Korea's Green Growth and the New Expanison Paradigm

At the recent G20 meetings in Seoul, Korea put green on the the business summit agenda. The world wide recession propelled the global economy in a new direction, forcing many countries around the world to follow a new green expansion paradigm.

For sustainable and balanced development, governments are increasingly aware of the fact that green growth is the future of economic development.

In an interview with The Korea Times, Young Soo-gil, chairman of the Presidential Committee on Green Growth said, “The agenda for the summit will be crowded with other issues of pressing priorities to allow much discussion on green growth. The Korean G20 Summit Preparatory Committee is aiming for mainstream advancement on the agenda for the summit, and so ‘development’ will be a prominent theme.”

“This will hopefully allow President Lee Myung-bak to bring the attention of the G20 Leaders to the value of the theme of green growth as a catalyst for global cooperation in many development dimensions,” he added.

Young said that Korea is seeking to take a lead in the global green growth drive by sharing its knowledge and experience.

“Korea would like to help those developing countries harmonize their growth aspirations with the environmental ones by sharing its green growth tool kits and experiences, as well as by working together to undertake specific mitigation and adaptation projects in cost-effective and growth-friendly ways in individual countries,” he said.

“Korea is also willing to take leadership in the international efforts to help build physical infrastructures in the developing countries in climate-change resilient ways. For these purposes, Korea is to make green growth partnership a leading component of its increased ODA (Official Development Assistance) commitment as a new member of the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC),” he added.

As part of this effort, Korea has launched the East Asia Climate Partnership (EACP). Most significantly, on July 16 of this year, the Korean government launched a Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) based in Seoul.

“Korea hopes to develop GGGI into an international treaty-based institution by 2012 with support from other countries which share belief in the value of green growth as well as of sharing insights, know-how and experiences on it,” he said.

“The Green Growth Committee also hopes that Korea’s green growth inspirations will play a facilitating role in making a breakthrough over the issue of how to reconcile economic, social and environmental development objectives at the Rio plus 20 Conference on Sustainable Development to be held in 2012,” he added.

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UN Climate Change Initiatives Post Toronto

As part of the Millennium Development Goals, Ban Ki-moon, the UN’s secretary general, urged leaders of the G20 to increase their investments in clean energy and the green economy.

"The risks -- and costs -- of inaction on climate change grow each year. The more we delay, the more we will pay," he told leaders at the recent G20 Summit in Toronto.

Korea’s newly established global think tank on green growth strategies will play a key role in the launch of a U.N. high-level panel on global sustainability. The Global Green Growth Institute will operate in liaison with the global climate change summit in Rio De Janeiro scheduled for 2012.

The U.N. has also launched a high-level panel on climate change and will operate an advocacy group for the U.N.’s Millennium Development Goals.

Leaders of the world's largest economies will meet again at the next G20 meeting, which is scheduled for November in South Korea.

The United Nations Climate Change Conference or COP 16 will be held in Cancún, Mexico, from 29 November to 10 December 2010.
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G20 Must Cooperate for a Sustainable Recovery

The cooperation of G20 member states is the key to a sustainable recovery. Although the global financial crisis revealed the interconnectedness of the modern economy, it also underscored the importance of cooperation.

The Toronto G20 meeting was billed as a final checkup to ensure agreements reached in Pittsburgh would be finalized at a November gathering in Korea, where leaders would then plan for a post-crisis world.

"Our highest priority in Toronto must be to safeguard and strengthen the recovery," President Barack Obama wrote in a letter to his G20 colleagues. "We worked exceptionally hard to restore growth; we cannot let it falter or lose strength now."

"This crisis proved, and events continue to affirm, that our national economies are inextricably linked," Obama said. "And just as economic turmoil in one place can quickly spread to another, safeguards in each of our nations can help protect all nations."

In 2009, despite disagreements between wealthier and developing nations, the financial and climate change crises spurred unprecedented levels of global cooperation.

In 2010, although we are in recovery, a slowdown has been signaled by the Economic Cycle Research Institute's weekly leading index.

