•Scenario-based simulations with EnergyPLAN based on Choice Awareness Theory.•Evaluation of recent coal power phase-out plans on annual and hourly bases.•Decarbonising effects of the coal phase-out ...and electrolytic hydrogen production.•Analysing the coherence of phase-out policies and low carbon technology diffusion.
We analyse whether Germany will fall short of the country’s decarbonisation targets. Bearing this potential failure in mind, the present study investigates technological options and their effectiveness for decarbonising the energy system from a systemic perspective. We consider the country’s coal phase-out, the increasing amounts of electricity from renewable energy sources, more efficient heating concepts as well as the evolving of smart charging infrastructures and large-scale storage options. Based on the declared plans of the federal authorities and alternative proposals of environmental associations, ten distinct decarbonisation scenarios for the period from 2020 to 2030 form the basis of our models. Using the Energy PLAN simulation tool, annual and hourly performance indicators were computed in order to evaluate the effectiveness of decarbonisation measures. In particular, we examine the increasing usage of electrolysers for both the absorption of excess electricity and the production of hydrogen as a substitute for fossil fuels in relation to the timing of the coal phase-out. Pursuing this approach, we demonstrate the coherence between coal phase-out policies and low carbon technology diffusion. Our findings reveal that implementing the coal phase-out earlier than has been scheduled by the country’s Commission on Growth, Structural Change and Employment mitigates the non-achievement of the decarbonisation targets. Moreover, our results suggest the upscaling of domestic electrolyser capacity to up to 9554 MW by 2030.
Forest Landscape Restoration (FLR) is globally recognized for the restoration of diverse forest ecosystem services across extensive landscapes. Many studies have emphasized the importance of ...cross-sectoral policy alignment. However, current initiatives aimed at restoration face obstacles due to fragmented management structures across different sectors. This study argues that bridging this gap necessitates a deeper understanding of policy mix elements and their characteristics. This involves scrutinizing policy instruments in various domains to gain insight into complex policy design problems. Using Ethiopia as a case, we identified four sectoral policies due to their relevance to FLR. Within these policy domains, a total of 11 major goals and 46 instruments were identified. We employed a methodological approach known as the Cross-Impact Matrix (CIM) to analyze the interaction between goals and instruments as a specific characterization of the policy mix in FLR-related policies. The results reveal varying levels of coherence based on 121 interactions among eleven goals in the CIM. Additionally, the consistency of instruments was analyzed through 2116 interactions among 46 instruments. As a result of these interactions, specific regulatory instruments, like the acquisition and use of agricultural land, negatively impact FLR efforts by introducing the risk of overlapping and insecure land use rights, including those related to the 2018 Forest Development, Conservation, and Utilization Proclamation and others. This overlap potentially creates challenges when implementing other policy instruments that support FLR. On the other hand, the REDD+ policy creates a positive and conducive environment for implementing other instruments. In conclusion, this paper underscores the importance of considering the complex nature and dynamics of real-world challenges in shaping the policy mix for FLR.
•The factors that shape policy mix for Forest landscape restoration (FLR) are complex and dynamic, hence requiring attention.•The interaction among regulatory, procedural, economic, and informational policy tools influence the outcomes of FLR.•Key policy instruments trigger ripple effects in the policy mix, needing attention to address trade-offs and align synergies.•A methodological approach like cross-impact matrix is important for assessing the coherence and consistency of policy mix.
Abstract The global tourism industry has witnessed significant growth, with China emerging as a powerhouse in this sector. However, China’s tourism faces challenges related to service quality, market ...organization, technology adoption, and market share loss. To address these issues, there is a growing consensus between the government and the industry to promote high-quality tourism. This paper explores the phenomenon of industrial integration, where boundaries between sectors within the tourism industry blur, leading to the emergence of new collaborative models and novel forms of tourism. While previous research has primarily focused on the economic impacts of such integration, this study delves deeper into its effects on quality development, using empirical data at the enterprise level. The findings reveal that industrial integration has a substantial positive impact on the performance and productivity of Chinese tourism companies. Companies embracing integration strategies exhibit better financial performance, as evidenced by higher returns on equity (ROE) and total factor productivity (TFP). These integrated firms demonstrate improved financial strength, profitability, and overall operational efficiency. Unexpectedly, the study uncovers the significant role of residential tourism consumption in integration rates, highlighting the complex relationship between local demand and industry dynamics. The implications of this research extend to industry leaders and policymakers, advocating for a transformative approach to integrated tourism. It emphasizes the potential of cross-sectoral collaboration, digital technology adoption, talent development, and policy support in enhancing performance and sustainability. The study’s insights empower stakeholders to contribute actively to the future of China’s tourism industry, fostering a holistic and sustainable approach to integration that benefits all stakeholders. This research contributes to a deeper theoretical understanding of integration’s dynamics, enriching the discourse on the interconnected factors driving integrated tourism models.
The pursuit of climate stabilisation scenarios requires large-scale decarbonisation of power, heat, industry, and transport sectors. Cost-efficient climate neutrality strategies will primarily ...involve direct electrification of final energy demands, based on variable production from wind and solar PV as the primary source of renewable energy. Cross-sectoral integration is going to increase traditional electricity demands and is also expected to contribute with valuable flexibility in future electricity markets, particularly through bi- and multivalent technologies. However, the nature of market clearing and price formation effects in wholesale electricity markets with large amounts of renewable energy and significant cross-sectoral integration remains unknown. In this paper, we show and quantify that cross-sectoral demand bidding is going to be crucial for the price formation in future electricity markets. We found in a large-scale cross-sectoral capacity expansion and long-term cross-border transmission expansion study for the future integrated European system that bi- and multivalent cross-sectoral electricity consumers will be making market bids based on their valid opportunity costs. These price-setting technologies mainly include direct resistive and heat pump heating units. Unlike previous work, we can show and quantify that there will likely not be too many zero or even negative price situations due to excess renewable production in the system since the additional cross-sectoral consumers will, depending on their actual flexibility potential, use low-carbon electricity to supply final energy sector demands. Our results demonstrate how important it is to adequately capture cross-sectoral interactions and a variety of technology combinations in a high spatio-temporal solution when analysing future market clearing and electricity price formation effects in low-carbon energy systems. We anticipate our contribution to be a starting point for more sophisticated models incorporating detailed representations of cross-sectoral flexibility to investigate low-carbon energy markets further.
