International Energy and Climate Policy - International Climate Policy

ECN Policy Studies carries out studies on the design of international climate policy, the role of energy technology and the interaction with other energy policies. Knowledge is applied for supporting policy makers in discussions and negotiations regarding international climate policy, with emphasis on the continuation of the Kyoto-process.

News and Events

• 21 December
  Heleen de Coninck on outcomes of COP15 in NRC Handelsblad
• December 2009
  Special Newsletter Edition COP15
• 7-18 December 2009
  ECN Policy Studies at COP15
• ECN COP 15
• ECN Policy Studies on side events
  - Shaping the future of urban transport (ICLEI, 11 December 2009): ECN will present work on post-2012 mechanisms for transport.
  - Accelerating cooperation and financing for climate technology: Innovative programs and experiences (11 December 2009): The side event, organised by the Climate Technology Initiative, NREL, Ecologic and ECN, will present practical experiences with clean technology collaboration. Heleen de Coninck will present her PhD thesis ‘Technology rules!’
  - Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS): new research directions on politics, promises and pitfalls of CCS (12 December 2009): CO2 capture and storage is projected to become a significant climate mitigation option, but still faces challenges. This event presents critical views on CCS’s prospects. Heleen de Coninck will present on CCS in the international climate regime.
  - Readiness and early action (14 December 2009): Early action is crucial to tackle climate change. Good plans and finance are needed. This side event, opened by Minister Cramer (Dutch Minister of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment) presents a pilot study on road-testing and methodology development for low carbon strategies (ECN) and a study on estimated costs (UNEP/Project catalyst.
• 19 November 2009
  ECN joins the Partnership on Sustainable Low Carbon Transport, which aims to improve the knowledge on sustainable low carbon transport, help develop better policies and catalyze their implementation. Already over 40 organisations have joined, covering the UN, multilateral development banks, technical cooperation agencies, NGOs and research institutes.
• 3 November 2009
  AWG-LCA 7 (resumed) Seminar: Financial assessment of the technology proposals under the UNFCCC. Organized by the Nordic COP 15 Group. Related documents: Executive Summary and the Publication 
• 2-6 November 2009: RINGOs Research Update side-event series at UNFCCC meeting in Barcelona
  ECN, with IIED, Colorado University at Boulder, IISD and ETH Zuerich, is co-organising a series of side-events to update the negotiators on climate science, scenarios, impacts and adaptation, technology and mitigation policy. For more information, see the flyer
• 29 September 2009
  AWG-LCA 7 Parallel event: Enabling MRV in the post 2012 regime
• 18 September 2009
  ECN-IVM Symposium - Technology: the key to a Copenhagen agreement?
• 8 July 2009
  Publication in PNAS Early Edition: Sharing global CO2 emission reductions among one billion high emitters
• 8 June 2009
  Side event, Bonn Climate Change Talks
  Confluence or convolution of mechanisms, technology and finance: how can streams meet in Copenhagen?

Ongoing and Recent Projects

ECN contributes to the post-2012 climate negotiations, particularly to the Bali Action Plan building blocks 'Mitigation', 'Technology' and 'Finance', by the following projects:

• Opportunities for transatlantic energy and climate policy, with NREL.
  Read more
• International support for domestic action, with Cambridge University.
  Read more
• MRV in the Copenhagen Agreement aims to support the climate negotiations by analysing how mitigation actions non-Annex I countries and support by Annex I countries can be measured, reported and verified.
• Balancing the Carbon Market investigates the interaction between the CDM and potential post-2012 mitigation actions by non-Annex I, including sectoral approaches and NAMAs. Report
• In Financing Technoloy Transfer ECN supported the UNFCCC by providing analysis and recommendations future financing options to scale up development and transfer of technologies.
• The Information Toolkit for post-2012 climate policies (2007-2009) is a user-friendly tool for facts and figures to support the international climate negotiations.
• Compatibility of technology-based and cap-and-trade approaches for post-2012 climate policy (2006-2007): project with the Institute for Environmental Studies (IVM) at the VU University of Amsterdam, and the Copernicus Institute at Utrecht University.
• Options for post-2012 EU burden sharing and EU ETS allocation (2006-2007): Project with Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (MNP).
• Technology-oriented agreements to address climate change (2006): project conducted with Resources for the Future (RFF).

