Carbon Lock-in and the Limits of Green Growth
Carbon Lock-in and the Limits of Green Growth The notion of “green growth”—economic growth that is environmentally sustainable—has become a cornerstone of global climate policy. Institutions like the World Bank, OECD, and UNDP promote climate-compatible development strategies that aim to reduce carbon emissions while sustaining economic expansion. However, this article argues that green growth often fails to address structural dependencies on fossil fuel infrastructures, financial systems geared toward short-term returns, and socio-political regimes invested in extractive development. These entrenched systems produce what scholars call “carbon lock-in,” making transformative change exceedingly…
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