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The current situation in the world is with a restless economy circulating in Russia. Will they manage to be a sustainable Superpower?
A lot of news circulating in the media related to the ongoing Russia Vs Ukraine war? The impact is calculated to be a crucial moment of change in world history. Russia with many economic sanctions resulted in the drop of the Rubbles to become a negligible currency and transformed the country’s economy into recession territory.
What can the country’s future be in Sustainability? As per Earth.org Global Sustainability Index, Russia is ranked 157th. In climate change, it is ranked 52nd.
In 2016, Russia has been rated as the 4th largest GHG emitter. Russia did consent to the 2019 Paris Agreement. In 2018, climate legislation was introduced to impose emission quotas and penalize big polluters. However, it got opposed strongly by the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs for a five-year emission audit.
The Paris agreement also looks difficult for Russia to meet, as the GHG emissions seem to decrease from their current levels. The government is also opposed to developing a low-carbon economic development strategy.
Due to the current issues with the policies, it is predicted that the emission will increase from 8-27% by 2020 and 18 to 25% by 2030. The climate crisis is a severe issue in Russia. It results in the spreading of infectious diseases, more droughts, flooding, wildfires, and permafrost thaw.
The targets to implement the SDGs by the Russian Federation are carried out by different sectoral government bodies with a national development policy till 2024. The twelve national projects are integrated with the SDGs with a comprehensive plan to modernize and expand the backbone of infrastructure. The Russian Federation has established 17 thematic groups to address each of the SDGs.
A study by World Bank shows that the improvement in efficiency in Russia can cut the energy consumption by 45%, the amount is equal to France’s total annual energy consumption.
In another report by Credit Suisse, only 110 Russian citizens hold 35% of the nation’s household wealth. It leads to suggest that Russia’s wealth gap is the worst you can think of.
Just like Poland, Russian Federation is dependent on fossil fuels such as oil, gas, and coal. The production of fossil fuel is more than 90% of the country’s energy compared to the non-existed non-fossil fuel energy resources.
Russia is known for its superpower capabilities. The king of fossil fuel reserves. But with the current trends and as the world is shifting towards more sustainable solutions. Russia needs to tighten its policies with strict measures. The goals are set with fixed agenda. But how far will it be possible for Russia to adhere to its goals?
It is not easy for any country to make an immediate shift but needed to survive in the long term.