Dr Rónán Kennedy of the Technology and Governance research cluster, has a new piece on RTÉ Brainstorm. The article discusses a need for new institutional approaches to tackling climate change.

Why it’s necessary to create new climate change institutions

The Climate Change Advisory Council has said that ‘Ireland is completely off course in terms of achieving its 2020 and 2030 emissions reduction targets’.

Opinion: Paradoxically, climate change is better tackled in a bottom up fashion through a variety and range of activities across different scales of governance.

It has been clear for quite some time that international, European, and Irish climate change law and policy is not delivering the emissions reductions that are required.

This has received considerable media attention in recent weeks, perhaps because of the protests spearheaded by the activist Greta Thunberg and led by children worldwide. The Irish government is promising a radical new and comprehensive plan to revitalise our efforts to reduce emissions.

However, climate change is a complex and challenging area with significant vested interests who block progress. Nonetheless, there is an urgent need for fresh ideas and meaningful innovation if we are to avoid the potentially catastrophic implications of climate change for Ireland and elsewhere. Continue reading…