Today, the Superpower Institute has officially opened its doors.
Chaired by former ACCC Commissioner Rod Sims, and founded by leading Australian economist Ross Garnaut, the Superpower Institute was created to help Australia seize the immense economic opportunities of the post-carbon world.
With unparalleled renewable energy resources and its ‘clever country’ scientific and engineering capabilities, Australia is perfectly positioned to be a superpower in the world of net zero emissions.
Renowned economist Ross Garnaut and economic public policy expert Rod Sims have joined forces through the Superpower Institute, to focus on practical research and policy to unlock this boom.
The Institute specialises in the regulatory settings and market incentives needed to make Australia an economic superpower and will provide practical knowledge to governments and industry to realise this opportunity.
Launching the Institute during a speech to South Australia’s Industry Climate Change Conference, Rod Sims, Chairman of the Superpower Institute said:
"Securing Australia’s place in a decarbonised global economic order is a once in a century economic opportunity."
Securing Australia’s place in a decarbonised global economic order is a once in a century economic opportunity.
“If Australia seizes the opportunity offered by the world’s transition to zero net emissions it can repeat the experience of the China resources boom which peaked around 10 years ago.
“But this time the opportunity can be sustained for some decades - rather than boom and bust - and we can manage it better for productivity and broadly based development.”
Ross Garnaut founder of the Institute says, “Australia’s future prospects for full employment with rising incomes depends on harnessing the economic advantages in the transformation to a decarbonised world.
“A net zero emission Australian economy will reduce global emissions by just over 1%. But if Australia successfully seizes the economic advantage in exporting zero emissions goods, this can create economic expansion as large as the China resources boom in its strongest years and much more durable, and reduce global emissions by around an additional 7%.
“It will make it less costly and more likely for the rest of the world to get to net zero soon enough to avoid catastrophic disruption from climate change”.
The Superpower Institute is a not for profit and is initially focussing on:
- Providing roadmaps to governments on how to secure the economic benefits of the post-carbon world.
- Provide open data, for example, in the areas of methane and the National Electricity Market to ensure accountability and measurement of these critical carbon emissions.
- Build coalitions with industry and governments to fastrack Australia’s superpower economic status.