•Explicit modelling of cross-sectoral demand bidding is crucial for electricity price formation in low-carbon power markets.•Hybrid cross-sectoral consumers limit the role of zero or even negative prices in integrated systems dominated by renewables.•Future electricity market clearing requires capturing of sector interactions and a variety of technology combinations.
Climate change has considerably dominated science-policy dialogue, public debate, and subsequently environmental policies since the three “Rio Conventions” were born. This has led to practically ...independent courses of action of climate change mitigation and biodiversity conservation actions, neglecting potential conflicts among outcomes and with missed opportunities for synergistic measures. Transformative governance principles have been proposed to overcome these limitations. Using a transformative governance lens, we use the case of the Norwegian "Climate Cure 2030" for the Land Use, Land-Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) sector to, first, illustrate the mechanisms that have led to the choice of climate mitigation measures; second, to analyze the potential consequences of these measures on biodiversity and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions; and, third, to evaluate alternative measures with potential positive outcomes for biodiversity and GHG emissions/removals. We point to some mechanisms that could support the implementation of these positive actions.
Access to affordable renewable energy and clean water are among the most prominent challenges humankind faces to ensure a non-discriminatory comfort of living. Innovation in system engineering meets ...with new energy carriers, enabling synergistic effects defined as “sector-coupling”. For instance, hydrogen and Reversible Solid Oxide Cells (rSOCs) are innovative technologies that yield multiple valuable effects.
This paper evaluates the impact of such technology in novel PV-hybrid storage mini-grids with close access to seawater, achieving simultaneous renewable energy storage and seawater desalination thereby. The novel mini-grid operation is simulated in archetypal rural communities from developing countries (Sub-Saharan Africa) for 365 days of operation. The study encompasses three development scenarios in agreement with sustainability policies in force. The analysis of results allows finding the fittest mini-grid asset to achieve techno-economic optimization. A trade-off solution is identified with a critical reading of results in a future perspective: the Levelized Cost Of Electricity (LCOE) for a system with at least 70% renewables penetration is in the range of 0.29–0.43 €/kWh, while the rSOC runs with the only energy storage task. Moreover, the availability of seawater pushes LCOE below 0.20 €/kWh since it is also possible to benefit from the desalination function. This result aligns with the most economic mini-grid asset that can be implemented while embedding a significant energy performance increase.
•A brand-new technology is proposed to tackle the critical water-energy nexus.•Heterogeneous metrics are introduced to quantify cross-sectoral integration effects.•Tanzania's development scenarios are analyzed.•Sector coupling produces positive leverage on the unitary cost of electricity.•Optimal mini-grid asset forecasts LCOE<0.200 €/kWh and water availability up to 0.4 L/day/p.
The role of the parliamentary arena and members of parliament (MPs) therein for both mainstreaming and cross-sectoral policy integration is largely unknown. Studying the case of Switzerland, this ...paper analyzes the integration of the biodiversity issue into policies of 20 different policy sectors over a period of 19 years to assess how two specific actor attributes—issue and sector specialization—increase the chances of MPs of engaging in both biodiversity mainstreaming and its cross-sectoral integration. The results based on a comprehensive collection of political documents from the parliamentary arena, and multilevel regression models show that an increase in MPs' sector specialization is associated with both a decrease in mainstreaming and a decrease in cross-sectoral integration activities. By contrast, an increase in issue specialization typically translates into biodiversity-related activity in a larger number of sectors. In the parliamentary arena, therefore, it is primarily a small group of “issue specialists” who take responsibility for the integration of crosscutting issues, such as biodiversity, into critical sectoral policies.
Development planning and implementation is a multifaceted and multiscale task mainly because of the involvement of multiple stakeholders across sectors and disciplines. Even though top-down sectoral ...planning is commonly practiced, bottom-up cross-sectoral planning involving all relevant stakeholders in a transdisciplinary learning environment has been recognized as a better option, especially if the goal is to drive development projects toward sustainable implementation (Rowe and Fudge 2003; Müller et al. 2005; Global Development Research Center 2008). Even though many planning approaches have this goal, there are limited decision frameworks that are suitable for achieving consensus among stakeholders from multiple disciplines with sectoral objectives and priorities. In most instances, the upstream and downstream effects of development decisions are not thoroughly investigated or communicated with the relevant stakeholders, strongly affecting cross-sectoral integration in the real world (Wiek, Brundiers, et al. 2006). This article presents methodological aspects of developing a stakeholder based life cycle assessment framework (SBLCA) for upstream–downstream decision analysis in a multistakeholder development planning context. The applicability of the framework is demonstrated using simple examples extracted from a pilot case study conducted in Sri Lanka for sustainable posttsunami reconstruction at a village scale. The applicability of SBLCA in specific planning stages, how it promotes transdisciplinary learning and cross-sectoral stakeholder integration in phases of project cycles, and how local stakeholders can practice life cycle thinking in their village development planning and implementation are discussed.
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