[As you will have seen, there has been very little activity on this blog for a week. That’s because I was in Oakland, California working with the Global Footprint Network with whom I will be opening a new office in Brussels in the very near future. I am quite happy to be able to work with an organisation which I think has the potential to become one of the thought leaders on sustainability economics and the necessary transformation needed to end our ecological “overshoot“. More on these activities later]

One of the most interesting reports to come out last week was published by the UK’s Carbon Trust. In an excellent analysis of the impact of the EU’s emissions trading scheme on the competitive position of our European manufacturing industry, the Carbon Trust has concluded that the effects of the EU’s climate policy flagship on our industry are quite small, except for some sectors (cement, steel, glass, chemicals) which might need to be helped with some further free carbon allowances. On Wednesday 23 January, the European Commission will propose its ideas to broaden and strengthen the ETS from 2013.

Further reading: