Inspiring equitable transitions from fossil fuels after Covid-19
Through the second Production Gap Report, SEI and its partners worked to ensure the global Covid recovery doesn’t lock in more fossil fuel production.
SEI has spent years working to shift global agendas on climate, energy and development, so that governments are aligning their fossil fuel production plans with the climate goals agreed at the 2015 Paris Agreement. 2019 marked an important milestone for these efforts, when SEI and its partners released the Production Gap Report, which garnered worldwide coverage and caught the attention of policymakers.
Continuing the first report’s momentum, SEI – in partnership with the International Institute for Sustainable Development, Overseas Development Institute, CICERO Centre for International Climate and Environmental Research, Climate Analytics and the UN Environment Programme – released the follow-up report in November 2020, which considered the production gap in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic.
SEI works to avoid lock-ins after lockdown
The Covid-19 pandemic and its social and economic impacts have introduced new uncertainties to closing the production gap. The pandemic – and the lockdown measures to halt its spread – led to a decline in fossil fuel production. But countries’ pre-Covid plans and post-Covid stimulus measures all suggest that the global fossil fuel production gap will continue to grow. The 2021 report found that the world needs to decrease fossil fuel production by 6% per year to limit global warming to 1.5°C. Yet countries are planning and projecting an average annual increase of 2%, producing more than double the amount of fossil fuels in 2030 than would be consistent with a 1.5°C temperature increase limit.
This year’s report also explored the equity dimensions of a transition away from fossil fuels. It dedicated an entire chapter to examine how countries, with limited financial and institutional capacity, will face significant sustainable development challenges, that are being exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic. Countries highly dependent on fossil fuels and with limited capacity to transition away from their dependency will need international support to do so. The report discusses practical pathways to help that cooperation.
SEI’s partnerships for change and innovative communications drive impact
SEI’s strong and enduring partnerships were the driving force behind this work. Working closely with influential partners, including UNEP, UNSG, the ODI, the IIDD and E3G, provided the foundations to create a scientifically credible and policy relevant report. Additional external funding ensured SEI had the resources to meet the ambitious goals for the report.
A well-developed and smoothly implemented communications strategy, which included producing and releasing materials in multiple languages and multi-media outputs, significantly helped the work to reach its target audiences. SEI’s team worked closely with UNEP representatives to coordinate the launch of the 2020 report so that it was released on the same day that the UN Secretary-General António Guterres gave his “State of the Planet” speech and was included as part of their overall engagement plans around the five-year anniversary of the Paris Agreement.
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