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Innovation, Research, and Technology

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Solutions for Sustainability

Part of the book series: European Yearbook of International Economic Law ((Spec. Issue))

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Abstract

Technological innovation can meaningfully help with the reduction of GHG emissions. Businesses have taken on a leadership role in climate change mitigation, and cities all over the world produce innovative strategies for advancing solutions to climate change. Technology appears in several of the SDGs: goal 2 on food, goal 3 on health, goal 7 on energy, goal 9 on innovation, and goal 14 on oceans.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    See Sub-Saharan Africa’s First Light-Rail Train, Sustainia, http://solutions.sustainia.me/solutions/sub-saharan-africas-first-light-rail-train/ [https://perma.cc/H56K-EEAU].

  2. 2.

    Explore 100 City Solutions for a Greener and Fairer Future, Sustainia, https://thesustainian.com/.

  3. 3.

    https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdgs.

  4. 4.

    Indeed. The EU seems to be falling behind vis-à-vis the US and China when it comes to technology innovation. The Americans have Google; the Chinese have Baidu; the EU has none of that. The largest digital firms are either American or Chinese. All of this has implications for who will be writing the rules of the new economy. The big technology decisions are made in Silicon Valley and China, not in the EU. The fact that the EU’s single market still has some obstacles and the various languages in the EU do not help to achieve the goal of making the EU a competitive technology actor. Radical ideas would be most welcome for the creation of a single digital market in the EU.

  5. 5.

    Leal-Arcas et al. (2016), p. 436.

  6. 6.

    See Leal-Arcas and Minas (2016), pp. 621–666 at 650–665.

  7. 7.

    Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee, the Committee of the Regions and the European Investment Bank, A Framework Strategy for a Resilient Energy Union with a Forward-Looking Climate Change Policy, COM (2015) 80 final (Feb. 25, 2015), http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:1bd46c90-bdd4-11e4-bbe1-01aa75ed71a1.0001.03/DOC_1&format=PDF, at 3. It should also be stressed that innovation in technology (e.g., fracking) has allowed the extraction of resources that before would have been very expensive.

  8. 8.

    Id. at 16.

  9. 9.

    Leal-Arcas (2016), p. 436.

  10. 10.

    Alex Molinaroli, What Does Digital Mean for the Future of Energy? World Econ. F. (Mar. 2, 2016), https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2016/03/perspective-distributed-digital-and-demand-side-energy-technology-implications-for-energy-security/ [https://perma.cc/95EZ-PZBJ].

  11. 11.

    Sami Andoura & Jean-Arnold Vinois, “From the European Energy Community to the Energy Union: a policy proposal for the short and the long term,” 125, 136 (2015).

  12. 12.

    Horizon 2020 is the largest E.U. research and innovation program to date. The scheme holds €80 billion to deploy over the period 2014–2020, of which €6.6 billion will be specifically devoted to energy. See What is Horizon 2020?, European Comm’n, https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/horizon2020/en/what-horizon-2020 [https://perma.cc/MRE8-MJNC].

  13. 13.

    For greater details on EU energy law and policy, see Leal-Arcas and Wouters (2017).

  14. 14.

    The European Strategic Energy Technology (SET) Plan will sustain the Energy Union’s pillar on technologies, research, and innovation. It outlines the long-term energy research and innovation agenda for Europe by setting strategic objectives for the future. See The European Strategic Energy Technology Plan (SET-Plan), European Comm’n, http://ec.europa.eu/research/energy/eu/index_en.cfm?pg=policy-set-plan [https://perma.cc/D3NK-WLND].

  15. 15.

    Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions, Investing in the Development of Low Carbon Technologies (SET-Plan), at 2–3, COM (2009) 519 final (Oct. 7, 2009).

  16. 16.

    Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee, the Committee of the Regions and the European Investment Bank, A Framework Strategy for a Resilient Energy Union with a Forward-Looking Climate Change Policy, COM (2015) 80 final (Feb. 25, 2015), http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:1bd46c90-bdd4-11e4-bbe1-01aa75ed71a1.0001.03/DOC_1&format=PDF, at 16 n. 28.

  17. 17.

    Id. at 16.

  18. 18.

    Id.

  19. 19.

    Id.

  20. 20.

    Id.

  21. 21.

    Id. at 10.

  22. 22.

