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511. The Recycling of Lithium-Ion Batteries: A Strategic Pillar for the European Battery Alliance

Author:
Raphaël Danino-Perraud
Publication Date:
03-2020
Content Type:
Special Report
Institution:
Institut français des relations internationales (IFRI)
Abstract:
Although it is still marginal, the market for electric vehicles (EVs) is growing. According to the French Institute of Petroleum and Renewable Energies (IFPEN, Institut Français du Pétrole et des Énergies Renouvelables), EVs accounted for a little more than 2% of the light vehicle market in 2019. This was up by 54% compared to 2018, but EVs still only represent 0.8% of the global car fleet. That said, the International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates EVs could make up between 15% and 30% of vehicle sales in 2030. However, while European manufacturers have so far developed EVs such as the Renault Zoé or the BMW i3, they are highly dependent on Asian companies for the supply and manufacture of materials for cells and electric batteries, such as nickel, cobalt, lithium used to build precursors, or cathodes and their components. Asia provides more than 90% of world car battery output, half of which comes from China alone. European dependence is not only related to the manufacture of batteries, but occurs throughout much of their value chain, from extraction and processing of raw materials to the preparation of necessary treatment processes for recycling. The recycling market for batteries from small electronic objects (smartphones, computers, tablets, etc.) has also been led by Asian countries.
Topic:
Energy Policy, Environment, Regional Cooperation, Science and Technology, Business, and Recycling
Political Geography:
Europe and European Union

512. Sahel Climate Conflicts? When (fighting) climate change fuels terrorism

Author:
Luca Raineri
Publication Date:
12-2020
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
European Union Institute for Security Studies
Abstract:
Levels of armed violence in the Sahel are skyrocketing. Conflict metrics show that the region is caught in a spiral of insecurity.1 Communal violence and jihadist insurgencies have significantly undermined local states’ grip over large parts of their territories, particularly in the three-border area straddling Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger. Amidst the proliferation of non-state armed groups, attacks by terrorist groups linked to al-Qaeda or the Islamic State networks have risen sharply since 2015. Policy and media discourses suggest that soaring terrorist violence is linked to, if not driven by, climatic and environmental factors. In the Sahelian context – the argument goes – in a region characterised by environmental degradation and sustained population growth, climate change has the potential to exacerbate competition over dwindling resources, fuelling conflict escalation and radicalisation. This narrative draws on global discourses about resource conflicts and climate wars, and contributes to shaping security and development policies targeting the Sahel. Climate change mitigation and environmental protection measures are thus seen as structural preconditions to tackle the root causes of the Sahel’s insecurity and rising (jihadist) violence. The idea that terrorism and climate change are somehow connected is a seductive one. It offers international donors the opportunity to kill two birds with one stone by addressing jointly what are arguably the most pressing issues facing the international community, thereby overcoming political divides. And it provides local governments with a narrative that depoliticises conflicts and downplays their own responsibilities. However, such simplistic Malthusian arguments that connect terrorism in the Sahel to climatic and environmental factors do not stand up to empirical scrutiny. Whether and how natural resources are associated with conflicts’ onsets and dynamics, and to what extent climate change has the potential to exacerbate these trends, are questions that remain highly contested. Just as much as with other issue-areas of climate change, there is no shortage of unsubstantiated misconceptions about climate and conflict, and environment and security more broadly. This Conflict Series Brief sets out to illustrate that misconceived environmental security policymaking, especially when based on rhetorical shortcuts that overlook and contradict the most recent evidence, is not only ineffective, but can have radically adverse impacts. Even if well-intentioned, climate change mitigation and environmental protection measures based on false premises may result in conflict exacerbation, rather than resolution: a situation that violent jihadist entrepreneurs exploit. To this end, the Brief scrutinises three programmes rolled out in the Sahel to fight desertification, prevent food crises, and preserve wildlife which have ended up contributing to the encroachment of terrorist groups in the region. The lessons learnt from these cases helps highlight the policy implications for existing and future efforts to fight violent extremism and promote sustainable development sponsored by the Sahel’s international partners, including the EU.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Violent Extremism, Al Qaeda, Islamic State, and Conflict
Political Geography:
Africa, Mali, Sahel, Niger, and Burkina Faso

513. The End of ‘Business as Usual’? COVID-19 and the European Green Deal

Author:
Francesca Colli
Publication Date:
05-2020
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
EGMONT - The Royal Institute for International Relations
Abstract:
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a clear and drastic effect on our daily lives and political priorities. But what implications does it have for the EU’s climate action and the Von der Leyen Commission’s flagship policy, the European Green Deal? The crisis may be a ‘make or break’ moment for the EU to act on climate change through its recovery plan.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, International Cooperation, Green Technology, Public Health, Pandemic, COVID-19, and Green Deal
Political Geography:
Europe

514. COVID-19 and the Climate – Energy Nexus

Author:
Mathieu Blondeel
Publication Date:
05-2020
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
EGMONT - The Royal Institute for International Relations
Abstract:
Analysing the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on the climate-energy nexus, raises three important questions. First, what does this global health and economic crisis mean for the future of fossil fuels, particularly oil? Because of the drop in economic activity, greenhouse gas emissions have plummeted, but how can we ensure a structural decline that is aligned with the Paris Agreement? Third, how can we embed the ideas of a “just transition” within the broader post- pandemic “green recovery”? This policy brief offers a glimpse of the direction away from fossil fuels that our global energy system must take to govern the post- pandemic world
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Public Health, Pandemic, and COVID-19
Political Geography:
Europe

