Climate policy success cases reveal right steps crucial for emissions cut

Merely a higher number of climate policies aimed at reducing emissions do not lead to better outcomes, instead, the right mix of measures is crucial, according to researchers who analysed 1,500 policy interventions implemented between 1998 and 2022.

In their study, published in the journal Science, the authors described 63 success cases, which involved "rarely studied policies and unappreciated policy combinations".

"For example, subsidies or regulations alone are insufficient; only in combination with price-based instruments, such as carbon and energy taxes, can they deliver substantial emission reductions," lead author Nicolas Koch from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK), Germany, said.

The climate policies that the researchers studied covered wide-ranging aspects, from energy-related building codes to purchase subsidies for climate-friendly products and carbon taxes.

The team used a new Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) database,