Concept of Green Economy
The term ‘Green Economy’ was coined in a report titled ‘Blueprint for a Green Economy’ in the year 1989 (Madiyarova et al., 2015). The concept is an emerging discipline that is primarily associated with economics of sustainable development (Timmerman et al., 2011). It is an economy that is low-carbon, socially inclusive and resource efficient. It is an underpinning strategy that integrates and leverages interdependence of the three pillars of sustainable development - economy, environment and society (Pop, 2011). Green economy primarily implies the need to address systemic challenges of nations beyond GDP, including new approaches to incorporate externalities in economic terms. The externalities comprise environmental and social considerations including but not limited to energy, land, biodiversity, water, forests, health and skill development (UNEP, 2011).
Green growth is an essential requirement to build an economy to attain sustainable development (Zervas, E., 2012). The terms ‘green economy’ and ‘green growth’ are often used interchangeably. Green economy is not a substitute to the earlier adopted economic principles but rather an enhancement for a nation’s economic scenario by incorporating environmental and social aspects. Establishing a balance between ecosystem resilience and resource efficiency is what it takes for a nation to be sustainable in the long-term while transitioning to a green economy. Green policies further accelerate the transition through introduction of policy instruments favouring green financing and investments thereby enabling greener industries and businesses (Chang, 2017). The green economy concept focuses on collaboration between stakeholders to achieve short-term and long-term targets of nations while investing in green finance and technologies. Green finance encompasses financing of public and private green investment and public policies including renewable energy, energy efficient technologies, sustainable consumption and production for tackling climate change (Lindenberg, 2014) .
In its publication ‘The Green Economy Roadmap’, the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) has set forth the ten conditions and suitable policies and actions to transition towards a green economy through collaboration of businesses, government and societies. These are bifurcated into the three triple bottom line approaches of economic, environment and social innovation and are interconnected through mutually reinforcing elements of integrating these innovations with strong governance. A holistic approach with advancement in the ten mentioned dimensions accelerates the transition to a socially inclusive and resilient green economy. Along with multinational enterprises, emerging Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) play a vital role in bringing about a change. The overall framework of policies to achieve green growth need to be clear, concise, time-bound and practical. Global and national bodies are leveraging the concept of green economy to stimulate sustainable development through collaborations and partnerships by adopting common goals and practices (ICC, 2012).