    The leaders of the G7 (Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States) have the ambition to phase out fossil fuel emissions in the twenty-first century. See Pilita Clark & Stefan Wagstyl, G7 Leaders Agree to Phase Out Fossil Fuels, Fin. Times (June 8, 2015), https://www.ft.com/content/ec2c365a-0ddf-11e5-aa7b-00144feabdc0 [https://perma.cc/6LVZ-7MG8].

  23. 23.

    Smart grids and microgrids may be the winners of energy innovation. For an analysis of smart grids in the EU, see Leal-Arcas et al. (2018), pp. 311–410.

  24. 24.

    To access their principles, see Reliable, affordable Energy for the World, Breakthrough Energy, http://www.breakthroughenergycoalition.com/en/index.html [https://perma.cc/2J7T-LS2J].

  25. 25.

    The Breakthrough Energy Coalition defines itself as follows: “We are a partnership committed to broad investment in new energy technologies from public and private sources. We invest our own capital as well as working with over [twenty] countries around the world who have committed to significantly increase their investments in the basic research that leads to breakthrough innovations.” See Who We Are, Breakthrough Energy, http://www.b-t.energy/coalition/who-we-are/ [https://perma.cc/DMT9-7K6K].

  26. 26.

    Accelerating the Clean Energy Revolution, Mission Innovation, http://mission-innovation.net/ [https://perma.cc/2BWV-4Y6Y].

  27. 27.

    Member Participation, Mission Innovation, http://mission-innovation.net/countries/ [https://perma.cc/39BM-GH74].

  28. 28.

    The Goal, Mission Innovation, http://mission-innovation.net/the-goal/ [https://perma.cc/DX4Y-6UNC].

  29. 29.

    Efforts to do so on the part of the European Union and other Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) partners are already visible. See The EU and Other OECD Partners Agree on Trade Measures Supporting Cleaner Energy, European Comm’n (Nov. 18, 2015), http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/press/index.cfm?id=1401 [https://perma.cc/G2UN-YGL5].

  30. 30.

    Indeed, at the international level, a relatively new initiative called the International Solar Alliance, launched by India’s Prime Minister Modi and France’s President Francoise Hollande, is very promising as a mechanism to mitigate climate change. It is expected to channel $300 billion in 10 years for the promotion of renewable energy projects. See T. Mishra, “Sun shines on $300-billion global fund for clean energy,” The Hindu Business Line, 1 May 2017, available at http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/economy/sun-shines-on-300billion-global-fund-for-clean-energy/article9675599.ece.

  31. 31.

    See, e.g., Varun Sivaram, Gireesh Shrimali, & Dan Reicher, Research for the Sun: How India’s Audacious Solar Ambitions Could Make or Break its Climate Commitments, Stan. Steyer-Taylor Ctr. for Energy Pol’y & Fin. (Dec. 8, 2015), https://www-cdn.law.stanford.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/Reach-for-the-Sun-High-Resolution-Version.pdf [https://perma.cc/6R7N-5MR2]. See also A New Dawn in Renewable Energy, Gov’t of India Press Info. Bureau (Dec. 18, 2016), http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=155612 [https://perma.cc/2QQB-4C74]; Pilita Clark, The Big Green Bang: How Renewable Energy Became Unstoppable, Fin. Times (May 18, 2017), https://www.ft.com/content/44ed7e90-3960-11e7-ac89-b01cc67cfeec?mhq5j=e2 [https://perma.cc/FZ4R-FT29].

  32. 32.

    Karl Mathiesen, What is Holding Back the Growth of Solar Power?, The Guardian (Jan. 31, 2016), https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2016/jan/31/solar-power-what-is-holding-back-growth-clean-energy [https://perma.cc/82VV-HF4Q].

  33. 33.

    The then UK energy minister Charles Hendry gave a speech at the annual All Energy conference in Aberdeen in 2012, where he stated: ‘It is shameful that with some of the strongest winds and highest tidal reaches in Europe, the UK is currently third from bottom in the whole of the EU in its use of renewables.’ He was replaced soon after. Speech available at https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/charles-hendry-speech-at-all-energy-aberdeen.

  34. 34.

    See Chris Lo, Offshore Wind Turbines: In Search of the Next Generation, Power Tech. (June 19, 2012), http://www.power-technology.com/features/featureoffshore-wind-turbines-search-next-generation-renewable/ [https://perma.cc/H4VZ-RYFA]. Offshore wind energy might be a good option for the UK, given its strong maritime tradition.

  35. 35.

