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This chapter examines SDG 13 which deals with efforts to combat climate change. The chapter begins by outlining the targets related to this goal, the trend towards increased heating of the planet and failures to curtail carbon emissions. This is framed using criminological concepts such as state-corporate crime and carbon criminality. The major concern of the rest of the chapter is to outline a climate action plan. As part of this, it discusses a range of initiatives currently underway intended to pressure governments to take more concerted action around climate change. These include activist interventions and climate litigation. The chapter concludes by exploring the possibilities and obligations of global community action to address the most important issue of our era.

The turbulent phase of COVID-19 has caused uncertainty as governments fail to develop coherent strategies for cutting emissions and are struggling to match the rhetoric of sustainable activities with actions (Barbier & Burgess, 2020; Cawthorn, Kennaugh, & Ferreira, 2021). In the recent past, firms have failed in their plans to decarbonise their key sectors such as the retail sector in the United Kingdom So far, retailers' commitment to achieving net zero emissions has been an important pledge but delivery is nowhere closer to their promises (Henriques, 2020). The firms' climate targets are not going to be met by magic as serious action is needed to fulfil the promises.

Fossil fuels have led to a drastic increase in carbon emissions in the world over the last decade. Firms championing cleaner energy and low carbon technologies are needed to cut emissions. Renewable energy sources such as wind energy can help reducing the dependency of fossil fuels (Boretti, 2020; Ebhota & Jen, 2020). Wind is an indirect form of solar energy which can provide environment-friendly option in uncertain times and can provide long-term sustainability of global economy. Solar energy technologies have the potential to decrease climate change through energy-related emissions (Li, Dai, & Cui, 2020). Increasing energy demand has initiated a focus on using hydrogen from water as a substitute for oil and fossil fuels (Boretti, 2020).

The first part of the chapter discusses theoretical perspectives of sustainable development and environmental performance with regards to three main issues: energy, water and carbon emissions, whereas the later part highlights the importance of solar technology as a low-polluted alternative to fossil fuels in the retail sector. Sustainable development of energy, water and environmental precautions such as reducing carbon emissions are of interest to wider branches of industries including retail, energy and water sector, governmental policymakers, researchers, educators and society. The purpose of this chapter is to increase the debate of the key issues of sustainable development regarding environment, energy and water in the modern times.

The purpose of the study is to show the technical potentials of a variety of renewable energy sources in Russia, as well as benefits from their deployment including hydrocarbon savings, emission reduction and lower energy cost.

In the paper, Russia is compared with other countries in terms of actual installed capacity and its dynamics, actual and projected share of renewables in the energy mix. The authors offer calculations of the technical potentials (fuel, heat energy, electrical energy, resource saving and environmental) of renewables (solar PV, wind, biomass, geothermal, low-grade heat, small hydro), identify social and economic preconditions and key effects of their deployment.

The paper features calculations on the renewable energy technology potential, based on the data by Andreenko et al. (2015), authors' calculations and statistical data. This study proves that the cumulative technical potential of the renewables in Russia amounts to 133,935 million units of oil equivalent. This study also offers assessments of oil fuel, black coal and natural gas savings that may be achieved by replacing fossil fuels with renewables; assessments of avoided air pollution calculated as CO- and CO₂-equivalents.

The paper fills in the gap of comprehensive assessments of renewable energy potentials in Russia and a variety of effects that their deployment may entail, based on a single integral methodology. The authors offer a new evaluation of existing and future renewable energy potentials, overcoming the methodological and data constraints faced by previous similar studies. The up-to-date, comprehensive and accurate data will help make the right investment and policy choices.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the dynamic linkages amongst ecological footprints, fossil fuel consumption, real income, globalization and population in Egypt in the period from 1971 to 2014.

The paper uses fully modified ordinary least squares (FMOLS) and dynamic ordinary least squares (DOLS) methods to investigate the long run relationships amongst ecological footprints, economic growth, globalization, fossil fuel energy consumption and population. Moreover, the Toda–Yamamoto approach is conducted to examine the causal relationships between variables.

Empirical results of FMOLS and DOLS methods show that real income and fossil fuel consumption are responsible for deteriorating the environment, while globalization and population are found to mitigate it. As for Toda–Yamamoto–Granger causal relationship results, unidirectional causal relation from globalization, population and fossil fuel energy consumption to the ecological footprint exists. Moreover, bidirectional causal relation between real income on the one hand and globalization and the ecological footprint on the other hand is found.

Using carbon dioxide emissions has major weakness as carbon dioxide emissions are considered only part of the total environmental deterioration so this study is the first study for Egypt that uses the ecological footprint as an indicator for environmental quality and environmental pollution and links it with globalization, economic growth, population and fossil fuel energy consumption. Moreover, realizing the direction of causality between these variables might help policymakers in designing the policies to promote the shift towards clean energy sources, especially that achieving sustainable economic growth with more contribution to the global economy depending on diversification of energy sources without deteriorating the environment is considered one of the most important objectives of Egypt’s National Vision 2030.

This study aims to develop a price policy for fossil fuel consumption, as it is an effective instrument to manage the demand-side of energy economics.

This research estimates the demand elasticities of diesel, gasoline, fuel oil and kerosene by using static, dynamic and error-correction models in log-linear form.

The findings show that fossil fuel demand responds to price changes less than income changes, as fuel price is inelastic, but income is elastic. In that respect, the impact of price change decreases constantly with increasing energy price, followed by subsidy reform. Subsidy removal and price policy reformation is the UN recommendation for subsidizing countries, including Iran, to reduce fossil fuel consumption, whose intensity depends on the price elasticities.

As a result of this price policy, diesel, gasoline and liquefied petroleum gas prices should increase at least 1.8%–7.3%, 4.4%–6.4% and 7%–8.6%, respectively, and gradually within 2018–2030. The price policy improves all the pillars of sustainable development, including economy, environment and social (health). Overall, such a target can potentially save 3%–29% of diesel, 34%–56% of gasoline and 15%–20% of liquefied petroleum gas, as well as reduce 15%–40% of CO₂ emissions annually, and can save potentially more than 510,000 lives annually. Thus, the energy price policy can fundamentally improve sustainability.

The estimated elasticities outline the required prices to decrease the fossil fuels, according to the UN mitigation targets, as price policy recommendation.