Thilo Schaefer Event 20. September 2023 Climate Clubs as a Lightning Rod for Tensions in Trade and Industrial Competitiveness

The Paris Agreement has established a transformative paradigm. While this transformation will create winners and losers, it now seems increasingly clear that overall, there are tremendous opportunities.

Thilo Schaefer Event 20. September 2023

Climate Clubs as a Lightning Rod for Tensions in Trade and Industrial Competitiveness

Contacts

With the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act in the US, it seems a race has begun between major industrial powerhouses, the United States, the European Union, China and increasingly India to take advantage of those opportunities through ambitious industrial policies. At the same time, the COVID-induced supply chain crisis of 2021/22 and the Russian assault on Ukraine have contributed to a push towards securing and reshoring key strategic supply chains under the banner of industrial policy. Consequently, concerns have been raised that both of these developments lead to the introduction of protectionist measures which will ultimately hurt global decarbonization. While it is clear that we will need an innovation race towards building up green industries to support the global transformation, we need to make sure that this race is held under fair conditions and in a spirit of international cooperation and not ruinous competition.

When: 20/09/2023

Time: 5–7 pm

In this transatlantic online workshop, we will explore options to facilitate fair opportunity sharing. Specifically, we will investigate the role of climate clubs.

We are entering a new era of industrial geopolitics. We need to learn what industrial policy is and, perhaps more importantly, what it ought to be: we need principles for industrial policy!
We need a technology race, but it needs to be a race with rules. The WTO is crumbling and the trade regime is dysfunctional when it comes to climate change. But disbanding it altogether is dangerous and it is doubtful if trade without any internationally agreed rules is in anybody's interest.
The emerging conflict is not only about the industrial powerhouses of the world but may have serious repercussions for smaller emerging and developing economies. We cannot defuse the conflict between the US, EU, China et al. at the cost of the rest of the world.

This event will take place in cooperation with SCI4climate.NRW, The Wuppertal Institute, The German Economic Institute and NDC ASPECTS.

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