Governance to support a global green deal

Carolyn Deere Birkbeck, Thomas Hale, Lise Johnson, Emily Jones, Andreas Klasen, Gregory Messenger, Harro van Asselt, and Bentley Allan

Summary

● To achieve global climate goals and build a more resilient economy, the rules and institutions of global economic governance must align around a green transition.

● This report describes a package of 11 ideas for reforms across the global trade and investment regimes, broadly understood, that can remove barriers to, and create drivers for, climate action. Some are mature efforts already in progress; others are new areas of work that require more research and strategizing.

● The package elements fall into three categories: steps that can be taken within existing structures, options that pioneering governments can advance unilaterally or in small groups, and broader reforms of governance arrangements.

● This package of ideas is not exhaustive. Many other potential avenues and proposals are being explored elsewhere in scholarly and policy debate. Some proposals are not mentioned here as they already attract considerable attention and focus from a diversity of stakeholders and some governments.

● Whilst ensuring that economic responses to COVID-19 are climate friendly remains of immediate and paramount importance, we must not lose sight of the direction of travel needed over a more extended time horizon. With this in mind, these reforms target outcomes that could feasibly be delivered over the next 12-36 months.