Issues that threaten the recovery include Europe's debt difficulites, slow US job growth, and an unstable US housing market. With interest rates near zero, the most powerful policy tool remaining is resuming asset purchases, but printing money will cause inflation.

Economic uncertainty is highlighting disagreements between the United States, Europe and China.

Jose Vinals, director of the IMF's monetary and capital markets department, said G20 unity was one of the biggest positive economic developments in recent years, but disunity would damage the recovery. "It's fundamental that you keep your house in order, but it's also fundamental that when the going gets rough, you cooperate," he said at a conference in Washington.
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G20 and Central Bank Governors Joint Communique

The economy is in recovery and a sustainable economy is the best way to preserve that recovery. On June 5, G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors issued a “joint communiqué” which indicated that despite regional and national imbalances, the world economy is recovering faster than expected.

However, the recent sovereign debt crisis in Europe and international financial market volatility demonstrate that their are still serious challenges ahead.

Financial reform and sustainable finance are important, but we need to see balanced growth and a mechanism for shared medium-term goals.

We need specific policy actions by governments, the International Monetary Fund, and the World Bank. The government needs to take measures to improve hedge funds, credit rating companies, subsidies, financial derivatives and transparency. The banks also need to increase capital flow, and reduce the need for moral hazard.

We also need to see international accounting standards. Above all we need to see national, bilateral and multilateral efforts to deal with the capital markets to limit the spread of instability and crisis.

Ultimately it comes down to a sustainable framework for cooperation between member states.
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G20 Disagreements and Global Economic Reforms

There are a number of disagreements between G20 member nations. Although the passage of a US financial reform bill was an important step for the recovering world economy, diverging national assessments threaten a coordinated global strategy.

The UN would like to see the developed world assume a greater share of its responsibilities for the green economy. Americans and Europeans disagree on whether to maintain or withdraw stimulus. The US warns against choking off nascent growth, while European countries are imposing austerity measures to manage rising levels of debt.

Canada disagrees with key European nations on taxing banks. Canada has argued against taxing banks to guard against future financial crises, while Britain, France and Germany want to see a tax on the banking sector.

China's recent announcement of renewed flexibility in its currency, the yuan, will probably succeed in deflecting attention away from new protectionist measures.

There appears to be agreement that the global system is under-capitalized and a there is a broad consensus on the need to invest more capital. Although there is agreement on the broader issue, there is disagreement on implementation time frames. Europe wants to move slowly to give its banks time to adjust, while the U.S. would prefer to see a faster pace.

The G20 has a pivotal role to play, decisions made by economic leaders in Toronto will not only determine the future of the economy, they will decide the future of our environment. While there seems to be agreement on the need for sustainable growth, charting a strategy to get there is proving difficult.

We need international economic reforms that will help maintain stability. We also need a strategy that positions green as the engine that will drive the global economy.
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Competing National Priorities

The members of the G8, G20 and other nations all have their own interests, the way these competing interests come together will ultimately determine the strategic direction of the global economy. Here is a simplified summary of the national priorities of eight key players:

Canada: Sustainable global growth, avoiding a bank tax, and the stabilization of government debt particularly in Europe.

The United States: Slow the global removal of fiscal stimulus to protect the recovery.

The European Union: Financial reform regulation, (bank tax and IMF reforms), fiscal sustainability and growth.

China: Ward off protectionism.

Japan: Avoid a bank tax, and free trade.

Russia: Medium-term European fiscal sustainability and preserving the recovery.

Brazil: More rights within the IMF.

India: Greater representation in the IMF and opposition to a bank tax.

Competing national interests will make it difficult to find agreement. The need for economic stewardship demands that our leaders look beyond local and regional interests to forge the basis of a consensus.
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Program and Plans for G8 and G20 Summits in Canada

The G8 Huntsville Summit Plans

Deerhurst Resort in Huntsville
Muskoka, Canada.

Friday, June 25 2010

Besides factors affecting the health of women and children in poor countries, the G8 was scheduled to discuss a new legal framework for a UN led deal to combat climate change. G8 members were also expected to discuss a post-2012 agreement that includes a robust system of emissions reductions monitoring and reporting.

