What is green economy?
The green economy is defined as economy that aims at reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities, and that aims for sustainable development without degrading the environment. It is closely related with the ecological economics, but has a more politically applied focus. The 2011 UNEP Green Economy Report argues “that to be green, an economy must not only be efficient, but also fair. Fairness implies recognizing global and country level equity dimensions, particularly in assuring a just transition to an economy that is low-carbon, resource efficient, and socially inclusive.“
☆A green economy aims toward the development of the society as a whole, without hampering the natural ecosystems, or environment to be more specific, to get desired results.
Do we need to go green?
Everywhere we go, people talk about going green. Whether it’s the use of plastic bags, or harmful chemical, people have been trying to avoid them for their own betterment.
While it’s easy to get overwhelmed, it’s also simple to begin making a positive impact. Since it’s helpful to understand the big picture when it comes setting to smaller goals, we’ve adjusted our focus for this guide; a departure from out typical “how to go green?” content, which typically tackles very specific topics such as kitchens, cars, or pets – to take a broader look at the reasons behind why we should go green.
The truth is that everything we do every day has an impact on the planet – good or bad. The good news is that as an individual you have the power to control most of your actions and, therefore, the impact you create. From where you live to what you buy, eat, and use to light your home to where and how you vacation, to how you shop or vote – you can have global impact.
But embracing a greener lifestyle isn’t just about helping to preserve equatorial rain forests, it can also mean improving your health, padding your bank account, and, ultimately, improving your overall quality of life.
Importance of green economy
The green economy approach is an effort to focus sustainable development and poverty reduction efforts on transforming economic activities and economies. Important components of the approach include the use of economic instruments, the creation of an investment-friendly environment, and directing public and private investment towards building natural capital stocks. The concern of the industrialized economies is how to reduce environmental risks and keep the economy green, the concern of the developing economies is how growth can be promoted without degrading the natural resource base and with respect for the principles of low-carbon economy.
Over the past decade, the concept of the green economy has emerged as a strategic priority for many governments. By transforming their economies into drivers of sustainability, these countries will be primed to take on the major challenges of the 21st century – from urbanization and resource scarcity to climate change and economic volatility.
In 2008, UN Environment launched the Green Economy Initiative (GEI), a programme of global research and country-level assistance designed to motivate policymakers to support environmental investments. At the UN General Assembly 2015, UN Environment published “Uncovering pathways towards an inclusive green economy”. The document stresses concepts such as sharing, circularity, collaboration, solidarity, resilience, opportunity, and interdependence.
“The environment and the economy are two sides of the same coin. If we cannot sustain the environment, we cannot sustain ourselves.”
Site Title 