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The original problem for our paper was that social studies teachers in Bhutan focused much more on climate crisis action and education through a local lens, when there are compelling reasons to do it through a global lens. This then led us to carefully consider what constitutes climate crisis action and education through a global lens. We turned to Fridays for Future because it is a youth-led social movement; although established just five years ago in 2018, it is now active in over 200 countries. It not only has global scope but also a decidedly global focus with petitions and media campaigns directed not just at local, but also foreign, government and corporate leaders. We initially assumed as a model of climate crisis action and education that Fridays for Future was suitable for Bhutan. But as we considered the specificities of Bhutan, it became clear to us Fridays for Future was not suitable which then became the problem for us to critically analyse in this paper. This is a problem when there are knowledges and practices from countries in the Global South like Bhutan that should be seen as being able to contribute to global efforts. We discovered a whole lot of scholars and practitioners from the Global South who were frustrated that their ideas about climate crisis education and action were sidelined and not taken seriously by their counterparts in the Global North. The problem for schools in Bhutan, when planning climate crisis action and education then is epistemological. We challenge uncritical assumptions about a one-size-fits-all model and argue that rather than asking: Why hasn’t Fridays for Future spread to Bhutan, to instead ask how can Bhutan be supported to pursue climate crisis education through a global lens in their own distinctive manner. To this end, we describe and discuss how the political economy of Bhutan is very different to major economies of the Global North. No country in the Global North has yet achieved carbon neutrality. Since 2009, Bhutan has been carbon negative. We draw attention to Bhutan’s deep tradition of spiritual ecology that is respectfully followed by government authorities, non-government organisations, schoolteachers, parents of school children, and the general public. By contrast, Fridays for Future has the biggest following in countries where spiritual ecology is a marginal epistemological perspective. This is where we circle back to our starting problem-formulation that there is too much emphasis in Bhutan on locally oriented, and not enough on globally-oriented climate crisis action and education. The implications for practice are that in order to support Bhutan’s school teachers to expand and improve their climate crisis education, it is less about looking for models like Fridays for Future from the Global North, and less about relying on modern Western scientific explanations about carbon pollution and decarbonisation; but more about being proud, assertive and innovative about local epistemologies, practices of spiritual ecology, local policy, and political economy, achievements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies whether the carbon intensity of human well-being has an Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) pattern with respect to economic growth in Bhutan using annual data from 1971 to 2018. Furthermore, it examines the short-term and long-term dynamics of the causal relation between emissions and growth in wealth and also whether recent trends of economic growth are carbon neutral. Econometric estimations, such as ordinary least squares, vector error correction model and variance decomposition, are applied alongside other appropriate statistical tests. The findings show that, in Bhutan, the carbon intensity of human well-being increases with economic growth and fails to support the EKC hypothesis. Long-run causality was found running from the carbon intensity of human well-being to GDP per capita and also from population growth to GDP per capita. The econometric analysis also revealed that the increasing emission of carbon dioxide is being absorbed and its negative effects are negated through rising forest cover hence, Bhutan appears to be a carbon-neutral nation. This paper is a valuable contribution to the literature and has significant policy implications. Furthermore, it provides an integrated and sustainable growth model discourse to the rest of the world which is ailing with severe emissions and climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate policy across the world is proceeding at a highly variable pace, with some places very committed to decarbonizing their economies and others just beginning. Emerging nations are generally just starting along this journey. However, among the few nation states that have pledged to achieve carbon neutrality, is Bhutan, a least developed country. Carbon neutrality is an ambitious climate policy that is increasingly being recognized as necessary in order to stabilize global temperature rise at 1.5°C. However, Bhutan is likely to face significant challenges in maintaining this status as the country balances its desire to grow in economic opportunities (GDP) and in human happiness (GNH). Little research has been conducted inside the policy processes to better understand how Bhutan will maintain carbon neutrality. Through open-ended, semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders, this study provides an inside view on the current situation and future challenges that Bhutan may face, along with the complexities associated with implementing and maintaining an ambitious carbon neutral policy. The paper highlights Bhutan's story and how it could be useful for policy learning and knowledge sharing, especially in the context of emerging nations' climate governance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bhutan is a rapidly growing economy currently undergoing swift and extensive rural-to-urban migration. Its commitment to carbon neutrality, as well as its unique Gross National Happiness (GNH) objectives, make Bhutan a fascinating laboratory for studying sustainable development strategies and how they can be specifically tailored to align with local contexts and values. This paper uses the framing of the Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSPs) from the global climate change mitigation literature to develop a vision for a locally appropriate SSP for a sustainable Bhutan, encompassing energy supply, energy demand, and urban and regional planning. The approach outlined here demonstrates how research-based recommendations from the academic literature can be combined with knowledge of local considerations to develop place-based visions for sustainable societies. The proposed sustainable pathway for Bhutan (SSP1) outlines a future in which the nation continues to sequester more carbon than it emits while maintaining traditional cultural values, a strong sense of community, and a burgeoning economy. Outcomes of alternative scenarios are described according to the nine domains of GNH. Focusing on Bhutan as a real case study, this paper thus demonstrates how mitigation measures can be selected and implemented to align with unique cultural values and national aspirations. • Identify the place-based sustainable transitions • Develop an extended Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSPs) for Bhutan • Develop assumptions of regionally balanced development scenario as SSP1 (Sustainability) • Analyze mitigation measures and options based on Bhutan's sustainability pathway • Raise key factors to achieve a sustainable Bhutan based on developed scenarios [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Bhutan has pledged to remain carbon neutral (CN) in perpetuity. Whether they can sustain this is questionable due to the country's increasing economic growth (GDP) and commitment to gross national happiness (GNH) outcomes, both of which can lead to a rise in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The nexus between GHG, GNH and GDP is the essence of the Paris Agreement and Sustainable Development Goals global project. Results: Through scenario modelling using the Long-range Energy Alternative Planning (LEAP) model, the study finds that the carbon neutral declaration will derail between 2037 and 2050 without mitigation measures. By putting in place mitigation measures especially in the industry and transport sectors, CN can be retained even under high growth pressure, which may cost just 2% of GDP. CN can be easily retained under low economic growth, but this could undermine GNH. High growth will require immediate interventions to enable electrification of industry and transport. Conclusions: The options to remain CN will require Bhutan to adopt more efficient technologies and electrify industry and transport under both low and high growth scenarios. The additional cost to the Bhutanese economy is feasible through low and high growth opportunities. The options are similar to those confronting emerging nations struggling with issues of climate commitments under economic growth pressures. All will need to adapt their specific economic contexts to achieve the simultaneous objectives of the Sustainable Development Goals whilst addressing the net zero Paris agenda. Bhutan shows it is possible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]