Nordic Environmental Fiscal Reform

This briefing by the International Institute for Sustainable Development examines Environmental Fiscal Reform (EFR) in the Nordic countries, highlighting how the alignment of taxes, subsidies, and spending has decoupled economic growth from greenhouse gas emissions and provided a model for post-pandemic economic recovery.

• Nordic countries have demonstrated that economic growth can be decoupled from greenhouse gas emissions; for example, between 1990 and 2019, Sweden's GDP increased by 125% while its GHG emissions decreased by 27%.
• Environmental fiscal reform has had significant economic impacts in the region, including the development of the Danish wind energy industry, which accounts for 7% of Denmark's exports and employs more than 33,000 direct employees. Additionally, in 2018, environmental taxes generated between USD 7 billion and USD 13 billion in every Nordic country except Iceland.
• The Nordic approach to Environmental Fiscal Reform (EFR) involves aligning taxes, subsidies, and spending to1 la a0, and using revenues to reduce taxes that hinder the0 the economy, finance green stimulus, and create price signals to discourage pollution and encourage energy efficiency.

APA

Beedell,, T. L. R. (2021). Nordic Environmental Fiscal Reform. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/publications/nordic-environmental-fiscal-reform-post-pandemic-recovery

Chicago

Beedell,, Tara Laan,Joachim Roth,Estan. Nordic Environmental Fiscal Reform. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2021. https://www.iisd.org/publications/nordic-environmental-fiscal-reform-post-pandemic-recovery.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Beedell, |first1=Tara Laan,Joachim Roth,Estan |title=Nordic Environmental Fiscal Reform |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=15 April 2021 |url=https://www.iisd.org/publications/nordic-environmental-fiscal-reform-post-pandemic-recovery |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{beedell2021nordic, author = {Beedell,, Tara Laan,Joachim Roth,Estan}, title = {{Nordic Environmental Fiscal Reform}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2021}, month = apr, url = {https://www.iisd.org/publications/nordic-environmental-fiscal-reform-post-pandemic-recovery}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }