April 2022 to March 2023

   Green transformation (GX) refers to the transformation toward a decarbonized society through the mitigation of environmental destruction, which has become a problem due to global warming, with the power of cutting-edge technology. The concept, which advocates for 21st century transformation involving all stakeholders, is also becoming increasingly important among Japanese companies towards achieving Japan’s vision for 2030 and 2050.

　Activities in Japan went into full swing with its declaration to achieve carbon neutrality in October 2020, following China’s declaration in September 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Japan’s declaration traces its roots in the Paris Agreement adopted in 2015. Following the Paris Agreement, the European Commission announced the European Green Deal in December 2019. This led to the recognition of “greening” as the most important socio-economic keyword for the next generation. The Deal has generated a tide of global social changes not only in developed countries but also in developing countries.

　Japan, too, has declared its goal to transform its entire economic and social system by shifting economic, social, and industrial structures, which have been based on fossil fuels since the Industrial Revolution, into those that are centered on clean energy. In July 2022, the Cabinet Secretariat held the first meeting of the GX Implementation Council, holding five meetings by the end of the year. In 2023, in addition to responding to climate change issues, basic policies toward GX implementation have been successively announced in response to the invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation.

　The European Green Deal, which triggered the above trend in Japan, is based on a thought concept that combines greening and digitalization of society. Germany was at the core of the formulation of this concept over the past 20 years from 2000 after the establishment of the European Union. In 2015, Germany was said to be the only country in Europe exhibiting economic growth. By 2016, it overtook China to have the largest current account surplus in the world and has come to play a central role in Europe’s economy both in quality and substance. This growth is driven by the continued deployment beginning in the 21st century of a high-tech strategy for science, technology, and industry. Strategic investments in climate change also began within this framework, and in 2007, a high-tech strategy to protect the climate was formulated. Another feature of Green Transformation in Europe, especially in Germany, is that civic activities have a direct impact on the administration of justice in relation to the climate change problem. Trends in civic activities, therefore, greatly influence the views on future climate change and biodiversity issues.

　Green transformation finds its origins in the rise of digital transformation (DX) driven by the dramatic evolution of information infrastructures. Germany, which quickly recovered from the global financial crisis triggered by the collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008, an economic crisis that occurred in a digitally connected world, is now leading Europe and exercising thought leadership in the 21st century, i.e., in pursuing greening and democratization. Green transformation in Europe does not merely refer to the transition to renewable energy to achieve carbon neutrality, but rather to social transformation characterized by more autonomous, stable, and democratic social infrastructures. Understanding this broader thought concept along with the green transformation activities in Europe should also be useful in reconsidering the transformation of Japan.

   In this year's research, we first elucidated the background behind how Germany became an environmentally advanced nation leading the rest of Europe. We then examined the major trends of green transformation in Europe by conducting field surveys in Germany, France, Denmark and the U.K.