Coping with Climate Crisis : Mitigation Policies and Global Coordination

This book was published in 2018, and is a very interesting look into the momentum created at COP21 and COP22, which drove today's international effort to tackle climate change with foresightful policy and planning.
The book is designed to "synthesize" key economic research. It lives up to its claim of being "user-friendly" both for "policy-makers and scholars," opening with a forward written by Nizar Baraka, the President of the Scientific Committee of COP22. Baraka's forward is much like a retrospective already. He composes looking towards the future, examining not only progress thus far, but changes that came to ensure more effective decision-making in the process.
Remarks Baraka, “we are living today through a period of great changes toward a new world order, triggered by a profound technological shift that impacts the very way we live, (this) transforms radically our economic models as much as our mobilization and communication capabilities."
Suggesting that Kyoto failed because the top-down approach was not effective, the introduction to the book remarks that COP21 was considerably better because the approach changed and with that change came as well a change in tactic.
“The Paris Agreement is built on a bottom-up approach which includes all major actors, not just national governments...The approach taken with the implementation of the Paris Agreement is one of community rather than legal enforcement.” These thoughts on the shift in decision-making conclude, "this bottom-up approach is inevitably less coherent, but more realistic as it leverages the power of civil society and business.” The editors also remark that as a result newcomers may be surprised by “how seriously public and private organizations are taking global climate risks and are planning for the future."
For perspective, the book is edited by Rabah Arezki, Cheif Economist of the World Bank's Middle East and North African Region, Patrick Bolton, Managing Editor of The Journal of the European Economic Association, Karim El Aynaoui, Managing Director at the Policy Centre for the New South, and Maurice Obstfeld, former Chief Economist at the International MonetaryFund. It is structured into four major topics. Philip Benoit of the International Energy Agency opens topic one, "Reducing Energy Greenhouse Gas Emissions To Meet Our Climate Goals" by providing key steps required to reduce CO2 in keeping with the Paris Accord. Benoit describes the two keys: delinking GDP from Energy Supply and Decarbonizing that Energy Supply. GDP has always been driven by increased GHG emissions. Replacing fossil fuel, electricity is at the centre of low-carbon transition, while coal is the elephant in the room, so much so that it can hide the issues around gas which also creates environmental challenges. Remarks Benoit, “coal power generation produces over 9 Gt of CO2 emissions, larger by itself than the combined energy emissions of the United States and the European Union (EU); but coal-fired power plants also provide about 10,000TWh, powering businesses, households, and social services worldwide.” Benoit's assessment of the "energy landscape" is followed by Rick van der Ploeg writing on "Transitional Risks and the Safe Carbon Budget," which differs from other models of "optimal" carbon pricing. He wants to remove all fossil fuel subsidies and incentivize firms to stop using coal and gas.
The second major topic is called "Getting The Price of Carbon Right" which includes "implications of uncertainty around the pace of global warming and tipping points," and includes extremely useful input which functions from an "avoid the worst-case scenario" approach. The third major topic, Climate Agreements, addresses enforcement. The authors remark that enforcement typically involves the questions of "reputation, accountability, and sanctions." They make note that Trump's attempt to withdraw the US from the Paris Accord, rather than defeating the process, surprisingly caused additional resolve on the part of many American mayors and state governors to carry on with their Paris Accord commitments.
The fourth major topic in the book is that of Financial and Sustainable Infrastructure. Financial markets can play a major role in creating incentives for a low-carbon transition. However, financial markets cannot do it alone. It is individual governments that need to take on the role of pushing for complete carbon footprint disclosure, at times offering limited guarantees and taking on risks financial markets are not able to hold. Here the book examines the role of financial markets in accelerating the energy transition and financing sustainable infrastructure. For many developing countries, financial aid to ensure clean technology imports and participation in the energy transition will be inevitable. However, the authors remark that such aid could then offset the costs associated with the process of removing carbon subsidies and levying carbon taxes.
As per the forward written by the President of the Scientific Committee of COP22, the book describes a radical paradigm shift, one that will support us as we moving rapidly forward towards solutions. If you are fond of economic theory, this book is a collection of excellent contributions from top theorists and “economic practitioners” developing real plans to fund energy transition and safeguard the climate for future generations.

Arezki, R., Bolton, P., Aynaoui, K. E., & Obstfeld, M. (2018). Coping with the Climate Crisis Mitigation Policies and Global Coordination. Columbia University Press.

Whales and Elephants

Whales and Elephants in International Conservation Law and Politics: A Comparative Study

