From Paris to local government action: implementing territorial carbon budgets

Panel: 1. The dynamics of limiting (energy) consumption

This is a peer-reviewed paper.

Authors:
Martin Mickelsson, Uppsala University; Dept of Education; Swedish International Centre of Education for Sustainable Development, Sweden
Helena Lindquist, LightSwitch AB, Sweden
Martin Wetterstedt, Uppsala University; Centre for Environment and Development Studies (CEMUS), Sweden

Abstract

The Paris agreement states that the signees have a shared responsibility of limiting global temperature increase to well below 2,0, and aim for 1,5 degrees. Acknowledging that a major percentage of global warming stems from energy related carbon dioxide emissions, a method has been developed for expressing the global temperature goal as local territorial carbon budgets.

We argue that the method is novel in three ways;

1) it provides a bridge between a global temperature target and a local emission pathway;

2) it inherently communicates the fact that fossil carbon emissions are cumulative to their nature, implying that the current paradigm of setting climate targets is flawed;

3) and it gives fuel to the discussion on sufficiency due to the combination of the high calculated reduction rates the method generates, and how emissions are distributed among countries and people.

To be effective in contributing to the Paris climate goals, carbon budgets need to be implemented on a large scale while retaining depth in context. The aim of this paper is to enquire into the conditions for implementing the Carbon Budget (CB) framework into municipal practice. Using Kotter’s theory of change and the conceptual framework on scaling-as-learning, we understand implementation as a change process, integrating and adapting certain content in practice.

Consisting of three parts, the paper first introduces the CB framework and describes its application and possible interpretations by local stakeholders in a municipal setting. Second, we draw on the change theory to explore change conditions needed for a successful implementation. Finally, we outline processes guided by the conceptual framework of scaling-as-learning as possible support mechanisms for the change conditions of this implementation.