    Morocco is currently building one of the largest solar plants in the world and hopes to export power to Europe in the future. See Nuclear Power in the Middle East: Wasting Energy, The Economist (Nov. 28, 2015), http://www.economist.com/news/middle-east-and-africa/21679090-egypt-and-others-alternatives-nuclear-power-hold-more-promise-why-more [https://perma.cc/U57G-YWE8]. Using the desert is an optimal option for solar energy because there is plenty of sun and space available.

  36. 36.

    See Ian Johnston, Developing World Invests More in Renewable Energy Than Rich Countries for First Time, New Study Says, The Independent (May 31, 2016), http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/climate-change/renewable-energy-investment-developed-world-developing-world-ren21-report-a7058436.html [https://perma.cc/KFX2-G3R6].

  37. 37.

    For a list of countries that are a party to the UNFCCC, see List of Non-Annex I Parties to the Convention, UNFCCC, http://unfccc.int/parties_and_observers/parties/non_annex_i/items/2833.php [https://perma.cc/JL3U-Q3T3]; List of Annex I Parties to the Convention, UNFCCC, http://unfccc.int/parties_and_observers/items/2704.php (noting that Taiwan is absent from both lists) [https://perma.cc/G9ZE-5654]; see also Greenhouse Gas Reduction and Management Act, Gov’t of Rep. of China (July 1, 2015), https://www.epa.gov.tw/public/Data/511181640271.pdf [https://perma.cc/Z6AQ-6ZM5].

  38. 38.

    Annex I countries are developed countries and those countries in transition to a market economy. According to the Kyoto Protocol, they are legally bound to reduce their emissions of GHGs. See Parties & Observers, UNFCCC, http://unfccc.int/parties_and_observers/items/2704.php [https://perma.cc/4G5W-G8TJ]; Kyoto Protocol, art. 2–3.

  39. 39.

    For a list of Annex I countries, see List of Annex I Parties to the Convention (noting that Mexico is absent from the list).

  40. 40.

    See Victor and Yanosek (2017), pp. 124–131; D. Victor et al., “Transformation of the Global Energy System,” World Economic Forum, January 2018.

  41. 41.

    Norberg (2016), p. 109.

  42. 42.

    Pilot 2006 Environmental Performance Index, Yale Ctr. for Envtl. Law and Policy, at 4, http://archive.epi.yale.edu/files/2006_pilot_epi_summary_for_policymakers.pdf [https://perma.cc/F932-79AK].

  43. 43.

    Lance Ealey & Glenn Mercer, Tomorrow’s Cars, Today’s Engines, Euractiv (Oct. 8, 2002), https://www.euractiv.com/section/transport/opinion/tomorrow-s-cars-today-s-engines/ [https://perma.cc/R9ZV-6LUZ].

  44. 44.

    For an analysis of how technology can help countries develop economically, see Thiel and Masters (2014).

  45. 45.

    Max Roser, Life Expectancy, Our World in Data, https://ourworldindata.org/life-expectancy/ [https://perma.cc/QP38-3Z8T].

  46. 46.

    See Angus Maddison, The World Economy: Historical Statistics 262 (2003).

  47. 47.

    See van Leeuwen and van Leeuwen-Li (2014), pp. 87 and 94.

  48. 48.

    World Health Statistics 2016: Monitoring Health for the SDGs, WHO, http://www.who.int/gho/publications/world_health_statistics/2016/en/ [https://perma.cc/CSE3-QZUV].

  49. 49.

    Madison (2003), p. 262.

  50. 50.

    See van Leeuwen and van Leeuwen-Li (2014), pp. 87 and 94.

  51. 51.

    The State of Food and Agriculture: 1947, Food and Agric. Org. of the United Nations (Aug. 25, 1947), http://www.fao.org/docrep/016/ap635e/ap635e.pdf [https://perma.cc/2DDS-PU8F]; The State of Food and Agriculture in Brief: 2015, Food and Agric. Org. of the United Nations (2015), http://www.fao.org/3/a-i4671e.pdf [https://perma.cc/VE9G-JGDQ].

  52. 52.

    Martin Ravallion, Poverty in the Rich World When it was Not Nearly so Rich, Ctr. for Global Dev.: Blogs (May 28, 2014), http://www.cgdev.org/blog/poverty-rich-world-when-it-was-not-nearly-so-rich [https://perma.cc/R4MF-N7DB].

  53. 53.