Although limiting the rise in temperatures to below 2°C (3.6°F) above pre-industrial times was part of earlier drafts, the G8's "Muskoka Accountability Report" doesn't even mention progress towards limiting warming.

The G20 Toronto Summit Program

Metro Toronto Convention Centre,
Toronto, Canada

Saturday, June 26 2010

G20 leaders arrive at the Toronto Airport Infield Terminal at the Lester B. Pearson Airport in Toronto. Over the course of the two day summit, global economic leaders are expected to discuss the recovery, finanical reforms, European instability, Chinese currency initiatives, free trade and the reduction of global imbalances. While sustainable growth is a dominant theme, details on managing climate change may not get the attention they deserve.

18:30 Official welcome and reception of G20 leaders and spouses by Stephen Harper, prime minister of Canada, and Laureen Harper, at the Royal York Hotel.

Sunday, June 27 2010

09:00 Opening plenary session.

12:30 Family photograph.

17:00 Chair's press conference.
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The G20 and the Green Economy

The green economy can provide a very real return for people and economies and the G20 can play a pivotal role in sustainable development.

The Executive Director of UNEP, Achim Steiner, said that green spending offers "a very real return for people and economies, north and south...The G20 particularly has huge potential in energy, mobility, buildings, agriculture, forestry, [and] water."

Last year, ahead of the April, 2009 G20 summit, over 50 of the world's largest businesses joined forces to call for sustainable stimulus packages. An open letter to the British Prime Minister asked for a coordinated global recovery package with private sector incentives to stimulate the low carbon economy.

This year, it is becoming increasingly clear that we are in recovery and green projects have helped to stimulate the sagging world economy. Although $500 billion has been earmarked for green initiatives, UNEP has a $750 billion dollar goal. It is worth noting that developed nations are responsible for the majority of the 250 billion dollar shortfall. In contrast, China is responsible for almost 40 percent of funds earmarked green

Unlike many in the developed world, China is investing massively in cleantech and this has effectively positioned it as a world leader in renewable energy. This sector now employs 1.5 million people with 300,000 new workers added in 2009 alone. India has been successful in its efforts to improve water security.

China and India may have received considerable attention for their growing emissions, however they are also showing leadership. It is the developed world that is falling behind and must step up its efforts.

"The green economy is not a luxury, but a 21st century imperative on a planet of six billion, rising to 9 billion in just 40 years," Steiner and Pavan Sukhdev, head of UNEP's Green Economy initiative, wrote in a pre-G20 comment.

There is a shift to greener economic growth, and this includes a higher value on nature, but the developed world must assume greater responsibility. Steiner has indicated that the G20 summit is an opportunity for developed nations to contribute their share to the green economy.
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UN Chief Asks G20 to Focus on a Sustainable Recovery

Leaders of the group of 20 developing countries (G20) are scheduled to meet in Toronto, Canada, June 26-27, to discuss the recovery of the world economy and the reform of the international financial system in the aftermath of the global crisis.

According to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, G20 leaders should focus on environment-friendly measures to promote global economic recovery.

In an open letter to the G20 leaders, Mr Ban said,“Based on our collective experience, the best way to enhance the framework for strong, sustainable and balanced economic growth is to put development front and centre, and to invest in a green economic recovery for all.”

“Now, more than ever, investments for the world’s poorest are necessary to recover lost ground in pursuit of development objectives, including the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs),” Xinhua quoted Mr. Ban as saying.

The UN chief welcomed the G20’s intention to include development in its agenda during this week’s summit and at the Seoul Summit in November 2010. “Such an approach can help address food security and climate change, while ensuring job creation,” Mr. Ban said.

The UN is amongst a growing number of organizations that see the green economy as a means of consolidating the recovery, as Mr. Ban said, “Going forward, I encourage support for initiatives that will sustain recovery efforts while enhancing global economic stability, environmental sustainability and achievement of the MDGs.”

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G20 Security Concerns Force Cancellation of Sustainable Supply Chain Event

Although the UN chief has voiced his support for the green economy, security concerns for the G20 meetings in Toronto have forced the cancellation of the "Greening the Supply Chain" event.

