63 ‘success stories’ identified from 1,500 climate policies over 24 years
The largest study of environmental measures ever conducted hones in on the most effective but casts many as not fit for purpose, with a new interactive tool helping people find what works.
The joint project was undertaken by teams at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research [PIK] and the Mercator Institute on Global Commons, and Climate Change [MCC]. Experts at the University of Oxford and the University of Victoria, and the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development [OECD] also had input.
Evaluating 1,500 policy measures that have been implemented in 41 countries between 1998 and 2022, the work covered the full spectrum of environmental interventions, from energy regulations to carbon taxes and sustainable products. From this, just 68 success stories have been identified – rated as those that delivered emissions reductions between 0.6billion and 1.8billion tonnes of CO2 annually.
‘While it remains challenging to precisely disentangle the effects of individual measures within a policy mix, our 63 success cases provide systematic insights into effective policy combinations, and show how well-designed policy mixes depend on sectors and the development level of countries,’ said lead author, Annika Stechemesser from PIK. “This knowledge is vital for supporting policymakers and society in the transition to climate neutrality.’
The work has also found that combining policies into a ‘regulatory mix’ is often more effective than attempting to introduce a single catch all rule, which contradicts recent schools of thought that suggested a simple framework was better than complex, multipronged approaches.
A number of industry-specific best practice examples were also identified. These included pricing mechanisms for industry and electricity. incentives and regulations combined for buildings and transportation, and regulatory and subsidy measures for developing economies.
‘We systematically evaluated policy measures that have rarely been studied until now, providing new insights into well-designed combinations of complementary policy instruments. From this, we derive best practices – for the building, electricity, industry and transport sectors, and in both industrialised countries and often neglected developing countries,’ added co-lead author Nicolas Koch of PIK and MCC.
‘Our findings demonstrate that more policies do not necessarily equate to better outcomes. Instead, the right mix of measures is crucial,’ they continued. ‘For example, subsidies or regulations alone are insufficient; only in combination with price-based instruments, such as carbon and energy taxes, can they deliver substantial emission reductions.’
A new Climate Policy Explorer interactive website has now been launched, which contains all the findings across each individual measure included in the study. You can use this resource here.
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