    For an analysis of the rule of law, see R. Leal-Arcas, “Essential Elements of the Rule of Law Concept in the EU,” Queen Mary School of Law Legal Studies Research Paper No. 180/2014, pp. 1–6. The rule of law is crucial in the context of technology: non-democratic states such as China and Russia seem to limit freedom of expression via the internet or slow down the internet to the detriment of their citizens. In an ideal world, everyone should have access to the internet, in the same way that the sun shines for everyone for free.

  54. 54.

    The Economist, “A Manifesto,” 15 September 2018, pp. 11–12 at 11.

  55. 55.

    Human Mortality Database, http://www.mortality.org/ [https://perma.cc/QA9V-K3L8].

  56. 56.

    But we may run out of a place where to place CO2. The fundamental problem here is the absence of property rights for CO2. Society needs property rights for CO2.

  57. 57.

    On that note, former U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu once famously wrote that “the Stone Age did not end because we ran out of stones; we transitioned to better solutions.” Letter from Secretary Steven Chu to Energy Department Employees, Energy.gov (Feb. 1, 2013, 11:00 AM), http://energy.gov/articles/letter-secretary-steven-chu-energy-department-employees [https://perma.cc/7399-QPP3]. The same quote is also credited to Ahmed Zaki Yamani, former Saudi minister of oil. By the same token, I would suggest that we should not need to wait until we run out of fossil fuels to make the transition to sustainable energy.

  58. 58.

    See, for instance, the views of Ron Oxburgh, chairman of Shell, in 2004: “Sequestration is difficult, but if we don’t have sequestration then I see very little hope for the world.” He then added, “No one can be comfortable at the prospect of continuing to pump out the amounts of carbon dioxide that we are at present . . . with consequences that we really can’t predict but [that] are probably not good.” Shell Boss ‘Fears for the Planet,’ BBC News (June 17, 2004), http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3814607.stm [https://perma.cc/3U2E-XW3V].

  59. 59.

    Thomas Meyer, Lecture at the University of North Carolina titled Our Energy Future: What are the Technology Challenges of the 21st century? (Mar. 2, 2006).

  60. 60.

    Although the UK government is keen to invest more on nuclear energy, most other European countries are phasing it out: for instance, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland and even France. Russia, China, and India are keen on nuclear energy. They are also accelerating renewable energy. One wonders whether the UK should learn from the experience of the 1960s, when a nuclear-powered cargo-passenger ship sailed from the US to Europe to persuade the world to embrace the ‘atomic age.’ See T. Thueringer and J. Parkinson, “The ship that totally failed to change the world,” BBC News, 25 July 2014, available at https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-28439159.

  61. 61.

    See President Barack Obama, Remarks on the Economy at Carnegie Mellon University, The White House (June 2, 2010), https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/remarks-president-economy-carnegie-mellon-university [https://perma.cc/25LF-59EF].

  62. 62.

    Id.

  63. 63.

    Sophie Yeo, Who’s to Blame for Climate Change?, Climate Home (Nov. 17, 2014, 10:20 AM), available at http://www.climatechangenews.com/2014/11/17/whos-to-blame-for-climate-change/ [https://perma.cc/5UCR-EJP5].

  64. 64.

    The Economist, “The hydrogen bombshell,” Technology Quarter: Towards zero carbon, 1 December 2018, pp. 1–12 at 3.

  65. 65.

    MacKay (2009).

  66. 66.

    Climate Change: Clear Thinking Needed, The Economist (Nov. 28, 2015), http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21679193-global-warming-cannot-be-dealt-using-todays-tools-and-mindsets-so-create-some-new [https://perma.cc/ZW6L-K9TA].

  67. 67.

    Barbara Hollingsworth, Study: Despite Subsidies, Solar Power More Expensive, CNS News (Oct. 19, 2016, 10:40 AM), http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/barbara-hollingsworth/study-solar-power-remains-considerably-more-expensive-electricity [https://perma.cc/8U8U-XSRW].

  68. 68.

    Todd Moss & Benjamin Leo, Ctr. for Glob. Dev., Maximizing Access to Energy: Estimates of Access and Generation for the Overseas Private Investment Corporation’s Portfolio 2 (2014), http://www.cgdev.org/sites/default/files/maximizing-access-energy-opic_1.pdf [https://perma.cc/G24X-63BC].

  69. 69.

    “In simple terms, graphene[] is a thin layer of pure carbon; it is a single, tightly packed layer of carbon atoms that are bonded together in a hexagonal honeycomb lattice.” Jesus de La Fuente, Graphene – What Is It?, Graphenea, http://www.graphenea.com/pages/graphene#.WFxPSlOLQ2w [https://perma.cc/YA3C-KYZX].

