The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE)’s Grantham Research Institute (GRI) has actively supported the adoption and implementation of the historic Paris Agreement. Research has led to the creation of a new narrative around sustainable growth, supported national climate policy and legislation, and enhanced global understanding of the importance of climate finance.
Issue
The body of work has had wide-ranging impacts on the global climate change debate and on the adoption and implementation of the Paris Agreement - the crucial global umbrella agreement for international climate action.
Approach
The GRI provides a unique environment for interdisciplinary, impact-oriented research intended to shape the global climate debate. Research of the Institute combines disciplinary rigour with a diversity of analytical perspectives, including economics, finance, geography, law, and international development.
GRI has assessed the global momentum in national climate action by tracking and analysing the emergence of climate legislation. In addition to academic work, a key output is Climate Change Laws of the World (CCLW), an open-access database of detailed information about climate change laws and executive acts in 196 countries, and climate court cases in 35 countries.
Impact
GRI research has substantiated the “sustainable growth” narrative and documented economic opportunities arising from climate action. Professor Nick Stern has used his global leadership roles to communicate this powerful message to maximum effect, for example through the Global Commission on the Economy and Climate. The Commission’s first report was launched at the United Nations in New York in September 2014, at an event attended by world leaders and the UN Secretary-General.
GRI research on national climate policy, supported by the unique CCLW database, offers powerful tools for legislators and policy stakeholders to learn from international experiences on how to meet the Paris objectives. The CCLW database has been used by the Mary Robinson Foundation in assisting countries in responding to recommendations on climate change, and by the then-UK Prime Minister David Cameron in his intervention at the Paris Summit.
The GRI team have provided expert advice to national parliaments in more than 10 countries. In New Zealand, officials drew heavily on GRI research when developing a new Paris-aligned ‘net zero’ carbon law, passed in November 2019.
The influence of GRI thinking is evident in references to its research in new guidance on finance for sustainable infrastructure by organisations such as the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), Inter-American Development Bank (IADB), and New Development Bank (NDB).
GRI research has informed UK climate mitigation policy through the five-year carbon budgets, and adaptation policy via five-yearly risk assessments and national adaptation programmes.
More information
Institution: London School of Economics and Political Science
Researchers: Dr Alina Averchenkova, Professor Sam Fankhauser, Professor Nicholas Stern, Swenja Surminski, Misato Sato
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How to cite
Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) (2023) Shaping global climate change policy. Available at https://rgs.org/shaping-global-climate-change-policy Last accessed on: <date>