Taking the Green Economy into the mainstream: Telling the story of the transition

The Green Economy Coalition (GEC) argues that while the green economy narrative is gaining traction, it requires a shift toward moral and economic storytelling, local 'heroes', and systemic financial reform to become mainstream. The document identifies key narrative 'storylines'—such as economic revival, community empowerment, and financial crisis—and emphasizes that emerging economies are currently adopting these frameworks more enthusiastically than developed nations. It specifically calls for the reform of central banks and monetary policy to address systemic risks like 'stranded assets' and 'carbon bubbles', suggesting that civil society must lead this change to overcome political apathy in the North.

• The transition to a green economy is progressing more rapidly in emerging economies than in developed ones, with 65 countries having developed national green economy strategies and sector plans.
• To reach the mainstream, the green economy narrative must combine a moral argument centered on equity and fairness with an economic case demonstrating improved lifestyles, jobs, and public services.
• The current global financial system is deemed unfit for the green transition because it cannot quantify long-term sustainability and its regulators typically operate on short-term horizons of only 36 months.
• There is a significant systemic risk in financial markets due to 'un-burnable' carbon; between 60-80% of coal, oil, and gas reserves held by publicly listed companies cannot be burnt if global warming is to be limited to 2°C.
• Effective communication of the transition requires moving away from abstract goals toward tangible, local outcomes, such as promising 'solar panels on every school building' rather than general 'community renewable energy'.
• Financial reform should specifically target the mandates of central banks and the policies of six global institutions: the IMF, World Bank, OECD, Bank of International Settlements, G20, and the Financial Stability Board.
• Specific regional examples of green economy implementation include South Africa's 'Green Economy Accord' aiming for 300,000 new jobs, and Germany's Energiewende, where 65% of renewable energy is produced by 1.3 million community or individual producers.

APA

Green Economy Coalition (2014). Taking the Green Economy into the mainstream: Telling the story of the transition. https://www.greeneconomycoalition.org/assets/reports/GEC-Reports/Taking-the-green-economy-mainstream-The-story-of-the-transition-F.pdf

Chicago

Green Economy Coalition. Taking the Green Economy into the mainstream: Telling the story of the transition. 2014. https://www.greeneconomycoalition.org/assets/reports/GEC-Reports/Taking-the-green-economy-mainstream-The-story-of-the-transition-F.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Green Economy Coalition |title=Taking the Green Economy into the mainstream: Telling the story of the transition |date=1 September 2014 |url=https://www.greeneconomycoalition.org/assets/reports/GEC-Reports/Taking-the-green-economy-mainstream-The-story-of-the-transition-F.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{greeneconomycoalition2014taking, author = {{Green Economy Coalition}}, title = {{Taking the Green Economy into the mainstream: Telling the story of the transition}}, institution = {Green Economy Coalition}, year = {2014}, month = sep, url = {https://www.greeneconomycoalition.org/assets/reports/GEC-Reports/Taking-the-green-economy-mainstream-The-story-of-the-transition-F.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }