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Indra Øverland
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Indra Øverland leder Senter for energiforskning på NUPI og er Associate Fellow ved Oxford Institute for Energy Studies.
Han forsker på energispørsmål i Sydøst-Asia og Sentral-Asia, særlig Indonesia og Myanmar. Han begynte å jobbe med Sydøst-Asia i 1992, var langtidsobservatør i Kambodsja for Joint International Observer Group (JIOG), ledet samarbeidet med Chulalongkorn-universitetet, Myanmar Institute for Strategic and International Studies (MISIS), og OSSE-akademiet, og har vært gjesteforsker på ASEAN Center for Energy (ACE) i to perioder.
Indra Øverland er medforfatter av den 6. hovedrapporten til FNs klimapanel (IPCC); har publisert en artikkel i tidsskriftet Nature Energy; har blitt tildelt Marcel Cadieux-prisen, Toby Jackman-prisen, Kjetil Stuland-prisen og Kemp’s Best in Energy (Reuters) og har blitt ranger blant de 300 mest publiserende norske forskerne og den niende mest fulgte norske forskeren i sosiale medier.
Han er en aktiv formidler og er intervjuet eller sitert av Al Jazeera, Associated Press, BBC World Service, Berlingske, Bloomberg, CBC, CNN, de Volkskrant, El País, Forbes, Financial Times, Helsingin Sanomat, Het Financieele Dagblad, Hokkaido Shimbun, Le Monde, Le Point, MSN, Newsweek, Politico, Rzeczpospolita, The Economist, The Guardian, The Japan Times, The Straits Times, The New York Times, The Telegraph, Times Literary Supplement, Toronto Star, Tribune de Geneve, Vietnam+, Wall Street China, Wall Street Journal, 24 Heures.
Hans forskning inkluderer “ASEAN’s energy transition: how to attract more investment in renewable energy”, (Energy, Ecology and Environment, 2023), “Integrating 100% renewable energy into electricity systems: A net-zero analysis for Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar” (Energy Reports, 2023), “Moving beyond the NDCs: ASEAN pathways to a net-zero emissions power sector in 2050” (Applied Energy, 2022), “The ASEAN climate and energy paradox” (Energy and Climate Change, 2021), “Environmental performance of foreign firms: Chinese and Japanese firms in Myanmar”, Journal of Cleaner Production, 2021), “Vietnam's solar and wind power success: Policy implications for the other ASEAN countries” (Energy for Sustainable Development, 2021), “Sharing the Spoils: Winners and Losers in the Belt and Road Initiative in Myanmar”, Journal of Current Southeast Asian Affairs, 2020), “Local and global aspects of coal in the ASEAN Countries” (Handbook of Sustainable Politics and Economics of Natural Resources, 2020), The 6th ASEAN Energy Outlook” (ACE, 2020), “Impact of Climate Change on ASEAN International Affairs: Risk and Opportunity Multiplier” (NUPI 2017).
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Utdanning
2000 PhD, Faculty of Earth Sciences and Geography, University of Cambridge
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Emerging powers, the G20, and reform of multilateral institutions
Fremvoksende makter blir stadig viktigere i verdensøkonomien. De blir oppsøkt for støtte både av USA og Kina, og utgjør en sterk blokk innenfor uformelle styringsinstitusjoner slik som G20. De stiller også stadig sterkere krav om reform av FN, Verdensbanken og IMF. Denne rapporten analyserer hvordan Brasil, India, Indonesia, Nigeria og Sør-Afrika ser på sentrale reformspørsmål, og hvordan de prioriterer ulike utenrikspolitiske mål i lys av G20s agenda.
The failure to decarbonize the global energy education system: Carbon lock-in and stranded skill sets
Den globale energiomstillingen medfører en omrokkering av yrker og arbeidsmarkeder, som igjen er avhengig av tilgang på arbeidskraft med riktig utdanning og kompetanse. Denne studien undersøker hvor raskt høyere utdanning, globalt sett, skifter fokus fra fossil energi til fornybar energi i sitt undervisningsinnhold. Artikkelen er basert på en gjennomgang av 18 400 universiteter, hvorav 6142 universiteter i 196 land tilbyr energispesifikke utdanninger. Studien sammenligner forekomsten av utdanningsprogram rettet mot fossil og fornybar energi. Funnene viser at omstillingen til fornybar energi globalt ikke gjenspeiles i endringer i høyere utdanning. Universiteter fortsetter å prioritere kull- og petroleumsstudier. I 2019 hadde 546 universiteter fakulteter og/eller studieprogrammer dedikert til fossil energi, mens kun 247 universiteter hadde fakulteter og/eller studieprogrammer i fornybar energi. Så mange som 68% av verdens energirelaterte utdanninger var rettet mot fossil energi, og kun 32% fokuserte på fornybar energi. Dette vil si at universiteter ikke klarer å imøtekomme den økende etterspørselen etter arbeidskraft innen ren energi. Med den nåværende endringstakten vil energirelaterte utdanninger først være 100% dedikert til fornybar energi i år 2107. Ettersom en karriere varer rundt 30 til 40 år, oppstår det en risiko for langsiktig karbon «lock-in» og utdatert kompetanse gjennom (feil)utdanning. Resultatene indikerer også at utviklingsland henger etter industriland på dette området, til tross for at de har et større behov for fagpersoner innen fornybar energi. Sammen med manglende kapital, underutviklede reguleringsrammeverk for fornybar energi og inngrodde interesser i fossil energi, kan misforholdet mellom energirelatert utdanning og behovene til fornybar energisektor hindre energiomstillingen i mange utviklingsland.
