From Fossil Fuels to Inexperienced Futures: Oxford and EBC Financial Group on What’s Holding Us Again

EBC Financial Group and Oxford University’s Department of Economics dissect the obstacles to local weather progress, exploring carbon taxes, subsidy reforms, and the position of finance in driving sustainable financial progress globally

OXFORD, United Kingdom, Dec. 05, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — In a world more and more formed by the twin crises of local weather change and financial instability, the Oxford Department of Economics, in collaboration with EBC Financial Group (EBC), hosted a pivotal session within the “What Economists Really Do?” (WERD) collection. The occasion introduced collectively main minds from academia and finance to discover actionable methods for aligning financial techniques with environmental sustainability whereas addressing urgent societal considerations.

The occasion, titled “Macroeconomics and Climate,” featured a keynote lecture by Associate Professor Andrea Chiavari and a panel dialogue titled “Sustaining Sustainability: Balancing Economic Growth and Climate Resilience,” moderated by Associate Professor Banu Demir Pakel. Panellists included Dr. Nicola Ranger, Director of the Global Finance Group of the Environmental Change Institute and Senior Research Fellow at Oxford, and David Barrett, CEO of EBC Financial Group (UK) Ltd. Together, they dissected the intersection of coverage, finance, and human affect, providing sensible insights and suggestions that stretch past theoretical discourse.

Panellists from left to proper: Dr. Nicola Ranger, Professor Andrea Chiavari, David Barrett, and Professor Banu Demir Pakel

From left to proper: Dr. Nicola Ranger (Director of the Global Finance Group of the Environmental Change Institute and Senior Research Fellow), Associate Professor Andrea Chiavari (Department of Economics), David Barrett (CEO of EBC Financial Group (UK) Ltd), and Associate Professor Banu Demir Pakel (Department of Economics)

EBC Financial Group: Empowering Responsible Trading and Sustainable Innovation
EBC Financial Group, a rising presence within the international monetary markets, connects shoppers worldwide to alternatives for buying and selling in foreign exchange, commodities, indices, and extra by its complete brokerage options. Operating throughout main monetary hubs and rising markets, EBC equips merchants with modern instruments and fosters collaboration to handle the evolving challenges of worldwide finance. As the official Foreign Exchange Partner of FC Barcelona and a accomplice of the United Nations’ United to Beat Malaria marketing campaign, EBC is dedicated to shaping a future outlined by sustainability, fairness, and accountable buying and selling practices.

EBC’s participation in WERD displays the rising urgency of bridging monetary markets and tutorial analysis to handle local weather and financial challenges. By contributing to a shared dialogue on actionable methods, EBC joined a group of thought leaders in highlighting sensible steps to align monetary techniques with sustainable improvement targets.

Can We Grow the Economy and Save the Planet?
At the core of the discussions was the popularity that monetary and environmental safety are universally shared considerations. Dr. Chiavari delivered an eye-opening keynote on the financial prices of local weather change. He illustrated the dramatic progress of worldwide GDP because the industrial revolution, juxtaposing this with the environmental toll of fossil gasoline consumption and rising CO2 emissions. Chiavari highlighted the crucial significance of the social value of carbon in shaping efficient insurance policies.

Prof Andrea Chiavari delivering a keynote lecture at Oxford’s WERD Series, addressing the financial impacts of local weather change and carbon taxation

Professor Andrea Chiavari opens the WERD Series dialogue with insights into the financial prices of local weather change and the potential of carbon taxation to drive sustainability.

Central to his message was the idea of the social value of carbon, which quantifies the broader societal prices of emissions. “Carbon taxation is not just an environmental necessity but also an economic one,” he asserted. Dr. Chiavari defined how such measures might create the financial incentives wanted to steer each companies and people towards sustainable decisions. “Well, think again yourself,” Chiavari added. “Turning on the radiator, your benefit is the same as before—having a warmer room. But now your cost is much higher than before.”

Expanding on this level, Dr. Chiavari emphasised that carbon taxation is designed to focus on carbon emissions slightly than vitality consumption itself. “Carbon taxation taxes carbon, it doesn’t tax energy,” he defined. “So it creates huge incentives for the private sector, for people, for you, for us, for me, to move from fossil fuels to alternative sources of energy. It’s not just about reducing energy or output; it creates huge incentives to switch towards alternative energy sources.”

Building on this basis, the panel dialogue delved deeper into the practicalities of aligning financial progress with local weather resilience, moderated by Dr. Banu Demir Pakel.

Bridging Policy, Finance, and Action Through a Panel of Perspectives
The panel dialogue explored the advanced interaction between financial progress and local weather resilience. Each panellist introduced distinct experience to the dialog, providing recent views on how international techniques can adapt to those twin imperatives.

Panelists talk about sustainable finance, local weather resilience, and financial progress at Oxford and EBC’s WERD Series occasion

Panelists from various backgrounds share methods to stability sustainability with international financial improvement through the WERD Series dialogue.

