Major economies talk green recovery, hydrogen at Japanese summit

(EurActiv, 7 Sep 2020) Major economies promised to recover green after COVID-19 and accelerate climate action during a virtual ministerial meeting hosted by Japan on Thursday (3 September). EURACTIV’s media partner, Climate Home News, reports.

Japan’s environment minister Shinjirō Koizumi convened ministers from across the world to launch an online tool for countries to share their experiences in designing climate-compatible recovery packages for their economies.

Opening the event, Koizumi said he hoped the initiative would spur greater action ahead of critical climate negotiations, or COP26, in Glasgow, UK, in November 2021. Countries, he added, were expected to demonstrate political will and evidence of how they were using stimulus money to accelerate emissions cuts.

To date, in many cases, government bailouts have thrown a lifeline to dirty energy. Since the start of the pandemic, G20 governments have pledged $204 billion of support to fossil fuels. That is 52% of all public money committed to the energy sector, compared with 35% for clean energy, according the Energy Policy Tracker.

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EurActiv, 7 Sep 2020: Major economies talk green recovery, hydrogen at Japanese summit