  70. 70.

    Id.

  71. 71.

    Indium is “a silvery malleable fusible chiefly trivalent metallic element that occurs especially in sphalerite ores and is used especially as a plating material, in alloys, and in electronics.” Definition of indium, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/indium [https://perma.cc/D6E9-GWSY].

  72. 72.

    For example, the WiseGRID project, funded by the EU’s Horizon 2020 program. About WiseGRID, WiseGRID, http://www.wisegrid.eu/.

  73. 73.

    One possible theory is innovation as a necessity. The incumbents will continue to innovate, more than the newcomers. Some of the policy instruments to get there are labor mobility (via mode 4 of the General Agreement on Trade in Services), economic incentives, investment in R&D, and intellectual property. Another possible theory is anthropological constraints. A policy instrument to get there would be social R&D (smart cities).

  74. 74.

    Space Solar Power, Nat’l Space Soc’y, http://www.nss.org/settlement/ssp/ [https://perma.cc/KT8A-MVZW].

  75. 75.

    See id.

  76. 76.

    Large energy storage systems are usually more cost-effective than small units, but both can help balance grids. In the case of electricity, it is hard and expensive to store it, although batteries are getting better. It is far easier, and more efficient, to store energy in bulk at larger scale.

  77. 77.

    An Internet for energy interconnects the energy network with the Internet, allowing units of energy (locally generated, stored, and forwarded) to be dispatched when and where it is needed. Internet of Energy for Electric Mobility, Internet of Energy, http://www.artemis-ioe.eu/ [https://perma.cc/E8PU-6Q4T].

  78. 78.

    See Carbon & Tree Facts, Arbor Environmental Alliance, http://www.arborenvironmentalalliance.com/carbon-tree-facts.asp [https://perma.cc/2VG8-DTFU].

  79. 79.

    Leal-Arcas and Filis-Yeloghotis (2012), pp. 128 at 128–130.

  80. 80.

    For an overview of the world’s total primary solar energy supply, see Matthias Loster, Total Primary Energy Supply – From Sunlight, EZ2C, http://www.ez2c.de/ml/solar_land_area/ [https://perma.cc/GP3E-PYBN].

  81. 81.

    Yogi Goswami et al. (1999), p. 11.

  82. 82.

    Solar Panels, Alternative Energy Primer, http://www.alternativeenergyprimer.com/Solar-Panels.html [https://perma.cc/W4TF-VY8S].

  83. 83.

    See Vikram Aggarwal, What is the Environmental Impact of Solar Energy?, Mother Earth News (Dec. 2, 2015, 8:55 AM), http://www.motherearthnews.com/renewable-energy/what-is-the-environmental-impact-of-solar-energy-zbcz1512 [https://perma.cc/Z8YC-RVCU].

  84. 84.

    A distinction needs to be made between concentrating solar power plants (which use mirrors to concentrate the energy from the sun and work on heat) and photovoltaics (which covers the conversion of light into electricity and works on light, meaning that it does not work at night).

  85. 85.

    There has been discussion of an EU supergrid (connecting wind, geothermal, hydropower, biomass, and solar at a pan-European level), such as the Desertec or Medgrid projects, and an Asian supergrid, such as the Gobitec project (https://energycharter.org/what-we-do/investment/investment-thematic-reports/gobitec-and-the-asian-supergrid-for-renewable-energy-sources-in-northeast-asia-2014/). Supergrids can share power over very long distances with low losses of power.

  86. 86.

    See David Pickup et al., Solar Trade Association, Solar + Storage = Opportunities 3–6 (2016), http://www.solar-trade.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/Solar-storage-Opportunities-The-STAs-Position-Paper-on-Energy-Storage.pdf [https://perma.cc/Z9K4-TNDE].

  87. 87.

    Leal-Arcas and Filis-Yeloghotis (2012), pp. 128–148.

  88. 88.

    By this transition, we mean transport systems in transition (e.g., technologies of electrification in trucks) and industries in transition (e.g., fossil-free steel).

  89. 89.

    For further details on sustainable companies, see Esty and Winston (2009).

  90. 90.

    The Secretary-General’s Advisory Group on energy and climate change, “Energy for a sustainable future,” Summary report and recommendations, 28 April 2010, available at http://www.un.org/chinese/millenniumgoals/pdf/AGECCsummaryreport%5B1%5D.pdf.

