2014 Berlin - Workshop
Transition towards a low carbon economy in India and the EU – Shedding light on Multi-Level Climate Governance and Subnational Laboratories of Experimentation
On the 14th and 15th of April 2014, the Indian-European Multi-level Climate Governance Research Network (IECGN) convened its third session:Transition towards a low carbon economy in India and the EU – Shedding light on Multi-Level Climate Governance and Subnational Laboratories of Experimentation. This time the conference was hosted by the Free University Berlin in Berlin Dahlem. Guests were researchers from Germany (Environmental Policy Research Center FU Berlin, German Institute for International and Security Affairs), India (Centre for Policy Research Dehli, Jadavpur University, Pondicherry University, TERI University) and the Netherlands (VU University Amsterdam).
The meeting in Berlin was an author’s workshop. The papers discussed the transition to a low carbon economy using an analytical method that combines multi-level climate governance and laboratories of experimentation. Through five panel discussions, researchers were able to present their work and gain valuable feedback from the participants. The panels covered themes ranging from bottom-up initiatives and top-down enforcement of low carbon policies to the international dimension of multi-level climate governance. The papers addressed the policy-driven reinforcement of technology development and innovation and the promotion of renewable energy in India and the European Union. They pointed to the role of the subnational levels in climate action planning, climate adaptation, and watershed management, particularly in India.
During the conference, participants were able to attend the IPCC’s April 14th release of Working Group III’s findings for the assessment report on the mitigation of climate change. The IPCC’s conclusions reinforced the need for multi-level climate governance research and for a better understanding of subnational experimentation.
The Institute for Environmental Studies of the VU University Amsterdam will host the next conference of the Indian-European Multi-Level Climate Governance Research Network. It will take place in Amsterdam in November 2014.