Report: Motu Economic and Public Policy Research
From May 2014 through February 2016, Motu Economic and Public Policy Research convened a group of about 20 cross-sector stakeholders to explore pathways to achieving zero net greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in New Zealand. Participants engaged in their personal capacity, not as organisational or sector representatives.
New Zealand's Low-Emission Future: Transformational Pathways
The Motu Note entitled New Zealand's Low-Emission Future: Transformational Pathways presents a synthesis of ideas that emerged during the course of nine meetings of the Low-Emission Future Dialogue. This document presents a synthesis of ideas that emerged during the course of nine meetings. This is the first in a series of outputs from the Dialogue process. The group’s work suggests that a successful zero-net-emission economy lies within New Zealand’s reach, and any number of pathways could take us there. New Zealand’s strategic approach to the low-emission transition should be adaptive, enabling us to manage risks and capitalise on new opportunities as they emerge. In planning for the future, we can position New Zealand for accelerated transformation by:
- building our capacity to innovate;
- enabling experimentation;
- leaving desirable options open; and
- avoiding lock-in to high-emission technologies, infrastructure and behaviours that will hold us back in the longer term.
Low Emission Future Dialogue: Pathway Milestone for a Low-Emission Future - First Edition
This document is offered in the spirit of sparking discussion, not as recommendations. It presents a preliminary “idea bank” of potential pathway milestones identified during the course of Motu’s Low-Emission Future Dialogue that might help with achieving low-emission outcomes for the stationary energy, land transport and agriculture sectors. These ideas resulted from a series of creative brainstorming sessions by Dialogue participants with a range of interests and expertise. They have not been listed in chronological order or prioritised. Some may be interdependent and others mutually exclusive. While some may already be underway or show significant potential, others may not be technically, economically, or socially feasible or may be undesirable for other reasons. Some may only be remote possibilities. Individual Dialogue participants may not agree with many of these ideas. We invite sector experts to work with us to assess these potential milestones, suggest which milestones could be deleted or added, and explore how these milestones could be achieved through practical actions by specific actors.