Carbon border taxes: Revolution or protectionism?

Fighting climate change is vital to equitable global development and poverty reduction—and international trade can have an important role to play in this. Trade can help countries adapt to higher average temperatures and more extreme weather events by offering consumers lower-emissions goods and services and facilitating the use of climate-friendly technology. But climate change may also negatively affect trade as extreme weather events raise the cost of trade, by destroying or degrading transport infrastructure and reducing agricultural production. And importantly for us here in South Africa with our still globally high carbon intensive inputs in key exports, green border taxes could serve as form of green protectionism as input costs in the developed world rise in the wake of those countries’ energy transitions. To discuss this Michael Avery is joined by Andrew Gilder Director of Climate Legal & Duane Newman, Partner at EY Cova