Absolute decoupling in the European Union after the Paris Agreement.

Authors

  • Olurotimi Abiodun Thompson Rivers University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.29173/bcelnfe723

Keywords:

Paris Agreement, decoupling, economic growth, emissions, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, GHG, European Union, climate policy, carbon intensity, technological change

Author Biography

Olurotimi Abiodun, Thompson Rivers University

Olurotimi Abiodun is a graduate student in the Master of Science in Environmental Economics and Management program at Thompson Rivers University. He holds a Bachelor of Environmental Science and has an academic background in environmental economics, sustainability management, and applied policy analysis. His research interests include climate policy effectiveness, greenhouse gas mitigation, green growth, and the economic dimensions of environmental governance. He plans to deepen his expertise in climate and sustainability analytics and pursue a career focused on ESG strategy, climate policy implementation, and evidence-based decision-making, aiming to advance practical and scalable sustainability solutions

References

Cifuentes-Faura, J. (2022). European Union policies and their role in combating climate change over the years. Air Quality, Atmosphere and Health, 15(8), 1333–1340. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11869-022-01156-5

Europe’s environment. (2025, September 29). At a glance | European Environment Agency (EEA). https://www.eea.europa.eu/en/topics/at-a-glance/state-of-europes-environment

Huttmanová, E. ., Chovancová, J. ., Petruška, I. ., & Sallaku, K. . (2024). Circular economy in action: Examining the decoupling of economic growth and material use across EU countries. European Journal of Sustainable Development, 13(4), 13. https://doi.org/10.14207/ejsd.2024.v13n4p13

Nagaj, R., Gajdzik, B., Wolniak, R., & Grebski, W. W. (2024). The impact of deep decarbonization policy on the level of greenhouse gas emissions in the European Union. Energies (Basel), 17(5), 1245. https://doi.org/10.3390/en17051245

OpenAI. (2025). ChatGPT (GPT-5) [Large language model]. OpenAI. https://chat.openai.com

Targets. (21, Nov 2024.). EU: Country targets and climate action. Climate Action Tracker. https://climateactiontracker.org/countries/eu/targets/

Ward, J. D., Sutton, P. C., Werner, A. D., Costanza, R., Mohr, S. H., & Simmons, C. T. (2016). Is decoupling GDP growth from environmental impact possible? PloS One, 11(10), e0164733–e0164733. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0164733

World Bank. (n.d.). European Union: World Bank data. Retrieved December 10, 2025 from https://data.worldbank.org/country/european-union

Wu, Z., Zhao, M., & Ye, Q. (2023). The influence of technology improvements and the consistency of environmental and economic indicators on decoupling of greenhouse gas emissions and economic growth. Sustainable Production and Consumption, 42, 14–22. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.spc.2023.09.003

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Published

2026-02-27

How to Cite

Abiodun, O. (2026). Absolute decoupling in the European Union after the Paris Agreement. Future Earth: A Student Journal on Sustainability and Environment. https://doi.org/10.29173/bcelnfe723

Issue

2026: Special Issue: Ambition vs. Action — Growth, Emissions, and Climate Targets in the Paris Agreement Era

Section

Commentaries and Opinions

Categories

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Copyright (c) 2026 Future Earth: A Student Journal on Sustainability and Environment

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