NINA NETZER| A GLOBAL GREEN NEW DEAL General Ban Ki-moon in November 2010 as well as pro ­posals for the global organisation of emissions limits such as, for instance, the approach of a global CO 2 budget developed by the German Wissenschaftliche Beirat der Bundesregierung für Globale Umweltveränderungen (WBGU). Similar research results have been produced for other countries as well: in China researchers at the Energy Research Institute of the National Development and Reform Commission have also drafted a Roadmap 2050. The study concludes that it is possible for China to be transformed into a low-carbon society without suffe­ring any losses in development. In view of the various strategies and examples of suc­cess, taking the next steps and adopting binding deci­sions is therefore ultimately largely a question of political will. Business will also channel investments into green technologies as soon as policy-makers set binding re­quirements, create market incentives and minimise risks. What needs to be done, then, to make it possible to agree on binding resolutions in a very short amount of time given the disparate interests involved? How can the per­ceived conflicts be overcome and the next steps tackled? In addition to the no doubt complex tasks faced within the framework of the UNFCCC process, several funda ­mental steps can be identified, on which the attainment of a global Green New Deal depends: Reconciling supposedly contradictory areas of ecology and economy For a long time climate protection and economic growth were and still are to some extent considered to be mu­tually exclusive goals. The concept of a Green New Deal attempts to reconcile these aims through a»green re­covery« generating investment in green branches of the economy. This aim can only be realised with high levels of investment, availability of the right technologies and a certain level of structural development and in­frastructure at the outset, and will pose a much greater challenge to some countries than others depending on their levels of development. Along the path to a global green structural change it must be accepted that both objectives – climate protection and economic growth – are legitimate and the construction of a green economy constitutes a difficult and above all expensive endeavour especially for least developed countries. The right path is to take small steps forward in order to preserve a ba­lance between the two objectives. To this end economic growth and hence development must continue to be possible for a large portion of the population, but in a manner in which ever fewer and ever more sustainable resources are increasingly used. Representatives of devel­oping countries in negotiations have increasingly propo­sed along these lines that a new, legally binding accord on climate protection should set out the right direction at the international level as follows: developing coun­tries have a right to development – it is desirable, how ­ever, that this takes place in a sustainable manner. It is even much more important, however, that all countries‘ own interests in a new, sustainable growth trajectory be revealed through an analysis of the growth and de­velopment potential of new and green markets. Open­ing up options for green, sustainable development to developing countries as well moreover requires financial and technological support from developed countries on a large scale. Defining a common understanding of a Global Green New Deal In order to bring about a Global Green New Deal, which is understood here as a societal change in paradigm to­wards a sustainable form of development, it is necessary that a common understanding of all actors be attained as to what the notion of the Green Economy means. A definition forwarded by the United Nations Environment Programme(UNEP) defines a Green Economy as»one that results in improved human well-being and social equity, while significantly reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities«  2 – but this understanding is not equally shared by industrialised, newly emerging and developing countries. This also became evident when the task was to set out the topics for the sustainability summit to be held in Rio de Janeiro in 2012(Rio+20 sum­mit): in the face of initial resistance by many developing countries, the USA and EU pushed through their propo ­sal to address the key topics of»Green Economy in the context of poverty-fighting and development« and»an institutional framework for sustainable development« prior to the summit. This process reflects the fundamen ­tal misgivings of many developing countries that a Glo­2. UNEP(2010): Green Economy Report: A preview. United Nations Envi ­ronment Programme, 2010. 6