  91. 91.

    For an account of how we can reach a sustainable future, see M. Jacobson and M. Delucchi, “A Path to Sustainable Energy by 2030,” Scientific American, November 2009, pp. 58–65, available at https://web.stanford.edu/group/efmh/jacobson/Articles/I/sad1109Jaco5p.indd.pdf.

  92. 92.

    See Sources of Greenhouse Gas Emissions, EPA, https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/sources-greenhouse-gas-emissions [https://perma.cc/8U54-CZLZ]; see also IPCC, 5th Assessment Report, Working Group III (2014), http://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/wg3/ipcc_wg3_ar5_full.pdf [https://perma.cc/8K8L-FJCR].

  93. 93.

    The leaders of these industries include, for instance, John Deere since 1837, General Electric since 1892, Ford since 1903, and General Motors since 1908. See Nancy Pfund, Lecture at Yale University titled Creating the Sustainable Companies of the 21st Century, Sept. 22, 2016.

  94. 94.

    Ingrid Lunden, 6.1B Smartphone Users Globally by 2020, Overtaking Basic Fixed Phone Subscriptions, Tech Crunch (June 2, 2015), https://techcrunch.com/2015/06/02/6-1b-smartphone-users-globally-by-2020-overtaking-basic-fixed-phone-subscriptions/ [https://perma.cc/B9UN-BVDN].

  95. 95.

    Norberg (2016), p. 200.

  96. 96.

    Richard Waters, Google to Buy Only Renewable Energy for Operations in 2017, Fin. Times (Dec. 6, 2016), https://www.ft.com/content/6794d2f0-bb6a-11e6-8b45-b8b81dd5d080?emailid=55ccb8 75090bff0300e78b63&segmentId=3d08be62-315f-7330-5bbd-af33dc531acb [https://perma.cc/4TUM-28LP].

  97. 97.

    Justin Guay, World Bank Abandons Coal, Green Light for Clean Micro-Grids, REneweconomy (July 14, 2013), http://reneweconomy.com.au/world-bank-abandons-coal-green-light-for-clean-micro-grids-59247/ [https://perma.cc/T9CG-2YRX].

  98. 98.

    Richard Viereckl et al., Connected Care Report 2016: Opportunities, Risk, and Turmoil on the Road to Autonomous Vehicles, Strategy& (Sept. 28, 2016), http://www.strategyand.pwc.com/reports/connected-car-2016-study [https://perma.cc/R9X3-54RG].

  99. 99.

    See Katherine Noyes, Cropping Up on Every Farm: Big Data Technology, Fortune (May 30, 2014), http://fortune.com/2014/05/30/cropping-up-on-every-farm-big-data-technology/ [https://perma.cc/2SKY-T2H2].

  100. 100.

    See, e.g., Bill Spindle & Rebecca Smith, Which State is a Big Renewable Energy Pioneer? Texas, Wall St. J. (Aug. 29, 2016), http://www.wsj.com/articles/which-state-is-a-big-renewable-energy-pioneer-texas-1472414098 (describing the case of Texas, where more than 100,000 people are employed in that sector) [https://perma.cc/C9K6-LV9E].

  101. 101.

    Competition creates efficiency that centralized systems do not. Hence decentralization.

  102. 102.

    See, e.g., Pilita Clark, Aggreko buys energy storage technology specialist, Financial Times, July 3, 2017, https://www.ft.com/content/086fe32e-6014-11e7-8814-0ac7eb84e5f1?mhq5j=e2 [https://perma.cc/C7MS-2QJS].

  103. 103.

    See Jack Stewart, Tesla’s Cars Have Driven 140M Miles on Autopilot. Here’s How, Wired (Aug. 17, 2016, 8:00 AM), https://www.wired.com/2016/08/how-tesla-autopilot-works/ [https://perma.cc/32TD-PPNZ]; Google Self-Driving Car Project, WAYMO, https://www.google.com/selfdrivingcar/ [https://perma.cc/7L7H-MJ7E]; Andrew J. Hawkins, Uber Just Completed Its Two-Billionth Trip, The Verge (Jul. 18, 2016, 11:00 AM), http://www.theverge.com/2016/7/18/12211710/uber-two-billion-trip-announced-kalanick-china-didi [https://perma.cc/586A-6K7P].

  104. 104.

