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In this report, IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute has mapped the current work on and use of ecosystem accounting in the Nordic countries. Specifically, the report provides an overview of the recent work on ecosystem accounting in each of the five Nordic countries including the Faroe Islands, illustrating advantages and disadvantages within the different countries regarding the use of existing ecosystem accounts, thus to which extent these accounts coincide with new international standards on ecosystem accounting. The report also provides an overview of the ongoing work on ecosystem accounting at an international level, including the development of international standards for ecosystem accounting. Finally, recommendations are presented for the Nordic countries on how to advance the development of ecosystem accounting.

This summary provides a short overview of the recent work on ecosystem accounting in each of the five Nordic countries including the Faroe Islands, illustrating advantages and disadvantages within the different countries regarding the use of existing ecosystem accounts, thus to which extent these accounts coincide with new international standards on ecosystem accounting. Recommendations are presented for the Nordic countries on how to advance the development of ecosystem accounting.

Den här rapporten redovisar resultaten av ett uppdrag att utvärdera försäljningseffekter av skatten på tunna plastbärkassar (härefter plastpåsar) som infördes i Sverige i maj 2020. Skatten infördes för att minska användningen av plastpåsar. Till följd av skatten höjdes i många mataffärer priset för en vanlig plastpåse från runt tre kronor till runt sju kronor. Frågeställningen om vilken effekt som just skatten har på förändringar i försäljningen kräver att denna effekt på något vis kan urskiljas från andra kända och okända faktorer som påverkar butiksförsäljningen. En regressionsanalys genomfördes därför av de för projektet tillgängliga försäljningssiffrorna för plastpåsar respektive papperskassar i ett antal svenska butiker. Resultatet visar att skatten hade en tydlig effekt i minskad försäljning av plastpåsar och en kraftigt ökad försäljning av papperskassar. Styrkan i effekten kan utryckas som 83 procent färre plastpåsar per krona av butiksomsättning. Analysen visar även att konsumenternas preferens till att köpa papperskassar ökade markant vid införandet av plastpåseskatten. Resultatet gäller enbart för de 43 butiker som utgjorde dataunderlaget. Naturvårdsverkets årliga redovisning över antalet plastpåsar på den svenska marknaden visade för helåret 2020 en minskning av antal plastpåsar med 25 procent jämfört med året innan. I siffrorna för 2020 ingår fyra månaders försäljning utan skatt på plastpåsarna, sannolikt är minskningen kraftigare om perioden före skatten skulle jämföras med perioden efter. Det saknas tillgängliga data för den sammantagna försäljningen av plast- och pappersbärkassar i svensk dagligvaruhandel. Den data som projektet haft direkt tillgång till, som inte är ett representativt urval av butiker, visar att försäljningen av plastpåsar i dessa butiker har minskat med drygt 20 procent mellan första kvartalet 2020 (före skatten) och samma kvartal 2021 (efter skatten). Uppgifter inom Sveriges tredje största dagligvarukedja visar att minskningen i de, This report presents the results of an assignment to evaluate the sales effects of the tax on plastic carrier bags that was introduced in Sweden 1 May 2020. The tax was introduced with the aim to reduce the use of plastic bags. As a result, many of the supermarkets increased the price of a regular plastic bagat the checkout counter from three to seven kronor. The question of how the sales effect of the tax on plastic bags requires that this effect somehow can be distinguished from other known or unknown elements that affect sales. Therefore, regression analysis was applied with available sales data covering both plastic and paper bags in a set number of Swedish supermarkets. The results shows that the tax had a strong effect interms of reduced sales of plastic bags, thus an increased sales of paper bags. The strength of the effect is estimated to be 83 percent fewer plastic bags per krona of the total store turnover. The analysis also illustrates those consumers preferences significantly changed to buy paper bags increased sharply when the tax on on plastic bags was introduced. The results are only valid for the 43 supermarkets which is part of the dataset in this assignment. The annual data collection of the number of plastic bags made by the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency of the Swedish market reveals a decrease with 25 percent compared to previous year. The figures for year 2020 includefour mounts of sales without the tax on plastic bags, which is probably why the reduction is stronger than that if the period before the tax were to be compared with the period after the tax. There is no available data for the total sales of plastic and paper carrier bags which covers all grocery stores in Sweden. The directly available data in this assignment, is a sample, thus it’s not representative it illustrates the sales of carrier bags in these stores have decreased with approximately 20 percent between the first quarter of 2020 (before the tax was introduced) and

This commentary lays out four challenges that currently prevent capital markets from contributing to a socially and environmentally sustainable economy. It reflects on how these can be turned into opportunities and the role of transdisciplinary research and action in promoting such change., QC 20210629

This analysis sheds light on the Nordic region's environmental "spillover effect" as a result of our consumption, as well as other social effects.The results indicate that in general consumption-based emissions reveals that the global emissions continue to grow with transport as the biggest source to consumption-based CO2-e emissions from households in the Nordic countries, followed by food and housing. Also, there is a need for better due diligence, transparency and monitoring. Based on reported CO2-e intensities several shifts are suggested to be supported by policy instruments: 1. Shift from beef to other meat consumption. 2. Shift from meat to vegetables. 3. Reduce food waste. 4. Reduce air travel. 5. Shift from private cars to public transportation and soft mobility. 6. Prolong life of goods. 7. Respect human rights. 8. Reduce overall private consumption.

This paper uses matched employer-employee data covering the universe of Swedish private sector firms 1998-2014 to examine the links between exchange rate risk and the skill composition of labor in firms. We use firm x export destination and firm x import origin data to calculate firm-level measures of real exchange rate risk and real effective exchange rates. Our main result is that firms facing higher exchange rate risk employ a higher share of skilled labor and that the effect is especially marked among trade intensive firms in manufacturing and in firms with fewer than 50 employees. This finding is consistent with theoretical models of flexible work systems that require higher skill levels as a way of responding to higher risk.

This paper investigates the role of governance dimensions in socio-economic transitions in line with degrowth, i.e., an equitable downscaling of the economy. Our focus is on experiences from the 2008 economic crisis in Latvia and Iceland. Although these cases are not in themselves examples of degrowth, we see them as important sources of empirical learning from major socio-economical transitions; furthermore, we see crises as possible starting points for future degrowth transitions. This paper applies a governance framework to explore the vast differences in management strategies and crisis outcomes in Latvia and Iceland. In Iceland, public resistance led to a shift in policy measures such that economic inequality and the negative social consequences of the crisis decreased. In Latvia, public resistance existed but had no strong influence. The outcome in Latvia included none of the elements of equitable downscaling found in the case of Iceland. These two cases show how differences in formal institutional arrangements, political culture and societal trust affect different governance dimensions during a time of crisis. The analysis illustrates the importance of institutional and governance dimensions in major socio-economical transitions, and demonstrates how they influence the kind of transition that can be realized., QC 20190521

This paper uses a monopolistic competitive framework to study the impact of trade liberalization on local and global emissions. We focus on the interplay of asymmetric emission taxes and the home market effect and show how a large-market advantage can counterbalance a high emission tax, so that trade liberalization leads firms to move to the large high-tax economy. Global emissions decrease when trade is liberalized in this case. We then simulate the model with endogenous taxes. The larger country, which has the advantage of the home market effect, will be able to set a higher Nash emission tax than its smaller trade partner yet still maintain its manufacturing base. As a result, a pollution haven will typically not arise in this case as trade is liberalized. However, global emissions increase as a result of international tax competition, which underscores the importance of international cooperation as trade becomes freer.