic and social agents

Production process
Inputs: Policies, measures, instruments:
Outputs: Recycling,
Consumers Labour, capital, energy, materials, environmental
Taxes, subsidies, services
regulations, investments, innovation
Goods, services re-use,
re-manufacturing, substitutionMulti-factor productivity

Public
Services, amenities, Natural resources
per-ceptions Pollutants, waste
health & safety aspects (water, biomass, air, land, energy, materials, …)

Natural capital stocks and environmental quality

OECD Forum 2010, 26-27 May 2010, Paris. For more information, see www.oecd.org/greengrowth
 Questions for further work

• What are the main barriers that need to be

overcome to enable green growth?
• How can we activate greener sources of growth?
• How can we best harness green innovation?
1.

OECD Forum 2010, 26-27 May 2010, Paris. For more information, see www.oecd.org/greengrowth
 Questions for further work (continued)

• What challenges will governments need to address

to move towards greener economies?
• What will be the impact on jobs and skills?
• What about green growth in developing countries?
1.

OECD Forum 2010, 26-27 May 2010, Paris. For more information, see www.oecd.org/greengrowth