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UK to be a ‘green leader’ in coming years
The UK, is one of a select number of countries, that could benefit from the global transition to a green economy. This finding has been published following research by the Oxford Martin School and the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment.
‘Green Growth’ is key in stopping global warming. This method is key due to its ability to improve quality of life. Despite this, it is thought that some countries will not keep up with the transition whilst others will thrive.
Furthermore, Dr Penny Mealy, lead author and researcher at the Institute for New Economic Thinking at the Oxford Martin School stated that “as the world shifts towards a greener, cleaner, competitive landscape, being able to produce and export environmentally friendly products is likely to become important”. Therefore, the development and deployment of wind turbines, solar panels and equipment to monitor air pollution, otherwise known as environmentally friendly products, will be essential.
How have they ranked the countries?
A database has been created that ranks countries on their green production capabilities. Green products have a complexity score rating how technologically sophisticated they are e.g. solar panels score higher that bicycle frames. As a result, the Green Complexity Index (GCI) was created. This shows which countries can export the most complex green products.
On average, countries with higher per capita GDP such as the UK, USA and Germany ranked higher. Despite this, other countries with high GDP but who also have a focus on fossil fuels e.g. United Arab Emirates, Australia and Norway, had a lower GCI.
If you would like to read more on this research, head over to the Oxford Martin website here.