    Examples of twenty-first century agriculture companies are Blue River Technology, Apeel Sciences, Farmers Business Network, and Planet. See, e.g., Blue River Technology, http://www.bluerivert.com/ [https://perma.cc/F3WP-FYSS].

  105. 105.

    For an overview of how to revitalize business models to win the clean energy race, see Amory B. Lovins, Reinventing Fire: Bold Business Solutions for the New Energy Era (2013).

  106. 106.

    Task Force Publishes Recommendations on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures, Fin. Stability Board (June 29, 2017), http://www.fsb.org/2017/06/task-force-publishes-recommendations-on-climate-related-financial-disclosures/ [https://perma.cc/CA4G-C35Z].

  107. 107.

    G20 Germany 2017, Fed. Gov’t of Germany, https://www.g20.org/Webs/G20/EN/Home/home_node.html.

  108. 108.

    Fin. Stability Board, http://www.fsb.org/.

  109. 109.

    See Task Force on Climate-Related Fin. Disclosures, Recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures ii–v (2016), https://www.fsb-tcfd.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/TCFD-Recommendations-Report-A4-14-Dec-2016.pdf. See also Risky Business, “The economic risks of climate change in the United States,” June 2014.

  110. 110.

    For more details on how sustainable development is changing business leadership, see Bus. & Sustainable Dev. Comm’n, Better Business Better World (2017), http://report.businesscommission.org/uploads/BetterBiz-BetterWorld.pdf.

  111. 111.

    See Our Common Future, From One Earth to One World, Rep. of the World Comm. on Env’t & Dev. on Its Forty-Second Session, U.N. Doc. A/42/427, annex, ¶ 11 (1987).

  112. 112.

    David Schenck, The Great Teaching Work of Thomas Berry, Ctr. for Humans & Nature, http://www.humansandnature.org/the-great-teaching-work-of-thomas-berry. One’s behavior and attitudes are shaped by world views, values, and spirituality derived from world religions, environmental ethics, biophilia, humanitarian and secular values, and the arts. See, e.g., Grim and Tucker (2014), pp. 1–12; Swimme and Tucker (2011), pp. 103–119.

  113. 113.

    One exception is that of Tajikistan, whose criminal code stipulates in Article 399 (on biocide) the following: “Using of nuclear, neutron, chemical, biological (bacteriological), climatic or other kind of mass destruction weapons with the intent of destruction of people and environment is punishable by imprisonment for a period of [fifteen] to [twenty] years, or death penalty.” Criminal Code of the Republic of Tajikistan, art. 399 (unofficial).

  114. 114.

    Sustainable Development Goals, UN, http://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/sustainable-development-goals/.

  115. 115.

    There is scholarly work that states that demographic change is an unavoidable force that can change the course of history. See Morland (2019) and Bricker and Ibbitson (2019).

  116. 116.

    Think for instance of the gradual destruction of biodiversity in Colombia as a result of high levels of consumption by many importers of Colombian coffee throughout the world. The higher the demand of coffee, the greater the destruction of biodiversity by the coffee supplier. For further analysis on this issue, see Wiedmann and Lenzen (2018), pp. 314–321.

  117. 117.

    See TRIPS Agreement, art. 66(2).

  118. 118.

    This quote is often attributed to Yogi Berra.

  119. 119.

    Harari (2018).

  120. 120.

    David Victor, Lecture given at Harvard University, 2 October 2018.

  121. 121.

    An explanation is innovation as a necessity and as a public good.

  122. 122.

    History of Fossil Fuels Usage Since the Industrial Revolution, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, https://www.mhi-global.com/discover/earth/issue/history/history.html.

  123. 123.

    Dr. Jean-Paul Rodrigue, Evolution of Energy Sources, The Geography of Transport Systems, https://people.hofstra.edu/geotrans/eng/ch8en/conc8en/evolenergy.html.

  124. 124.

    Are Fossil Fuel Companies Using IEA Report To Talk Up Demand?, The Guardian (Oct. 25, 2015), https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/oct/23/are-fossil-fuel-companies-using-iea-reports-to-talk-up-demand.

  125. 125.

    But see Zachary Shahan, Advantages & Disadvantages of Solar Power, Clean Technica (Oct. 8, 2013), https://cleantechnica.com/2013/10/08/advantages-disadvantages-solar-power/.

  126. 126.

    Natural Gas, the Cleanest or Less Dirty Fossil Fuel, Energy News (Sept. 19, 2016), http://www.energynews.es/english/natural-gas-the-cleanest-or-less-dirty-fossil-fuel/.

