Making the most of Italy’s energy resources
The focus of both the G20 in Rome in October and of the COP26 in Glasgow in November was the energy transition. Italy continues to be an active participant in a debate that sheds light on the fact that the transition is not only energy-related, but also an economic, financial, social and cultural one.
Climate change: the COP26 challenge
The COP26 offers a crucial window of opportunity in the struggle against climate change. After the G20 in Naples, the Glasgow conference under the Italian and British presidency will be a moment for the world’s most prominent economies to scrutinize fulfillment of the 2015 Paris Accord pledges and discuss future steps.
Energy in the post-COVID transition between geopolitics and growth
The world economy has started down the right path to achieving the environmental goals set by the EU and those underwritten in Paris in 2015, but still lags behind in terms of deadlines. European efforts must, in any case, be viewed within the broader global context, since all the data point to Asia – headed up by China, but not exclusively – as the worst offender in terms of harmful emissions. This is especially due to the use of carbon in this phase of post-pandemic economic recovery. Asia remains the principal problem even considering the combined American and European contribution.
EU-Russia Forum
Relations between the European Union and Russia have been turbulent lately, and there are currently no signs of that letting up, if not in terms of specific and limited pragmatic expectations. The two parties agree substantially on the assumption that dialogue is the preferable tack in diplomatic relations, even in the presence of deep differences of opinion and interests. Not even a summit is to be viewed as a reward or concession, yet can be useful as an occasion for frank discussion of the thornier issues.
Towards digital, ethical and social sustainability: a competence-based path
Training is going to be key to the post-pandemic economic recovery. Indeed, with the crisis having accentuated social divisions, the accelerating digitization process has even more starkly foregrounded the skills divide.
Infrastructure for smart and resilient cities
The Smart City is an urban model that for some time now has been studied and applied in various parts of the world. The ecological and digital transitions that will be guiding the post-pandemic recovery, however, make investing in this model even more important. The emergency associated with the spread of the virus has highlighted how the possession and best use of data – i.e. the intelligence of a given urban area – are key to ensuring not only cities’ recovery but also their resilience in the face of possible future adversity.
Post pandemic mobility: flexible, integrated, sustainable
Mobility is one of the key concerns in the post-Covid recovery. The pandemic that has forced millions to stay at home for extended periods of time has surely changed habits, and the consequences of this are likely to last well into the future. This is true both from the standpoint of work arrangements – with companies already predicting significant future reductions in hours spent in the office – and with regards to leisure activity and consumption. Flexibility in the use of public spaces and an increased dependence on home deliveries are becoming part of the new normal.
For a sustainable recovery of Italy
Not just a flash in the pan, but a medium to long term boon: the post-pandemic recovery could be described in terms of strategic factors such as economic, social, environmental and institutional sustainability. In other words, the basic points of the European Commission’s 2030 agenda, which the Italian government has taken as the basis for its National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR).
Recovery Plan for the new generation
The European Union response to the pandemic’s economic consequences has been the unprecedented mobilization of 2.4 billion euro in resources. The largest slice of the pie – 672.5 billion – will be earmarked for financing the Recovery and Resilience Facility, half of which is to be disbursed in the form of subsidies and the other half in loans. The end of austerity and renewed Member State solidarity have made it possible for Italy to count on 200 billion euro in such subsidies and loans.
Policies, Costs and Funding for the Green Revolution in Europe and the United States
Rome, 7 December 2020 – Aspen Institute Italia, in partnership with Enel, will be holding an Aspenia Talk on “A new Green Deal between Europe and the USA” in digital mode. The talk will he hosted on the Zoom platform.
The future of energy market
David Livingston
Deputy Director Climate and Advanced Energy, Atlantic Council
A new Green Deal between Europe and the US
The European Union has finally taken a vanguard position on green energy and climate change, approving major steps by other nations, such as China, Japan, South Africa, South Korea and the United States. The election of Joe Biden to the White House and the appointment of John Kerry as special climate envoy strongly suggest that transatlantic cooperation on the Green Deal, among other things, will be relaunched.
The Pandemic and the power sector
An overall energy transition is under way, and has been for several years despite significant structural obstacles and cyclical ups and downs. The ongoing pandemic and the related economic slowdown have come at a critical juncture in this respect. Today’s situation has highlighted a connection between GDP levels, population density and the impact of Covid-19 infections – likely through air quality – as manifested in various areas of Northern Italy and probably elsewhere.
Infrastructure for a better growth
In the July 21 agreement guaranteeing the arrival of resources from Europe in response to the economic consequences of Covid-19, strategic sectors such as infrastructure are to receive significant support. Nevertheless, a series of both technical and institutional complexities threaten to slow the distribution of these funds. The controversy that has developed around a mechanism that hinges on the rule of law is paradigmatic: both the so-called “frugal four” countries and Finland consider the theme central, in contrast to the bitter opposition of countries such as Poland and Hungary.
For a sustainable and responsible economy: the role of finance
Sustainability has been a concern in the financial world for some time now, with steady and significant growth over recent years in investments centered on ESG (environment, sustainability and governance) criteria. Far from slowing that trend, the Corona virus epidemic is proving an accelerator, with investors seizing on the opportunities associated with a “green” recovery and reconstruction.
Global health and climate change: why the Green Deal remains crucial
With lockdowns in place practically all over the world, the peak of the pandemic has morphed into a sort of vast air pollution control experiment, especially in major urban areas, whose very tangible public health benefits will certainly be short-lived and are still difficult to quantify but, in any case, point to an abnormal and clearly unsustainable “remedy”. Nevertheless, there is a considerable overlap between post-pandemic measures and environmental protection efforts.
A new start for post-pandemic tourism
The pandemic crisis now under way is only the latest chronologically since 9/11, the Arab Spring, the 2008 financial downturn and Brexit; not to mention climate change, which acts as a sort of umbrella for all recent emergencies.
Proposals for the future from Aspen Institute Italia Junior Fellows
The economic, social and geopolitical impact of Covid-19 presents challenges that, as they are confronted, will have significant, long-term consequences for the country’s future. In Italy, one of the nations most affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, preexisting economic structural weaknesses make an effective response to the emergency not only strategic but especially difficult.
The great convergence. Innovation in the energy sector and and the new economy
The technological and economic convergence of electrical and gas grids will be what marks the future energy transition, and it will be up to a modern delivery system to create a more sustainable, efficient and circular energy system. The move is toward a change in the energy mix. Indeed, although 46% of electrical power is produced today from coal and nuclear, considerable growth in the use of renewable energies is expected for 2030. The most effective management of the transition, then, will mean keeping environmental and economic sustainability in mind.
XXI Annual Meeting of the Friends of Aspen – Climate change and the air we breathe
Every year there are millions of premature and preventable deaths owing to air indoor and outdoor pollution. Various sources provide differing data, but still there are millions of deaths (between 7 and 9), and 88,000 of these in Italy alone. Diseases that strike all the organs – brain, lungs, heart, and metabolism – and are always traceable to the effects of pollutants, many of which even cross the blood-brain barrier and are therefore neurotoxic. Of particular concern is the impact on the more fragile segments of the population, such as pregnant women and children.
Aspen Junior Fellows Annual Conference – Reconciling the environment and development
The 2019 annual Aspen Junior Fellows conference was dedicated to the choices that must be made to reconcile environment and development, and the importance of the time factor. As the perception of climate change spreads, the emergence of the “Greta phenomenon” and demonstrations by young people around the world demanding attention, are proof of the individual and collective ethical questions that have come to the surface and of the increasing intergenerational friction. Some doubts remain on the conclusions of some scientific analyses and related responses.