Decreasing trade to cut emissions may squeeze poor countries’ incomes
Press release: April 3, 2012 A new SEI study shows why development concerns need to be embedded in low-carbon strategies: shifting consumption in high-income countries to bring benefits, not losses, to poor countries.There’s a growing awareness of the role of consumer choices in reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and a 2009 U.K. study showed that an aggressive effort to change consumption patterns – to buy fewer goods and more services, reduce waste, and eat less meat (while keeping overall spending levels the same) – could reduce associated emissions by at least 10 per cent.