Energy and Environment
Pollution
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To Address Climate Change While Protecting Workers, the United States Needs a Border-Adjusted Carbon TaxThe only way to take effective and far-reaching action to combat climate change while also preserving American competitive advantage is the imposition of a carbon tax with border adjustments.
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Toxic Politics
CFR Senior Fellow Yanzhong Huang discusses how China’s environmental crisis is undermining public health and becoming an Achilles heel in its reemergence as a global power. -
Which Countries Are the Top 5 Carbon Emitters?The United States and China are responsible for more than 40% of global CO2 emissions. Which countries are the world’s biggest carbon polluters?
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China Doesn’t Want Your TrashFor years, China processed more than half of the world’s plastic recycling. Then, in 2018, it stopped. Things have gotten messy since then.
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China’s EIA RollbackA decision to remove environmental impact assessment requirements for some Shanghai construction projects embodies a trend of sliding environmental standards as China's economy slows. It also draws questions about China's greater commitments to environmental protection.
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A Matter of Particular Concern: India’s Transition From Biomass BurningAaron Steinberg is an interdepartmental program assistant at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York. On Sunday, the Indian Election Commission released the much anticipated polling dates fo…
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The Global Health Nexus on Climate Change and PollutionPollution kills nine million people each year and sickens many more, mostly in poorer nations. The global health effects of climate change are less well quantified, but also increasing with lower-income countries again bearing the brunt of greater food insecurity, increased rates of chronic respiratory illnesses, and shifts in malarial zones. CFR’s Global Health, Economics, and Development Roundtable Series held a discussion on the global health nexus between climate change and pollution and how a more coherent approach to these issues can advance progress at a time when some policymakers, especially in the United States, are unmoved by the environmental, health, and economic consequences expected in the coming decades. The featured speaker for this discussion was Dr. Philip J. Landrigan, dean for global health at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and recent co-chair of the Lancet Commission on Pollution and Health.
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How Beijing Addresses Its Air Pollution ProblemBack in 2013, China experienced its worst smog outbreak since 1961. At some point in January, the Air Quality Index (AQI) readings in Beijing were far beyond the levels health officials deemed extrem…
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China’s Environmental CrisisChina’s mounting environmental crisis is endangering the pace of its economic growth and threatening the legitimacy of the ruling party.
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Is China Serious About Pollution Controls?China is developing new tools to address its pressing environmental pollution, but these efforts are likely to be muted until fundamental changes are made to the country’s policy structure, writes CFR’s Yanzhong Huang.
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Tackling China’s Environmental Health CrisisSoaring levels of air, water, and soil pollution pose growing health risks and feed public discontent toward the government, but political hurdles prevent China from effectively addressing the problems, writes CFR’s Yanzhong Huang.
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How Will China Clean its Air?“I’ve been working my whole life on climate change. And now, because of policies to fight local air pollution, Chinese carbon emissions will peak and begin to decline in less than ten years, and our …
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Dutch Court Finds for Shell in Niger Delta Pollution CaseEnvironmental degradation associated with the petroleum industry in the Niger Delta impacts directly on the livelihoods of indigenous farmers and fishermen. Environmental issues were an important bas…
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Three Hurdles for Emissions Trading SchemeIntroduction After months of roadblocks that seemed to signal the demise of South Korea's proposed emissions trading scheme (ETS), the South Korean parliament passed legislation establishing an ET…