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Table 1: Motivation and influence for technology adoptionBog'liq 34. FS-Green-TechnologyTable 1: Motivation and influence for technology adoption
Source: United Nations Environment Programme, Environmentally Sound Technologies for Sustainable Development (Osaka, Division of
Technology, Industry and Economics, 2003). Available from www.unep.or.jp/ietc/techtran/focus/sustdev_est_background.pdf (accessed 6
March 2012).
Until fossil energy resources and GHG emissions are priced appropriately, marked by the point when distorting
subsidies are removed and externalities are internalized, government policies will need to support R&D and the
adoption of certain green technologies. Four policy measures that have proven successful in the Asia-Pacific
region are: i) renewable energy targets and portfolio standards; ii) renewable energy certificates; iii) feed-in
tariffs; and iv) green public procurement.
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Green technology – agriculture
Agriculture accounts for about 13–15 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions.
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Having a share in global
GDP of only about 4 per cent, it is very greenhouse-gas intensive. Under a business-as-usual scenario, agricultural
greenhouse gas emissions are predicted to rise by almost 40 per cent by 2030. Climate change could reduce
total agriculture production in many developing countries by up to 50 per cent in the next few decades. At the
same time, the population of the world is projected to nearly double, potentially creating tensions between food
supply and demand.
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Green growth in agriculture is achieved through a shift to practices that take into account the regional environ-
mental capacity, by promoting low-carbon production and carbon sequestration capacities. What is needed is
a low-carbon life cycle, not only in terms of production but also encompassing distribution, processing and con-
sumption.
Agriculture that pursues green growth can be characterized as green agriculture – although the term is not
widely used. There are several green concept terms more commonly used in reference to agriculture. Sustain-
able agriculture is one such term. It integrates the three goals of sustainable development: environmental
protection, economic profitability and social equity. Sustainable agriculture covers organic farming, low
external-input agriculture, agro-ecological and bio-dynamic production systems, integrated livestock and crop
farming systems and conservation tillage.
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