Dr. Chiavari emphasised the worldwide nature of addressing local weather change, highlighting that emissions transcend borders and require a coordinated worldwide response. He mentioned the dangers of carbon leakage, the place stringent local weather insurance policies in a single nation might result in emissions being displaced to areas with weaker laws, finally undermining international progress. To mitigate this, Chiavari advocated for insurance policies that foster worldwide collaboration and innovation, making certain that transitions to sustainable practices are each equitable and complete.

Dr. Ranger highlighted the financial alternatives that may emerge from local weather motion, stating, “This is not just about costs, it’s about opportunities.” Articulating the potential to create jobs and stimulate financial progress whereas addressing local weather dangers, Dr. Ranger additionally burdened the significance of reshaping public narratives. She underscored that efficient local weather motion can foster innovation and progress with out imposing a big monetary burden. She additionally advocates for redirecting fossil gasoline and different environmentally damaging subsidies, which globally quantity to as much as $7 trillion yearly, in direction of inexperienced investments, resembling renewable vitality.

Dr. Nicola Ranger and David Barrett addressing local weather finance options and coverage reforms at Oxford’s WERD Series occasion

Dr. Nicola Ranger and David Barrett spotlight the alternatives for local weather finance and the pressing want for stronger international collaboration at Oxford’s WERD Series occasion.

Leveraging his in depth expertise in monetary markets, Barrett emphasised the significance of aligning market incentives with sustainability targets. He shared a frank evaluation of the sector’s challenges in embracing sustainability, underscoring the profit-driven nature of monetary establishments: “The financial market is driven by the need to make money—whether that’s for its shareholders or investors.” Barrett highlighted the crucial want for governments to create enforceable regulatory frameworks, noting that this alignment is crucial to channel the sector’s affect in direction of significant local weather motion.

On the subject of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) frameworks, Barrett expressed concern over their present implementation, noting, “ESG has become a tick-box exercise.” He referred to as for stronger insurance policies that guarantee accountability and ship measurable affect, slightly than merely assembly superficial compliance requirements.

David Barrett discusses the position of stronger insurance policies for accountability in sustainability at Oxford’s WERD Series panel dialogue

David Barrett, CEO of EBC Financial Group (UK) Ltd, emphasises the necessity for enforceable insurance policies to align international monetary markets with impactful local weather motion.

During a dialogue on local weather “clubs”, Barrett highlighted the dangers of fragmented international efforts. He cautioned, “For these initiatives to succeed, they need to include all major players. Otherwise, the emissions reductions achieved in some regions could be offset by increased emissions elsewhere.” This, he warned, might undermine the collective progress obligatory to handle local weather challenges.

What Practical Steps Should Governments, Businesses, and Individuals Take to Build a Sustainable Economic Future That Feels Attainable and Secure for Everyone?

Separately, the moderator and panellists had been interviewed to broaden on this important query, offering various views on the collaborative roles of governments, companies, and people in addressing local weather challenges.

The Role of Governments: Policies and Planning
Dr. Demir Pakel emphasised the significance of training and consciousness in addressing local weather change, notably the position of governments in driving change. “The government’s role is to start with increasing awareness,” she defined, stressing the necessity for early training in regards to the penalties of local weather change. She highlighted the necessity for insurance policies that not solely incentivise the personal sector but additionally information shopper behaviour, noting, “It’s a complex network where governments hold the primary responsibility for planning and guiding action at every level.”

“The private sector needs incentives to be able to take action because they will definitely look shorter-term compared to the government. Therefore, their behaviour needs to be changed, and the government has another role: implementing policies to change the behaviour of both the private sector and consumers,” she added.

Market Incentives and Carbon Taxation
Dr. Chiavari bolstered the necessity for government-led interventions, notably by carbon taxation, as a way to appropriate market failures. He defined that by incorporating the societal value of emissions into vitality costs, governments can encourage extra accountable consumption and funding selections.

Changing the Narrative: A Positive Transition
Dr. Ranger mirrored on the present challenges in local weather motion, echoing {that a} important a part of the issue lies in consciousness. “At the moment, something is going wrong, and I think a lot of that is about the awareness side,” she famous. “Governments play a role, but the government fundamentally does what the public will vote for. And a lack of awareness of the immediate benefits of a green energy transition—for energy security and public health—is a key problem at the moment.”

Ranger criticised that the narrative surrounding local weather change has failed lately by framing it as a expensive and burdensome problem. “Particularly the narrative is this is going to cost a lot of money to deal with. I don’t agree with that view and it is not supported by the evidence. You know, we have to make hard decisions, but what we know is that right now the way we are approaching this is making it harder—specifically, a lack of certainty from government on its policies stalls investment and increases the costs. All the evidence shows that if we get the right policies in place and set a clear path for investors, a just transition is both the lowest cost and more beneficial pathway,” she stated.

Pointing to fossil gasoline subsidies, she highlighted how their redirection might catalyse a constructive transition. “Globally, we pump so much money into fossil fuel subsidies—estimates range from five to seven trillion dollars a year. If you stopped that and put it into clean technologies, we would have solved the problem.”

