As each year passes, the climate emergency facing the planet becomes ever more alarming. But this trajectory is increasingly being met by the rapid emergence of new technologies and expertise that are focused on tackling it. As a result, we can now discern the emergence of a future green economy; one that harnesses human ingenuity to protect the planet’s future.
But what is the green economy? How large is it? How will it grow? And how can it be developed in a way that drives prosperity and inclusiveness, as well as environmental sustainability?
These are the questions that a team of climate specialists, industry experts and economists from Arup and Oxford Economics spent the last 12 months addressing. Our goal is to help governments, investors and communities better understand the opportunities a green economy represents. In this study, we provide a new resource to support the strategic economic decision making required to seize those opportunities, and to place the global economy on an environmentally sustainable track. We estimate that the transition to a net zero emissions environment by 2050 will create new industries worth $10.3 trillion to the global economy by that same year.
The study addresses three key questions:
• What is the green economy, and what economic activities represent it?
• What is the size of the green economy? And what opportunities does the world’s transition to a net zero emissions environment present?
• How can countries and companies identify and capture the right green economy opportunities?
