New Caledonia is a land of contradicting forces. It is a lush biodiversity hotspot, containing a high level of endemic wildlife. The local economy on the other hand, particularly the mining and metallurgy industries, has an impact on the environment. The stakeholders responsible for public development and environmental protection policies need to monitor the shifting state of the environment using the most effective tools available. 

The Environmental Sustainability Gap methodology, or ESGAP uses a scoreboard and a number of detailed criteria to monitor environmental conditions. It provides information on changes in the state of different components of the environment, emphasizing the gaps that exist between these changes and the objectives of maintaining or achieving "good environmental status" for each component, or between how things are and how they should be. ESGAP in its current form was conceptually developed taking the European Union as a case study. This assessment was carried out by the Ecological Accounting Chair, in partnership with WWF France's “Conserving Natural Capital” program.

This pilot project implementing the ESGAP scoreboard in New Caledonia aims to assess the operationality of this tool, in territories where environmental data are lacking and fragmented. If effective, the project can be enriched and implemented in New Caledonia, in order to inform public decision-making.

The project is based on an initial study carried out Europe-wide, which resulted in the creation of a methodology and scoreboard with the SES (Strong Environmental Sustainability) and SESP (Strong Environmental Sustainability Progress) indicators. 

 

The methodology used in this project was based on the work of Paul Ekins’ team at the Institute for Sustainable Resources, University College London. The ESGAP method assesses the sustainable use of natural resources, critical pollution loads for ecosystems, biodiversity, and human health and well-being, and identifies the territory's overall level of sustainability with regard to these four components. It was adapted for New Caledonia, its institutional constraints and regional ecological specificities.

As part of a field study, some 30 stakeholders responsible for environmental management (including decision-makers, managers, research centers, NGOs and the private sector) were consulted in order to:

• Provide information on the four environmental components and adjust them to the local context
• Define the environmental objectives to be achieved or maintained, as well as the associated indicators in the New Caledonian context
• Collect the data required to build the indicators

Statistical analysis was then performed to develop the ESGAP composite indicators from the databases provided.

The project made it possible to calculate New Caledonia's environmental sustainability score: the aggregate sustainability score was 43%, which represents a gap of 57% compared to an ideal of 100% sustainability.  

Despite the scattered, fragmented data, the analysis reveals the critical load of pollution on ecosystems function in New Caledonia. Greenhouse gas emissions, burnt areas and bathing water quality have an increasingly heavy toll.

On the other hand, biodiversity and human health measures are in a relatively sustainable state. The ESGAP analysis shows, for example, that fish resources and outdoor air quality have reached their sustainability objectives and can now be maintained. 

Implementing ESGAP also reveals the lack of data on the state of the environment in developing countries and territories. Coordinated efforts on international frameworks could improve the quality and availability of environmental data. Consultation around ESGAP has also revealed a lack of regulatory frameworks, as well as of quantifiable environmental and scientific objectives. 

Nevertheless, the ESGAP framework makes it possible to summarize the state of natural capital, and can be used for environmental management, even when only certain indicators are used.

Finally, the project has provided insights into how ESGAP could be implemented in other countries, and has established connections with other international sustainability monitoring frameworks.

The final report is available on the Chair and WWF France websites.

Contact :

Oskar Lecuyer

Because they are government-supported, have an official mandate to carry out public policy objectives, and their combined assets amount to $11.2 trillion, PDBs represent important instruments to address market failures and promote a responsible and sustainable economy, aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 

Despite their current global renaissance, academic research on these institutions remains limited. This research program aims to fill this gap, and to better understand these key institutions, with the ambition of Realizing the Potential of Public Development Banks for Achieving Sustainable Development Goals.

The objective of this research program is to deliver concrete recommendations on how to scale up PDBs' potential at achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and supporting structural transformations towards a more responsible and sustainable global economy.

It focuses on three main actions:

All the working papers published under this research program, listed below, are available for free downloading. For each research paper, you can also read a overview in two pages, and watch a short video.