To handle this, Ranger referred to as for a shift in public discourse to stress the financial alternatives inherent in local weather motion. She burdened the position of teachers and specialists in reshaping the narrative, saying, “We need to make sure people understand this is a positive transition. Through good government policy, the impact on individuals will not be significant and would actually boost job growth and innovation.”

Ranger concluded by urging governments to take the lead in altering this narrative, saying, “What I’d really like to see is governments getting behind this and saying, ‘Look, this is what’s going to happen. It’s going to benefit you. Here is the pathway. This is what both investors and the public need.’”

The Role of Businesses and Individuals: Accountability and Innovation
Barrett offered a candid perspective on the position of companies and people in local weather motion. He highlighted the monetary sector’s profit-driven nature, cautioning that it might not lead sustainability efforts with out clear regulatory frameworks. “Financial markets will not do it on their own. They need to be incentivised to act,” he acknowledged. “Once the financial sector is pointed in a direction and gets enthusiastic about a topic, it can accomplish incredible things, but it requires clear policy and incentives to get there.”

Barrett additionally mirrored on the position of people as voters and customers, stressing that their decisions can considerably affect coverage and company behaviour. “Policy needs to be much better at educating the voter about what it wants and how it should expect that to come about,” he remarked. By prioritising sustainable practices and holding policymakers accountable, people can drive systemic change.

While crucial of superficial measures resembling “tick-box” ESG frameworks, Barrett maintained an optimistic outlook on the potential of finance. “Finance can be incredibly innovative,” he famous. “It can move mountains and solve real problems, but it needs the right incentives and honest conversations about what’s at stake.” He referred to as for a shift from short-term political cycles to forward-looking methods, urging all stakeholders to embrace the long-term effort required to handle the local weather disaster successfully.

To watch the total session of WERD’s “Macroeconomics and Climate” episode, together with the keynote and panel dialogue, please go to https://youtu.be/MD5vaMjQdkc.

About EBC Financial Group
Founded within the esteemed monetary district of London, EBC Financial Group (EBC) is famend for its complete suite of providers that features monetary brokerage, asset administration, and complete funding options. EBC has rapidly established its place as a worldwide brokerage agency, with an intensive presence in key monetary hubs resembling London, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Singapore, Sydney, the Cayman Islands, and throughout rising markets in Latin America, Southeast Asia, Africa, and India. EBC caters to a various clientele of retail, skilled, and institutional buyers worldwide.

Recognised by a number of awards, EBC prides itself on adhering to the main ranges of moral requirements and worldwide regulation. EBC Financial Group’s subsidiaries are regulated and licensed of their native jurisdictions. EBC Financial Group (UK) Limited is regulated by the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), EBC Financial Group (Cayman) Limited is regulated by the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA), EBC Financial Group (Australia) Pty Ltd, and EBC Asset Management Pty Ltd are regulated by Australia’s Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).

At the core of EBC Group are seasoned professionals with over 30 years of profound expertise in main monetary establishments, having adeptly navigated by important financial cycles from the Plaza Accord to the 2015 Swiss franc disaster. EBC champions a tradition the place integrity, respect, and shopper asset safety are paramount, making certain that each investor engagement is handled with the utmost seriousness it deserves.

EBC is the Official Foreign Exchange Partner of FC Barcelona, providing specialised providers in areas resembling Asia, LATAM, the Middle East, Africa, and Oceania. EBC can also be a accomplice of United to Beat Malaria, a marketing campaign of the United Nations Foundation, aiming to enhance international well being outcomes. Starting February 2024, EBC helps the ‘What Economists Really Do’ public engagement collection by Oxford University’s Department of Economics, demystifying economics, and its software to main societal challenges to boost public understanding and dialogue.

https://www.ebc.com/

About the Department of Economics
The Oxford Department of Economics is a globally recognised centre of excellence, housing one of many world’s largest communities of educational economists. Known for the depth and variety of its analysis, which considerably influences coverage, the Department can also be celebrated for its dynamic group of early-career students and its extremely regarded undergraduate and graduate packages. In 2024, the Department of Economics was ranked first within the United Kingdom by The Guardian for undergraduate educating. The rating displays the Department’s ongoing dedication to excellence in educating and analysis, solidifying its place as one of many main Economics departments on the planet. Beyond the achievements in educating, the Department’s intention is to provide transformative and modern financial analysis; to have a sustained affect on financial coverage exterior academia; and to develop and practice the following technology of researchers and analysis leaders.

About What Economists Really Do (WERD)
WERD is run as an outreach programme by the Department of Economics, Oxford University to encourage the research of economics and share ‘What Economists Really Do’. On subjects starting from the local weather disaster to labour market discrimination, Oxford economists are working with governments and companies around the globe to enhance coverage and make the economic system work higher for everybody. Find out how economics can be utilized to make clear among the largest points dealing with society at present on this profitable public webinar collection, returning for the fourth profitable collection in 2024-25.

Media Contact:
Savitha Ravindran
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savitha.ravindran@ebc.com

Chyna Elvina
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Global Public Relations Lead
douglas.chew@ebc.com

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