Greater public spending on alternative energy in Europe may be the key to a sustainable recovery.

The public debate about a European economic recovery has been dominated by arguments over stimulus and austerity policies, and divisions between the North and the South. In an attempt to move away from these dichotomies, Afzal Siddiqui and Max Hänska argue that Europe should adapt to the shifting centres of economic gravity, harness its comparative advantages, and manage its recovery by developing alternative energy technologies and associated industries. Europe now needs to recognise that the private sector cannot accomplish such a recovery alone; overcoming market barriers to developing new economic sectors requires a sustained political commitment.