Overview

• 10 policy recommendations for decision makers on Public Development Banks, Stephany Griffith-Jones (iPD, Columbia University), Régis Marodon (AFD), Jiajun Xu (INSE, Peking University) (This general synthesis of the whole research results will soon be available)
• Can development banks step up to the challenge of sustainable development? Régis Marodon (Agence française de développement, AFD)
  Have a look on the key findings 
  See the video pitch

Inclusion of Development Banks in the Global Financial Architecture

• Exchange Rate and Balance of payment risks in the Global Development Finance Architecture, Alfredo Curutchet Schclarek (National Scientific and Technical Research Council, Argentina); Jiajun Xu (INSE)
  Have a look on the key findings
  See the video pitch
   
• The Global Development Banks’ Architecture, José Antonio Ocampo (School of International and Public Affairs, SIPA, Columbia University)
  Have a look on the key findings
  See the video pitch
   
• From global to local: subnational development banks in the era of Sustainable Development Goals, Sergio Gusmão Suchodolski (Development Bank of Minas Gerais, BDMG); Adauto Modesto Junior (BDMG); Cinthia Helena de Oliveira Bechelaine (BDMG)
  Have a look on the key findings
  See the video pitch
   

Business Model of Development Banks

• Matching Risks with Instruments in Development Banks, Stephany Griffith-Jones (Columbia University); Shari Spiegel (United Nations-Department of Economic and Social Affairs, UNDESA); Jiajun Xu (INSE); Marco Carreras (Institute of Development Studies, IDS); Natalya Naqvi (The London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE)
  Have a look on the key findings
  See the video pitch
• The allocation of resources of National Development Banks: Does it fit development goals? Laurent Wagner (Foundation for Studies and Research on International Development, FERDI)
  Have a look on the key findings 
  See the video pitch
• Effective Development Banking: Loans or Guarantees?, Eduardo Fernández-Arias (Visiting Research Fellow, Peking University); Jiajun Xu (INSE)
  Have a look on the key findings
  See the video pitch

Characterization of SDG-compatible investments

• Piloting and Scaling Up Clean Energy Transitions: The Role of Development Finance Institutions, Samantha Attridge (ODI); Jiajun Xu (Institute of New Structural Economics, Peking University, INSE); Kevin Gallagher (Boston University)
  Have a look on the key findings
  See the video pitch
• Climate Change and Development Bank Project Cycles, Harvey Himberg (Green Climate Fund); Kevin Gallagher (Boston University); Jiajun Xu (INSE)
  Have a look on the key findings
  See the video pitch
• Scaling up public Development Banks’ transformative alignment with the 2030 Agenda, Maria Alejandra Riaño (Institute for Sustainable Development and International Relations, IDDRI); Jihane Boutaybi (IDDRI); Damien Barchiche (IDDRI); Sébastien Treyer  (IDDRI)
  Have a look on the key findings
  See the video pitch

Regulatory frameworks

• Financial regulation of National Development Banks, Ricardo Gottschalk (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development); Lavinia Barros (The Brazilian Development Bank, BNDES); Jiajun Xu (INSE) 
  Have a look on the key findings
  See the video pitch
• Carbon Policies and Climate Financial Regulation, Ulrich Hege (Toulouse School of Economics, TSE); Frédéric Cherbonnier (TSE)
  Have a look on the key findings
  See the video pitch

Governance

• Financial performance and Corporate Governance: Evidence from National Development Banks in Africa, Samantha Attridge, Yunnan Chen, Michael Mbate (ODI)
  Have a look on the key findings
  See the video pitch
• Checks and balance, Political Leadership, and Bureaucratic Autonomy: Evidence from National Development Banks, Tianyang Xi (National School of Development, Peking University, PKU); Jiajun Xu (INSE)
  Have a look on the key findings
  See the video pitch

PDB Database Building Flagship Reports 

• Identifying and Classifying PDBs and DFIs, Jiajun Xu, Régis Marodon, Xinshun Ru
  See the video pitch
• Funding Sources of National Development Banks, Jiajun Xu, Kedi Wang, Xinshun Ru
  Have a look on the key findings
  See the video pitch

• Jiajun Xu, Executive Deputy Dean at the Institute of New Structural Economics (INSE) at Peking University
• Stephany Griffith-Jones, Financial Markets Director at Columbia University (England)
• Régis Marodon, Special Adviser on Sustainable Finance at the Agence française de développement (AFD)