515. Behavioural Science for the Environment

Author:
Milan Urbaník
Publication Date:
12-2020
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Europeum Institute for European Policy
Abstract:
To effectively address climate change, both structural and behavioural policies are needed. To formulate effective and efficient behavioural policies, the government should establish Behavioural Policy Team. The agency of the team should be to design policies that are conducive to facilitating behavioural changes against unsustainable behaviours, such as high energy and water consumption or polluting transportation. Furthermore, the team should test different approaches through randomization to determine the best valuefor-money policies.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, and Behavioral Science
Political Geography:
Europe and Global Focus

516. Czech EU presidency: Basis for a Successful Implementation

Author:
Vít Havelka
Publication Date:
12-2020
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Europeum Institute for European Policy
Abstract:
Czech policy makers must not resort to a partisan programme of the Czech presidency. Strong antipathy between government and opposition might create a fragile political environment for the presidency Czech priorities must be thoroughly discussed with partners in trio, and the Czech Republic should closely coordinate its intentions with Sweden in order to counterbalance French influence Space of Czech initiatives will be limited due to the current phase of the EP legislative period, and the Czechs should thus focus only on particular issues that they consider vital – single market policies, environmental policies, and innovation. The EU presidency must be used for EU membership promotion in the Czech Republic. Importantly, there should take place high-level meetings in the Czech Republic and outside of Prague.
Topic:
Environment, Government, Markets, European Union, and Innovation
Political Geography:
Europe and Czech Republic

517. Revisiting EU Climate and Energy Diplomacy: A Starting Point for Green Deal Diplomacy?

Author:
Franziska Petri
Publication Date:
11-2020
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
EGMONT - The Royal Institute for International Relations
Abstract:
One of the innovations of the new European Commission’s proposal of a European Green Deal (EGD) is to build a “Green Deal Diplomacy”. While this ambition has not yet materialized, the proposed new diplomacy does not emerge in an empty space, as the EU has already started to develop explicit climate and energy diplomacies since 2011 and 2015 respectively. As such, it will be essential for the EGD diplomacy to learn from past successes and missed opportunities of the previous attempts to formulate and implement EU external ambitions in policy areas related to the European Green Deal.
Topic:
Climate Change, Diplomacy, Energy Policy, Environment, International Cooperation, European Union, and Green Technology
Political Geography:
Europe

518. Parameters for Developing Cross-border Sustainable Infrastructure

Author:
Jyotsna Bapat
Publication Date:
12-2020
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Gateway House: Indian Council on Global Relations
Abstract:
India, till 2014, had bilateral trade and infrastructure agreement treaties with its Asian neighbours. India, through the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), has been investing in trilateral and multilateral infrastructure projects since 2014, with its littoral (coastal) and inland neighbours in Asia. While it demonstrates the growing potential of infrastructure diplomacy, it also puts India in direct competition with China, which through its own infrastructure initiative, has been involved in building physical infrastructure in India’s neighbours. This paper argues that taking into account environmental security as a parameter for developing cross border sustainable infrastructure, during signing of MoUs in these treaties, will provide a unique opportunity for India to develop norms for environmental and social security framework/policy, training assistance, and capacity building in its funded projects in other countries.
Topic:
Environment, Infrastructure, Geopolitics, Multilateralism, and Social Security
Political Geography:
South Asia, India, and Asia

519. Sustainability and Ancient Wisdom

Author:
Gauri Shankar Gupta
Publication Date:
11-2020
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
India International Centre (IIC)
Abstract:
The existence of life is closely intertwined with nature. Nature provides the support system for the survival of different species of life that exist on planet earth. As evident from historical records, for thousands of years, humanity lived in a harmonious relationship with nature. The Industrial Revolution marked a major turning point in the earth’s ecology and humans’ relationship with their environment. Particularly, since the 1950s, with the combination of capitalism, consumerism and contamination, a serious conflict has arisen between man and nature. Extraction of minerals at an unprecedented rate, degradation of soil, manifold increase in water usage, massive contamination of water bodies, increasing air pollution and nonbiodegradable waste, deforestation and loss of biodiversity are posing new threats to the very existence of humanity. In this context, the article examines the wisdom of our ancestors for restoration of harmony between man and nature so that the survival of our progeny is not endangered.
Topic:
Environment, History, Pollution, Sustainability, Nature, Ecology, and Industrial Revolution
Political Geography:
South Asia and India

520. Reduce, Remove, Recycle: Clarifying the Overlap between Carbon Removal and CCUS

Author:
David R. Morrow and Michael S. Thompson
Publication Date:
12-2020
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Institute for Carbon Removal Law and Policy, American University
Abstract:
The complicated relationship between carbon removal and carbon capture with utilization or storage (CCUS) causes confusion in climate policy conversations. Two questions about CCUS technologies and related direct air capture (DAC) technologies help cut through this confusion: where did the carbon come from, and where did it go? Asking these questions refocuses the discussion away from vexing technological categories and toward the different roles that these approaches can play in climate policy—namely, carbon removal, carbon recycling, and emissions reductions. Carbon dioxide captured directly from the atmosphere (“air carbon”) or captured from the combustion or fermenting of biomass (“biocarbon”) can be used for carbon removal or carbon recycling, depending on whether it ends up in geological storage or long-lived products or in short-lived products. “Fossil CCUS” can reduce emissions relative to fossil fuels without CCUS, provided that the captured carbon dioxide ends up in geological storage or long-lived products, but it cannot remove or recycle carbon. These relationships are depicted graphically in the last section of the paper. There are also many ways of reducing emissions and removing carbon without DAC or CCUS, but these are outside the scope of this paper.
Topic:
Climate Change, Environment, Science and Technology, Recycling, and Carbon Emissions
Political Geography:
Global Focus