(MENAFN- The Peninsula) Sachin Kumar | The Peninsula
As decision makers and opinion leaders, parliamentarians can play a decisive role in the transition to the green economy in their respective countries, said a senior UN official. 'There several things that parliaments can do (to move towards green economy). Exercising their law making power they can ensure that there is more investment into technologies that promote green economy they can ensure that investment into research and development for green technologies, Mario Socorro Manguiat (pictured), Senior Legal Officer, United Nations Environment Programme, United Nations Environment Programme told The Peninsula.
'Parliamentarians can create requirements for green procurement because governments are usually the biggest consumer in a country. So if a country decides that it wants to go green then by requiring government to purchase services and equipment that are green then you start the revolution of supporting the green economy, she added.
An inclusive green economy is low carbon, efficient and clean in production, but also inclusive in consumption and outcomes, based on sharing, circularity, collaboration, solidarity, resilience, opportunity, and interdependence.
'Parliaments can also examine what subsidies are in place. If there are subsidies for polluting technologies and industries, parliament can remove these subsidies and see that subsidies are used of other better purposes, she added. She explained green economy looks beyond the traditional model of systematic economic growth to one in which economic development maximizes human well-being within a low carbon, resource efficient and socially inclusive economy.
The green economy seeks to drastically reduce waste and limit the resources and energy that go into consumption and production, particularly through the development of new technologies and other innovative processes (the principle of efficiency). At more advanced stages of development, the green economy also seeks to ensure that efficiency gains throughout the economy are not nullified by exceeding levels of consumption and production.
The transition to a green economy can advance the global sustainable development agenda by providing a pathway to poverty eradication and supporting the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Many countries are taking, or have already taken, steps to reform their legal and governance structures to incorporate laws and policies which promote a green economy.
The green economy is an indispensable pathway to meet the inter-related economic, social and environmental objectives of sustainable development. At its core, this economic model calls for a re-think of the very meaning of human development and progress as something more than material accumulation, important as this measure may be.
When fully applied, the green economy can lead to a more equitable social order, a more fulfilling lifestyle, and a more symbiotic relationship between people and nature.
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