A house in a field, with a storm cloud gathering overhead

The Green New Deal

In order to tackle the 'triple crunch' of climate change, economic crisis and oil depletion, we need a Green New Deal.

In July 2008, nef published the world’s first Green New Deal: new initiative for economic and environmental transformation.

The report, A Green New Deal, described the global economy facing a ‘triple crunch’: a combination of a credit-fuelled financial crisis, accelerating climate change and the looming peak and decline in oil production. These three overlapping events threaten to develop into a perfect storm, the like of which has not been seen since the Great Depression. The Green New Deal Group - comprised of experts on climate change, energy and finance - came together to prevent this from happening, and to lay the foundations for the economic systems of the future.

Drawing inspiration from Franklin D. Roosevelt's courageous programme launched in the wake of the Great Crash of 1929, the Green New Deal offers positive action to bring the world back from the point of economic and environmental meltdown. It contains two central strands of reform:

  • Major structural changes to national and international financial systems, including taxation.
  • Sustained investment in energy conservation and renewable energy generation.

The Green New Deal is designed to rekindle a vital sense of purpose, restore public trust and refocus the use of capital on public priorities and sustainability. Since publication, the Green New Deal approach has echoed around the world. From the United Nations Environment Programme, to US President Barack Obama’s administration and the Local Government Association in the UK, organisations the world over have produced their own versions of the Green New Deal. Yet to date, nowhere has a major power re-engineered its economy on the scale needed to face the challenges of climate change and peak oil. The Green New Deal Group is building on its initial report, holding initiatives around the world to account for, champion and share best practice.

Key facts

  1. 1
    The UK spent nearly 20 per cent of its GDP to prop up the financial sector, but just 0.0083 per cent in new money on green economic stimulus.
  2. 2
    Shifting to green energy will produce countless new jobs, and create more pound-for-pound of investment, than propping up the current system.
  3. 3
    With the taxpayer now owning several banks we could make sure that they invest and lend at low, affordable interest rates to support the economy’s environmental transformation.

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