Ed Couzens specializes in water security and international wildlife law and is an Associate Professor at the University of Sydney, NSW, where he has dedicated himself to Environmental causes. He has been the editor of two dozen books involving environmental law and threatened species, and has written chapters in over 21 environmental and conservationist-themed books on a broad range of topics. His work has appeared in over two dozen journals. At present, 19 examples of his research papers appear published on researchgate.
To begin, both Whales and Elephants are somewhat emblemic animals of the conservation movement. Couzens explores the history of their conservation in this fascinating read, as well as creating detailed comparisons of their treatments and the history of international governance involving their protection. Both species arguably play keystone or super-keystone roles in their environments. Both would be considered especially intelligent and sensitive. As well, to quote Couzens, "both have experienced near-catastrophic population declines due to overuse by humans and both have come, over time, to be given relatively stringent protection in international law."
In Whales and Elephants, Couzens introduces CITES, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species, discussing how it impacts wildlife flora and fauna. He also introduces ICRW, the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling. He then quite deftly explains why both these treaties are inadequate in protecting the two large mammal species in question.
His book also explains how both these species have reached a similar point "within International law, despite these species having inherently different status either as free-for-taking (whales) or as falling into the dominion of states (elephants)." Couzens demonstrates here that both these major treaties that seem intended to cover the security of these species are currently inadequate instead. In particular, both treaties fail to consider the ecosystems in which the species live. Other features render them not strong enough for states to generate adequate protection. Remarks Couzens, "the world needs to move away from managing and/or protecting species in isolation and to move towards understanding, managing and protecting species within their ecosystems in a holistic fashion." Other features render current treaties not strong enough for states to generate adequate protection. Both conservationists, (sustainable use) and proponents of preservation (near-complete protection) agree the treaties are inadequate. Couzens proposes instead a multilateral environmental agreements used together synergistically, offering a convincing argument throughout the course of the book.
The rest of the book outlines solutions and discusses the alliances and work done in the past around such delicate things as the ivory trade and whaling. It is an interesting voyage into the world of diplomacy and environmental law negotiations and treaties in general. Fascinating politics and an interesting read (with a few star players and unsung heroes along the way) the fresh approach Couzens proposes is argued convincingly as he takes us through the complex interconnected ecosystems involved in the protection of Whales and Elelphants. Recommended.

Couzens, E. (2016). Whales and elephants in International Conservation Law and Politics: A Comparative Study. Routledge.

The End of Ownership: Personal Property in the Digital Economy

The End of Ownership Personal Property in the Digital Economy by Aaron Perzanowski and Jason Schultz. Both Professors of Law, the co-authors choose open this book with a reflection upon George Orwell's 1984, where all literature is cast into a "memory hole" leading to an incinerator by the Ministry of Truth.

The opening chapter then remarks that, ironically, in a dispute with a publisher, Amazon recently deleted versions of 1984 on Kindle and sent refunds to their purchasers. While with printed books, a bookstore cannot enter your home and erase your bookshelves, in a digital world they can, because a digital copy is not necessarily owned in the same way a printed copy of a book is owned like other possessions in your life. "The 1984 incident is hardly the only case of readers losing access to their purchases."

This timely work demonstrates that our rights in media goods are unstable and insecure. While we experience convenience through digital downloads and cloud storage, to name only a few services, we give up other forms of control on a level that must be held to the light. Their are benefits in digital technologies. Where people have suffered in the past and lost irreplacable work, the impossible backup is now acheivable. We now have a choice between permanent ownership and possibly temporary access, an arrangement which could in some ways can help us better organize our ideas. Here the authors set out gallantly to examine and address the consequences. So we have had a social shift from ownership to licensing. We can't resell something we don't own. But what if it is your own intellectual forays or your own copywritten work? Again evoking shades of Orwell, the book asks: Who owns you? Surveillance of consumer behaviour today also means purchases of previously banned material can be tracked as they were never before. How is our privacy being reframed? It was not possible in the past to track banned books moving through a used bookstore. Are we not now forgoing essential human rights?

The book posits that digital economy has indeed created a tectonic shift in our society, as the concept of property ownership itself is changing and has become more nuanced. The exclusion of other individuals from the sharing of a land, a mineral rights to land and so on has always been a theme amongst thinkers examining the rights of the worker. So I found it interesting that on page 22, the authors evoke John Locke who defined property as "a natural right that arises from labor." Hegel makes an appearance as well, remarking that property "is necessary for individual self-actualization. Unless we can exert control over objects of the world, we cannot express our will, achieve our goal, or thrive as individuals."

The next chapters then wade deeply into the murky waters of copyright and it does so fairly impressively. Describing many famous recent disputes in the realm of "copies, clouds and streams" the authors help us see just how vast the amount of fine print consumers are not reading really is. One of the more famous of these, remarks the authors, was "when Google initially released its Chrome browser, the license read in part, "you give Google a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty free, and non-exclusive license to reproduce, adapt, modify, translate, publish, publicly perform, publicly display and distribute any content which you submit, post or display on and through (Googles products, software services and web sites.)" Such a license would mean Google could publish every email you send, every photo you share, and every password you had ever entered using Chrome. Only after considerable outcry did Google update the license to clarify that users "retain copyright to the content they generate."

This is a thorough and timely book. I'm so glad I'm giving it a read. After versing its readers in the stories behind these famous and culture-shaking digital cases, the authors even tackle the "promise and perils of digital libraries." Explored among other questions is the idea of "libraries without collections" and a chapter later, "the internet of things you don't own." Then, with possibly the eeriest example in the book, chapter 8 describes the Mattel 'Hello Barbie' talking doll through ToyTalk app, a cloud based service with fine print that reveals their toy "transcribes and stores...recordings and speech data...including your voice and likeness as captured therein, to provide and maintain the ToyTalk app, to develop tune enhance or improve speech recognition..." In other words, the authors conclude, everything you may say to Barbie can and will be recorded for all time.

The authors conclude on a positive note, but emphasize that personal vigilance must always be switched to "on" in the digital world, while legally defining ownership applicable to digital goods is "a task that can't be put off any longer." They also remark, we should be alert to the moments when "everyday objects are being replaced or supplemented by information," as this digital economy hold great promise but also great risks. Essentially the book is a well-crafted wake up call designed to verse us in the history of progress acheived in the past around labour and personal property, so that as we enter an era celebrated for its freeing convenience, interconnectivty and availability of information, we are not mindlessly underestimating the value of ownership as, in any society, "the loss of ownership puts us all at risk of exploitation."

Perzanowski, A., & Schultz, J. (2018). The end of ownership personal property in the Digital Economy. The MIT Press.