Denmark is known as the best-performing country in climate action and has been at the top of the Climate Change Performance Index for three years in a row, from 2022 until 2024. To be precise, Denmark formally sits in fourth place, because the index leaves the top three spots empty since no country performs well enough yet to deserve them, which makes Denmark the highest-ranked country in the world. This index assesses several aspects, consisting of the percentage of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) per capita, the share of renewable energy in energy use, the percentage of energy use per capita, and national climate policy performance. Besides that, Denmark is also known as the country that is capable of decoupling its gross domestic product (GDP) from its greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption. The country even experienced a doubling in its GDP while its energy use stayed flat and GHG emissions tended to decrease. And these remarkable achievements would not have happened if it was not because of the bold climate policies Denmark has built over decades, the most recent of which is the 2020 Danish Climate Act.
A Law That Started from the Citizens
The 2020 Danish Climate Act is one of the examples of recent climate policy that leads a transformational change in Denmark. Moreover, this climate act is also the manifestation of policy transformational change as well. It stands to reason that the 2020 Danish Climate Act is legally binding, replacing the previous Danish Climate Act, which was enacted in 2014. This is a revolutionary step where climate action becomes an obligation for policymakers and stakeholders, in contrast to the current trend where it is very difficult for countries to focus and be responsible for their commitments to reduce emissions and transition to renewable energy. Especially due to the fact that the Paris Agreement does not have the coercive power to make sure that each country complies with its nationally determined contributions (NDCs).
The enactment of this policy began with a proposal by Danish citizens, who suggested that Denmark should implement the Paris Agreement and make it legally binding. In early 2019, more than 67,000 citizens signed the initiative. It was proposed on the basis of the lack of binding effect that the 2014 Danish Climate Act had on the government to any specific goals related to global warming. Also, this earlier policy did not refer to any international climate agreement such as the Rio or Kyoto Agreement, let alone the Paris Agreement. Therefore, after being proposed by the citizens, it was presented as a resolution in the Parliament. Then, after the 2019 Danish general election, where climate became the top concern for voters, a broad agreement between the parties on a new climate act was reached in December 2019. The act was finally adopted on 18 June 2020 and formalized as a law with the law number Act No. 965 of 26 June 2020. There were 167 out of 179 members of the parliament, around 94%, in favor of the act.
What the Act Requires
Personally, I would say that the enactment of the 2020 Danish Climate Act is transformational because it transforms the status of the climate policy in Denmark, which was initially weak in coercion and seemed gimmicky, into an optimistic and powerful policy that can lead to innovative and revolutionary changes. Article 1 of the Climate Act states that the purpose of the policy is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 70% in 2030 compared to the level of emissions in 1990. Also, to realize Denmark to be a climate-neutral country by at least 2050, taking into account the Paris Agreement target of limiting global warming to not pass 1.5 degrees Celsius. The interim target of a 50-54% reduction by 2025 was added later through an amendment in 2021. Furthermore, according to the act, the government, which in this context is the Minister of Climate, Energy, and Utilities, has the obligation to set a five-year national climate target, and the target must not be less ambitious than the most recently set target. Along with the target, the minister is also expected to present climate program plans to the Danish Parliament, which include planned climate initiatives and measures, reports on research and development of the initiatives, and other reports regarding the effort to achieve the ambitious target. Annually, these reports will be presented to the Parliament to be reviewed and assessed. This mechanism is also transformational due to its strictness to keep the government on track in doing climate action. Also, the process is one step ahead of the NDCs since NDCs are not reviewed annually but every five years.
Lastly, the policy is transformational because it strengthened the independent climate council called the Danish Council on Climate Change (DCCC). This institution was actually established earlier under the 2014 act, but the 2020 act doubled its budget, added more experts, and made it more politically independent since the council can now elect its own chairperson and members. This institution plays a significant role in providing guidance to the government on the climate effort and assessing if the performance of the government affects the process of achieving the climate targets. This independent advisory body consists of a chairperson and eight members who are experts and have a high level of climate-relevant academic knowledge relating to energy, buildings, transport, agriculture, environment, nature, economics, climate science research, and behavioral research relevant to the climate field. By having this inclusivity drive in the institutions, Denmark possesses a stronger capacity to develop more comprehensive, transformative, and effective policies to achieve its climate action targets.
Has It Really Transformed Anything?
Of course, there is a fair question to ask here. Denmark’s emissions have already been declining since the 1990s, long before this act existed. However, I would argue that the transformation lies in the governance, not in the emission numbers. Targets that used to be political promises are now legal obligations. The government is checked every year instead of every five years. An independent expert council has the mandate and the resources to call out the government when it is off track. And the early signs show that this mechanism is working. The official climate projection expects Denmark to exceed its 2025 target with a reduction of around 55.5%, and the Climate Council’s 2025 assessment finds that the 70% goal for 2030 is still achievable as long as the existing policies are implemented as planned.
Whether Denmark will actually reach 70% by 2030 is still an open question. But in my view, transformational change in policy rarely shows up in the emission curves within five years. It shows up in whether a country has locked itself onto a path that it cannot quietly abandon. And by only measuring from that, the 2020 Danish Climate Act has already done its job.
Keywords: Denmark, 2020 Danish Climate Act, climate policy, legally binding targets, Danish Council on Climate Change, transformational change
Kenan Wisaksena Hudawan 
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