  127. 127.

    Stuart Haszeldine (2009), p. 1647 at 1647–1652 (2009).

  128. 128.

    According to The Economist, “in 2009–15 the number of biogas plants in the EU grew from 6,000 to 17,700—heating houses with old banana skins and uneaten porridge.” See The Economist, “A load of rubbish,” Special report: Waste, pp. 1–12 at 9, 29 September 2018.

  129. 129.

    Paris Agreement, art. 4(4).

  130. 130.

    Commission Proposal to the Gothenburg European Council, A Sustainable Europe For a Better World: A European Union Strategy for Sustainable Development, COM (2001) 264 final.

  131. 131.

    Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Special Report on Renewable Energy Sources and Climate Change Mitigation, at 17–18 (2012), https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/special-reports/srren/SRREN_FD_SPM_final.pdf.

  132. 132.

    See Renewable Energy Can Power the World, Says Landmark IPCC Study, The Guardian (May 9, 2011), https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2011/may/09/ipcc-renewable-energy-power-world (citing the Special Report on Renewable Energy Sources and Climate Change Mitigation, of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, finalized in 2011).

  133. 133.

    Harari (2016).

  134. 134.

    See Gary Brudvig, Lecture at Yale University titled Spurring Innovation (Sept. 22, 2016).

  135. 135.

    Superior Court of Justice (Brazil), Recurso Especial No. REsp 883.656/RS, Rel. Herman Benjamin, available at http://www.planetaverde.org/arquivos/biblioteca/arquivo_20131123 195922_9398.pdf [https://perma.cc/CL9D-5GF2].

  136. 136.

    However, see the views by Tom Randall on coal’s prognosis, “The latest sign that coal is getting killed,” Bloomberg, 13 July 2015, available at https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-07-13/the-latest-sign-that-coal-is-getting-killed.

  137. 137.

    Information gathered from the roundtable on “Science, Law and Climate Change – Innovating sustainable solutions” of the London Energy Forum. The event was held in The Law Society, London, UK, on 4 February 2016.

  138. 138.

    Solar Frontiers, The Economist (Dec. 1, 2015), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-m9OR9vcaM.

  139. 139.

    Z. Shahan, “In 14 and a half seconds, the sun provides as much energy to Earth as humanity uses in a day,” CleanTechnica, 18 April 2012, available at https://cleantechnica.com/2012/04/18/in-14-and-a-half-seconds/.

  140. 140.

    See Global Lessons: The GPS Road Map for Powering America, CNN Transcripts (Oct. 21, 2012), http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1210/21/cp.01.html.

  141. 141.

    See Hawken (2017).

  142. 142.

    For more details, see Sivaram (2018).

  143. 143.

    The Economist, “Trade tariffs: Duties call,” 27 January 2018, p. 12.

  144. 144.

    Pinker (2018).

  145. 145.

    H. Yusof, “The Pursuit of Less,” The Business Times, 19 January 2018, available at https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/lifestyle/feature/the-pursuit-of-less.

  146. 146.

    To access their principles, see http://www.breakthroughenergycoalition.com/en/index.html.

  147. 147.

    http://mission-innovation.net/.

  148. 148.

    http://mission-innovation.net/countries/.

  149. 149.

    “Green generation: Millennials say sustainability is a shopping priority,” available at https://www.nielsen.com/uk/en/insights/news/2015/green-generation-millennials-say-sustainability-is-a-shopping-priority.html.

  150. 150.

    Korten (2015).

  151. 151.

    A lot of these TSOs are naturally regional, not national.

  152. 152.

    An example is the potential risks of cyber-attacks associated with autonomous vehicles. See The Economist, “Reinventing wheels,” Special Report, p. 6, 3rd March 2018.

  153. 153.

    For the specific case of energy trade, see Leal-Arcas et al. (2017), pp. 520–549; Leal-Arcas (2016), pp. 53–74; Leal-Arcas (2015), pp. 202–219; Leal-Arcas et al. (2015), pp. 38–87.

  154. 154.

    On the role of the market, see Posner and Weyl (2018) (who argue that the way out of the current impasse is to expand the role of markets).

  155. 155.

    The construction sector is responsible for large GHG emissions from cement and steel.

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    Rafael Leal-Arcas

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Leal-Arcas, R. (2019). Innovation, Research, and Technology. In: Solutions for Sustainability. European Yearbook of International Economic Law(). Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-23933-6_9

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