“Leaders have been rethinking their growth and development strategies since 2008 in response to the twin challenges of a global economic downturn and increasing environmental degradation. Policy makers and
economic planners are always looking for new ways to stimulate growth and the rise of environmental issues – particularly climate change – on the global agenda could be an opportunity. ‘Green growth’ could promote
economic development while responding to climate change, loss of natural capital and resources and addressing social or development objectives. Perhaps more so than conventional economic planning, green growth
planning needs to be an iterative process, adapting to local developments over time and responding to the needs of national and local stakeholders. Planners rarely find the planning process straightforward and rely on
economic principles and tools to inform the process. Conventional tools and methods, however, may not address environmental and social dimensions adequately or look beyond economic metrics.”