The EU's CBAM and Its ‘Significant Others’: Three Perspectives on the Political Fallout from Europe's Unilateral Climate Policy Initiative
As part of the European Green Deal, the European Commission has launched a tool to protect the fulfilment of Europe's climate policy targets – the carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM). It is thought that the CBAM will spark stiff resistance from Europe's external trade partners, potentially undermining the initiative. How this plays out will depend in part on who the opponents and potential allies are – and how the European Union (EU) engages with them. But which non-EU countries have a stake in the CBAM? The criteria for selecting third countries that are relevant for the CBAM are often implicit, which can lead to contradictory policy analyses and confused climate diplomacy. This research note compares three different perspectives that result in different lists of non-EU countries that are important for the success of the CBAM. Awareness of these three perspectives amongst EU actors can help the CBAM succeed.
A role for state governments in social licensing for renewable energy projects in Mexico
In Mexico, energy governance has mainly been a federal matter. However, the state (regional) governments, motivated by environmental and climate concerns, economic development opportunities, and social community needs, have recently started to explore ways to facilitate renewable energy development. But although state governments claim renewable energy reduces energy poverty and express support for a just transition, these projects do not seem to have social licenses—explicit support for them to proceed—at the local community level. The discrepancy between rhetoric and reality is related to the way these projects are negotiated and implemented. In this policy brief we examine two paths that the Mexican states can take to improve the social licensing of renewable energy projects. First, they can establish a framework for ethical conduct and evaluation of the potential impacts of renewable energy projects, including elements such as adherence to international standards, inclusive planning processes, and environmental and social impact assessments. Second, they can implement proactive, engagement-focused measures that empower state and local governments to facilitate renewable energy projects and reduce transaction costs.
Why carbon border adjustment mechanisms will not save the planet but a climate club and subsidies for transformative green technologies may
We find that both empirical results and economic theory show that carbon border adjustment mechanisms (CBAMs) will be ineffective at meeting global goals for carbon emissions reduction; but CBAMs will be effective at improving the competitiveness of the domestic industries by assuring that imports bear equal costs of carbon pricing. We elaborate two complementary proposals that hold greater promise for meeting climate goals: (i) a Climate Club, where member countries impose a minimum price for carbon emissions at home and a tariff surcharge on all imports from non-member countries; and (ii) a 0.2%-of-GDP subsidy by high-income countries for transformative research designed to make green energy cheaper than fossil fuels. We discuss multiple paths for a Climate Club to be accommodated within the rules of the World Trade Organization and recommend use of the exception clause under GATT Article XX.
Introduction to Climate Change in Central Asia
The Central Asian region has been and will continue to be significantly impacted by climate change and all the region’s countries have pledged nation- ally determined contributions (NDCs) under the Paris agreement. This chapter aims to assess how likely Central Asian countries are to fulfil these pledges. To answer this question, we compare the NDCs to their respective national development programmes and historical trends. The results show that the countries of Central Asia vary in their ability to fulfil their pledges and that doing so will require structural changes to their energy systems, substantial investments in infrastructure and, most importantly, the alignment of their development plans with their declared climate goals. None of the countries have thus far engaged in structural reforms aimed at large-scale climate change adaptation and mitigation.
Climate Change in Central Asia: Decarbonization, Energy Transition and Climate Policy
This chapter provides a broad introduction to the impact of climate change in Central Asia, a region that has been experiencing a greater rise in temperatures than other parts of the world. The chapter shows how climate change represents a significant threat to Central Asia, exacerbating existing economic and environmental challenges and fueling regional tensions over resource management. Inefficient water resource management at the national level and limited regional collaboration on the management of water resources, coupled with state capacities that remain insuffi- cient to tackle climate change impacts, compound water-related tensions between the countries in the region. The chapter also shows how decarbonisation efforts in Central Asia are still in their early stages, with coal remaining a primary source of energy. Although the Central Asian countries have announced decarbonisation targets and adopted green economy strategies and programmes to reduce green- house gas emissions, a large-scale clean energy transition remains unlikely in the short term. The chapter concludes by identifying a lack of scholarship on climate change in Central Asia, which limits the development of a coherent approach to climate change mitigation and adaptation and evidence-based decision-making in the region. The chapter argues that a more coordinated approach to tackling climate change across the region is needed, requiring closer collaboration and more effective joint management of natural resources by the five Central Asian states. Finally, the chapter presents the chapters in the rest of the book.
Central Asian Climate Policy Pledges Under the Paris Agreement: Can They Be Fulfilled?
The Central Asian region has been and will continue to be significantly impacted by climate change and all the region’s countries have pledged nation- ally determined contributions (NDCs) under the Paris agreement. This chapter aims to assess how likely Central Asian countries are to fulfil these pledges. To answer this question, we compare the NDCs to their respective national development programmes and historical trends. The results show that the countries of Central Asia vary in their ability to fulfil their pledges and that doing so will require structural changes to their energy systems, substantial investments in infrastructure and, most importantly, the alignment of their development plans with their declared climate goals. None of the countries have thus far engaged in structural reforms aimed at large-scale climate change adaptation and mitigation.
Energy Transition in Central Asia: A Systematic Literature Review
While there is abundant research on the expansion of renewable energy in developed countries, little attention has been paid to the decarbonisation of energy systems in Central Asia, despite the region’s vulnerability to climate change, its rapidly growing domestic energy demand and the abundance of natural resources essential for the energy transition. Based on a systematic review of the literature, this chapter provides a comprehensive overview of the profile and trajectory of research on energy in Central Asia between 1991 and 2022. It finds that there was a shift from focusing on fossil fuels to clean energy around 2019–2020. However, despite recent growth, research on renewables and their significance in Central Asia is still sparse. This review indicates that while American and European researchers took the lead in this field in 2012, China, Japan, Kazakhstan and Russia have emerged as the leading contributors since 2016.