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Laura Merrill
GSI Manager and Senior Policy Advisor
Laura is a practitioner, consultant and economist in sustainable development.
Laura works on the social and environmental impacts of fossil fuel subsidies, pricing and their reform. She is an economist with expertise in energy policy. She manages the Global Subsidies Initiative of the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), works alongside the Friends of Fossil Fuel Subsidy Reform, and supports in-country work including in Bangladesh, India, Indonesia and Nigeria. She leads on fossil fuel subsidies and the link to climate change and gender impacts.
Previously based in East Africa, Laura worked for Oxfam as a regional coordinator on trade and economic justice. Laura has also worked as an advisor for the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and consultant at Oxford Economic Research Associates. She holds an MBA (International Organisations from Université de Genève), MProf (Sustainable Development from Middlesex University) and MA (Politics, Philosophy and Economics from the University of Oxford).
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Getting on Target: Accelerating energy access through fossil fuel subsidy reformHow can reforming fossil fuel subsidies accelerate universal energy access (SDG 7)? This paper reviews the financial and practical implications of fossil fuel subsidies for SDG 7. -
Making the Switch: From fossil fuel subsidies to sustainable energyThis report estimates fossil fuel subsidies to be around USD 425 billion. Such subsidies represent large lost opportunities for governments to invest in renewable energy, energy efficiency and sustainable development. -
Learning from Leaders: Nordic and International Best Practice with Fossil Fuel Subsidy ReformThis report describes how Ethiopia, Morocco, Peru and the Philippines have reformed their subsidies. It also describes how countries including Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden have introduced innovative policy instruments to encourage switching towards renewable and sustainable energy. -
Gender and Fossil Fuel Subsidy Reform: Current status of researchLittle is known about the gender differentiated impacts of fossil fuel subsidy reforms. This review takes stock of existing knowledge, identifies knowledge gaps and sets out plans for future research in this area.
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