Steinberger et al., Nature Climate Change, vol.2 pp.81-85, February 2012.
Pathways of human development and carbon emissions embodied in trade
It has long been assumed that human development depends on economic growth, that national economic expansion in turn requires greater energy use and, therefore, increased greenhouse-gas emissions. These interdependences are the topic of current research. Scarcely explored, however, is the impact of international trade: although some nations develop socio-economically and import high-embodied-carbon products, it is likely that carbon-exporting countries gain significantly fewer benefits. Here, we use new consumptionbased measures of national carbon emissions1 to explore how the relationship between human development and carbon changes when we adjust national emission rates for trade.
Referenced in: wrd-005/§5