Louise KESSLER, PhD
Programme director– Economy, Steering tools, Financing the transitionLouise joined I4CE in 2020; she oversees applied research work with aims to contribute to the debate on the economic instruments and public policies which can be mobilized to trigger the necessary investments for the low-carbon transition.
Before joining I4CE, Louise spent two and a half years at the economics consultancy Vivid Economics, where she managed projects for government institutions and international organizations on issues related to climate policies, the energy transition, innovative financing mechanisms for adaptation and biodiversity. Before that, she spent a couple of years in the Natural Resources Mergers & Acquisitions team at Macquarie in London, and in the Investments team at CDC Climat.
Louise is a graduate of HEC Paris; she also holds a Research Master in Economics of Sustainable Development, Environment and Energy (EDDEE) delivered by Mines ParisTech, and a PhD in Environmental Economics delivered by the London School of Economics (LSE). Her PhD research focused on the economic implications of climate change uncertainties.
Last contributions
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02/07/2024
Climate Report
Social and Climate Budget Tagging: Insights from Indonesia
Attention is growing to the need to tackle climate and social issues jointly. Indeed, both climate change and climate policies affect social issues such as poverty, inequality, or access to healthcare. A well-known example is that of carbon pricing, a climate policy which can have regressive effects in some contexts. As another example, climate change induced heatwaves are disproportionately likely to impact poorer individuals who typically have more constrained access to healthcare, physical jobs in outdoor conditions, and through indirectly driving up food prices. To foster an effective and sustainable transition to low-carbon and resilient economies, policymakers need to ensure individuals do not lose more from climate policies than they already lose from the effects of climate change, but instead benefit from them. -
01/12/2023
Foreword of the week
COP28 : It’s money time !
COP28 in Dubai kicks off amidst a worrying climate backdrop. For the first time, the threshold of a 2°C temperature rise compared to the pre-industrial era was exceeded in one day. In addition, a report published by the UN this week warns that current policies are placing the planet on a warming trajectory of 2.9°C, and that the chances of maintaining the increase at +1.5°C are now of only 14%. The results of the first Global Stocktake, a worldwide assessment of the actions taken by countries since the Paris Agreement, will be published at the COP and should confirm the urgent need to change the trajectory of greenhouse gas emissions. -
19/10/2023
Climate Report
Is the transition accessible to all French households?
The issue of access to the transition for all households, in particular, for low- and middle-income households, has become central to the French public debate, as recently shown by the French President’s speech on ecological planning, when he referred to “an ecology that is accessible and fair, that leaves no one without a solution”. This growing awareness is particularly in response to the yellow vests protests: expecting households to take steps towards the transition if they have no access to solutions (electric cars, public transport, home insulation, heating upgrades) results in a rejection of transition policies and leads us collectively to a dead end -
31/08/2023
Blog post
Synergising Sustainable Development Goals Finance with Climate Finance
Sustainable development and climate change are two pressing and interconnected issues that countries have committed to address at the international level. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, with the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) including climate action, at its core was adopted by the United Nations (UN) in 2015. The same year, the Paris Agreement was adopted by Parties of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. Both instruments have clear global and national targets in the medium- and long-term that are still far from being met.
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11/05/2023
Climate Report
Investments to decarbonise heavy industry in France: what, how much and when?
Industry: relocation and decarbonisation at the heart of the debate. The recent succession of crises (health, energy, geopolitical) and increased international competition have prompted France to look for ways to strengthen its industrial and energy sovereignty. It faces this challenge in addition to the challenge of decarbonising its industry. In this context, France and Europe are developing industrial policies with two objectives – relocation and decarbonisation – and with new tools such as the France 2030 plan and the Net Zero Industry Act at the European level. These policies target both ‘historical’ industries, such as steel and cement, and new clean technologies, from solar to batteries. -
10/11/2022
Foreword of the week
COP27: the importance of national financing strategies for the transition
This year again, expectations for the COP are high regarding developed countries’ commitments towards the funding of action against climate change and its impacts. The question of loss and damage, which pertains to questions of climate justice and of who should pay for the significant impacts of climate change endured by the poorest countries, has just been added to the official COP agenda. And climate finance will again be a hot topic: the pledge made back in 2009 by rich nations to channel US$100bn every year by 2020 to help less wealthy nations mitigate the rise in temperatures and adapt to climate change is still falling short of targets. -
09/11/2022
Climate Report
The economic implications of the transition to a low-carbon and resilient economy: an LTS dashboard for Finance Ministers
Long term national climate strategies, such as Long-Term Strategies (LTS) published to the UNFCCC, are key documents developed by governments to envision the transition to a low-carbon and climate resilient economy at the 2050 (or later) time-horizon. As of the beginning of COP 27 in Sharm-el-Sheikh, Egypt, on November 2022, 55 countries had submitted an LTS to the UNFCCC, answering renewed calls for countries to develop such strategies at COP 26. It is expected that additional LTS will be published shortly. -
31/03/2021
Blog post
The latest data on fossil and clean energy finance from Multilateral Development Banks
Yesterday sees the release of the data on project financing from the nine major Multilateral Development Banks on the Energy Policy Tracker – of which I4CE is partner – and a new Big Shift Global briefing, showing that, since the beginning of the pandemic, the Banks provided at least $12 billion to clean energy and $3 billion for fossil fuels. -
03/09/2020
Blog post
Climate chapter of the French recovery plan: Off to a good start but let’s see where it lands
The French government has just officially unveiled the content of its €100 billion recovery plan, part of which is dedicated to the fight against climate change. -
15/07/2020
Blog post
France: €18bn for fossil fuels energy since the beginning of the crisis
An international consortium of 14 expert organisations, including I4CE, has launched the "Energy Policy Tracker" website to track Covid-19 recovery packages from a climate and energy perspective. Initial results show that until now, G20 countries have granted much more aid to fossil fuels than to clean energies. What about France? Louise Kessler, Director of I4CE's Economics Programme, looks back at the government policies already adopted in France as well as those that are still at the announcement stage.