More than 5,000 police officers will be on the streets of Toronto during the G20 summit meetings June 26-27.

The security presence is not only to ensure that foreign terrorists cannot use the event to attack the world's economic leaders, it is also in place to protect against domestic militants whose tactics have earned them the name Black Bloc. The self-described anarchists have declared war against capitalism and they seek violent confrontation with the authorities.

They are called the Black Bloc because they are commonly clad in black clothing. These 'confrontation junkies' often wear masks to conceal their identity. Black Bloc members will typically insert themselves into a large, peaceful protest march. In such large groups, acts of violence by masked troublemakers make it hard for police to identify individual culprits.

Police barricades will deny motor vehicle traffic and a 9 ft. high fence has also been constructed to defend the entire G20 perimeter. The Toronto Stock Exchange (TSE), the CN Tower, the University of Toronto and the Art Gallery of Ontario, will all be closed during the G20. So will banks and grocery stores, even Via's train service has been interrupted.

Events were being cancelled days before the start of the G20. On Tuesday June 22, 2010, Green Enterprise Ontario and Live Green Toronto were prepared to present an event titled "Greening the supply chain - an eco-opportunity." However, instead of discussing ways of developing a green purchasing strategy, Toronto is closed for business.

Protecting infrastructure from vandals is an expensive proposition. According to Canadian Finance Minister Jim Flaherty security for the G20 meeting in Toronto will cost Canada over $1 billion dollars. “In today’s climate, it’s unfortunately necessary to spend substantially in order to have good security,” Flaherty said.

The Black Bloc are amongst the reasons why we need to close public buildings, board up businesses and employ expensive security measures.

The vandalism of these masked militants drains valuable resources and interferes with the important work of developing a green economy.
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Curbing Banker's Bonuses and Climate Change

Heads of state are responding to the widespread public outcry over the perception of excessive compensation in the banking industry. The French president Nicolas Sarkozy is leading the way with strict new bonus rules.

In Australia bank executives stand to lose more than $50 million in annual bonuses if the current government bans short-term incentive payments in the financial services sector. This is a reiteration of the G20 meeting in April, where leaders called for curbs on bonuses.

However, if restrictions on bonuses in the financial services sector are to mean anything they will have to be agreed upon internationally and this is very unlikely.

Politicians are trying to win political favor by taking advantage of prevailing anti-banking sentiments. They know full well that their feigned indignation will not forge an international agreement to curb bankers pay. To illustrate the point, Sarkozy's promise of tough regulations comes with the all important caveat that they not be enforced without global agreement.

Dutch banks have also introduced a new code of conduct that includes capping executive bonuses. However, this new Dutch approach does not force banks to curb bonuses nor does it come with legal sanctions as banks need only explain why they have chosen not to comply.

As British finance minister Alstair Darling said last Thursday, "Banks need to be responsible about pay and bonuses and one of the things that is concerning me is that when you tackle banks about this they say that if you do something here, the Americans, the Swiss, or the French ... will poach our people."

Even in the unlikely event that legislation is passed in both the EU, and the US, there will always be nations without such stringent sanctions and these countries will claim the most talented people.

"Government has got a legitimate interest in making sure that you don't encourage behaviour that is damaging, but I think that is just one part of what we need to do to get the banking system going again," Darling said. "There is a generalised concern. What we need to do is make sure that we introduce legislation that actually works, that actually helps and strengthen our banking system," he concluded.

Regulation is required to limit excessively risky lending, and many see merit in employing other regulatory channels beyond legislation. Last week in Britain the financial regulator known as the Financial Services Authority (FSA) published a bankers' pay code and according to the British finance minister, the FSA is "the obvious vehicle to use."

These kinds of capital rules will hurt banks' profits and restrict their lending ability. Efforts to curb banker bonuses are a ruse. As Lord Turner pointed out, “insisting that someone ‘does something’ about bonuses is a populist diversion.”

COP 15 is now only 3 months away, and while political rhetoric scores points with a disgruntled public, it siphons energy away from the tremendous efforts required to find consensus on climate change. Instead of pandering to voters by pretending to curb bankers pay, world leaders should be working towards real consensus on climate change.
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