Publications and Presentations

Publications

• Tradable Carbon Allowances: the experience of the EU and lessons learned. November 2009
• Progress on including CCS projects in the CDM: Insights on increased awareness, market potential and baseline methodologies. April 2009
• Balancing the carbon market - Carbon market impacts of developing country emission reduction targets. March 2009
• Balancing the carbon market - Overview of carbon price estimates. March 2009
• Differentiation in the CDM: Options and impacts. June 2009
• Oil prices and climate change mitigation. May 2009
• ECN contributed to the UNFCCC Expert Group on Technology Transfer report on Financing options for technology transfer. March 2009.
• Considering technology within the UN climate change negotiations. November 2008.
• Climate change mitigation and security of energy supply will benefit from technological innovation
  Heleen Groenenberg, Francesco Ferioli, Stijn van den Heuvel, Marcel Kok, Ton Manders, Stephan Slingerland, Bas Wetzelaer, September 2007
• Agreement on technology? Political feasibility of potential international technology-oriented agreements to address climate change
  Heleen de Coninck, Stefan Bakker, Martin Junginger, Onno Kuik, E. Massey, Bob van der Zwaan, 2007
• Options for post-2012 EU burden sharing and EU ETS allocation
  Jos Sijm, Marcel Berk, Michel den Elzen, Ruud van den Wijngaart, 2007.
• Designing institutions for climate change: why rational design involves technology
  H.C. de Coninck, 2007
• International Technology-Oriented Agreements to address climate change
  H.C. de Coninck, C. Fischer, R.G. Newell, T. Ueno, 2007
• Beyond Climate: Options for broadening climate policy
  Editors: M.T.J. Kok , H.C. de Coninck (ed.), with ECN contributions:
  • Energy supply security and climate change
    R. Egging, F. van Oostvoorn (Chapter 4).
  • Air pollution, health and climate change
    S.J.A. Bakker, H.C. de Coninck, J.C. Jansen (Chapter 6).
• ESCAPE: Energy Security & ClimAte Policy Evaluation
  J.R. Kessels, S.J.A. Bakker, 2005

Recent presentations

• COP13 ECN Side-event
  Mini-symposium: Promise and perils of sectoral and technology agreements, chaired by Bert Metz (IPCC/MNP)
  • Heleen de Coninck (ECN): An introduction to technology-oriented agreements
  • Eric Massey (IVM): Political feasibility assessment framework
  • Michel den Elzen (MNP): Technology in the Triptych approach
  • Joanna Lewis (Pew Center): Envisioning a sectoral agreement in electric power
  • Stefan Bakker (ECN): Technology-oriented agreements: five examples
  • Heleen de Coninck (ECN): Fragmentation in international regimes: cap-and-trade agreements and TOAs
  • Cedric Philibert (IEA): Climate mitigation: integrating approaches for future international cooperation
• Post-2012 klimaatbeleid: technologieovereenkomsten en/of emissiehandel?
  H.C. de Coninck, September 4th, 2007
  VROM lunch colloquium
• Designing institutions for climate change: why rational design involves technology 
  H.C. de Coninck, 2007
  Amsterdam Conference on Human Dimensions of Global Environmental Change
• SB-26 ECN Side-event
  "Fit or misfit? Technology approaches in post-2012 climate policy", May 14th, 2007 
  • Heleen de Coninck: International technology-oriented agreements to address climate change
  • Stefan Bakker: Technology-oriented agreements: five examples
  • Eric Massey (IVM): Political feasibility assessment framework

For more information please contact: Stefan Bakker or Heleen de Coninck

Tools

Information about the Toolkit