The Paris Agreement—China’s Kind of (International) Order?

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Krahl
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Global Governance ◽  
World Order ◽  
Paris Agreement ◽  
Great Power ◽  
Old Order ◽  
Traditional Approaches ◽  
Emerging Powers ◽  
International Status

The Paris Agreement has turned traditional approaches to global governance upside down, using a bottom-up approach that made it possible for emerging powers like China to agree to binding emissions targets to contain climate change. It thus marks a further step away from the old order centered on Western power, and at the same time it fits well into Chinese attempts to create a post-American order that rests on great power diplomacy within a multilateral framework of cooperation that privileges developing countries. The Paris Agreement allows China to leverage the internal fight against pollution and the restructuring and upgrading of its economy for international status. That the agreement has so far survived President Trump’s announcement of America’s departure suggests that it could yet serve as a blueprint for other, future arrangements for world order that would be able to integrate a risen China.

cop 25: Losing Sight of (Raising) Ambition

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 136-160
Author(s):  
Charlotte Streck ◽  
Moritz von Unger ◽  
Sandra Greiner
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Paris Agreement ◽  
Carbon Markets ◽  
Market Mechanisms ◽  
Political Bargaining ◽  
Climate Action ◽  
Zero Carbon ◽  
Carbon Economy

The 25th session of the Conference of the Parties (cop-25) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (unfccc) became the longest cop on record – but yielded few results. It appears that four years after the adoption of the Paris Agreement, enthusiasm has waned and political bargaining and bean-counting have taken over. Countries, for even the slightest chance to keep temperatures ‘well below’ 2 degrees Celsius, must do much more than they have previously committed to and accelerate the shift towards a zero-carbon economy. However, the conference largely failed to heed the rallying cry of the Chilean presidency. The flagship decisions (grouped under the banner “Chile-Madrid Time for Action”) neither produced new commitments – enhancing ambition or finance for developing countries – nor new rules that would nudge countries closer to the climate action targets needed. The leftover pieces from last year’s negotiations of the “Paris Rulebook” were also not resolved, in particular the unfinished decisions on Article 6 on market- and non-market mechanisms. The procrastination shows that the new architecture of the Paris Agreement, while addressing several of the shortcomings of the Kyoto Protocol, suffers from its own weaknesses. The meager results of Madrid give reason to pause and reflect on the conditions that may hold countries back from fully embracing the Paris Agreement, but also to consider the future and nature of carbon markets and what is making the issue so difficult to resolve.

scholarly journals Shifting Traction: Differential Treatment and Substantive and Procedural Regard in the International Climate Change Regime

2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 427-448 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Huggins ◽  
Md Saiful Karim
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Paris Agreement ◽  
Differential Treatment ◽  
Cautionary Tale ◽  
Common But Differentiated Responsibilities ◽  
International Climate ◽  
Treaty Implementation ◽  
Robust Framework ◽  
International Climate Change

AbstractThe Paris Agreement to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) signifies a shift in how the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities (CBDR) manifests in the international climate change regime. Unlike the UNFCCC and its Kyoto Protocol, the Paris Agreement does not enshrine differentiated substantive mitigation obligations for developed and developing countries. However, an increasingly proceduralized variant of the CBDR principle, which facilitates regard for the interests of developing countries with respect to treaty implementation yet does not guarantee favourable substantive outcomes for these states, is evident in the emerging regime. The experience of the International Maritime Organization’s climate change regime provides a cautionary tale with respect to procedurally oriented differentiation that is not reinforced by effective processes to ensure that developed states honour their finance and technology transfer commitments. Accordingly, this article posits that strong accountability mechanisms are required to transform opportunities for procedural differentiation in the Paris Agreement into a robust framework for procedural regard for the interests of developing states.

scholarly journals The atmosphere, the Paris Agreement and global governance

2017 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Adrian Macey
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ◽  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Global Governance ◽  
Paris Agreement ◽  
International Governance ◽  
Gas Emissions ◽  
New Model ◽  
Tackle Climate Change

The 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change set a remarkable precedent for speed of entry into force of a global treaty. With the threshold of 55 parties and 55% of greenhouse gas emissions being reached within a year of its adoption, the agreement entered into force before the following Conference of the Parties (COP22) in Marrakech (November 2016). By the end of COP22 there were over a hundred ratifications. This was both a vote of confidence in the agreement and a sign of the strong international commitment to tackle climate change. Less obvious is the fact that the agreement reflects a new model of international governance of climate change, in which the role of the central legal instrument has changed. It is yet to be tested, but these early signs of confidence augur well. 

Paris Agreement details complicate Bonn climate talks

2016 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Foreign Minister ◽  
Paris Agreement ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Technological Support ◽  
Delayed Entry ◽  
Executive Secretary ◽  
Operational Rule

Subject The May 16-26, 2016 Bonn Climate Change Conference. Significance The 2016 Bonn Climate Change Conference concluded on May 26, with a number of issues related to the implementation of the Paris Agreement left unresolved. These included key elements, such as how progress is to be monitored and reviewed, and the scale and speed of provision of financial and technological support for developing countries. Only one further session is scheduled for this year, at the November COP22 meeting in Marrakesh, Morocco. Current UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Executive Secretary Christiana Figueres concludes her six-year term in July, to be replaced by former Mexican Foreign Minister Patricia Espinosa. Impacts The Paris Agreement is likely to enter into force by end-2017, perhaps earlier if diplomatic momentum is sustained. Concerns about delayed entry into force may speed the completion of the operational 'rule-book' by COP22. The Green Climate Fund's call for more proposals highlights the limited pipeline of application-ready projects in developing countries.

Heading for the Exit

2020 ◽  
pp. 186-202
Author(s):  
Alexander Cooley ◽  
Daniel Nexon
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Cold War ◽  
Global Governance ◽  
International System ◽  
The United States ◽  
Great Power ◽  
Expiration Date ◽  
Global Order ◽  
The World ◽  
Emerging Powers

After two decades, American global hegemony is almost certainly reaching its expiration date. America will remain a great power, if the not greatest power. But, barring a major shock to emerging powers—and especially China—the world will fully transition to a new global order. This chapter sketches out some possible futures. These include a new bipolar system, perhaps with China and the United States locked in a new Cold War; a multipolar system that maintains the veneer of liberal global governance, but in the service of authoritarianism; and an international system characterized by globalized oligarchy and kleptocracy. There is still time to avoid the worst versions of these orders, and to push back against the full hijacking of liberal institutions in the service of worldwide corruption. But on these, and a number of other matters, American policymakers should assume the window of outsized American influence is fast closing.

scholarly journals AMBITION AND DIFFERENTIATION IN THE 2015 PARIS AGREEMENT: INTERPRETATIVE POSSIBILITIES AND UNDERLYING POLITICS

2016 ◽  
Vol 65 (2) ◽  
pp. 493-514 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lavanya Rajamani
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Building Blocks ◽  
Paris Agreement ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Will ◽  
Multilateral Diplomacy

AbstractThe 2015 Paris Agreement represents a historic achievement in multilateral diplomacy. After years of deeply discordant negotiations, Parties harnessed the political will necessary to arrive at a climate change agreement that strikes a careful balance between ambition and differentiation. The Paris Agreement contains aspirational goals, binding obligations of conduct in relation to mitigation, a rigorous system of oversight, and a nuanced form of differentiation between developed and developing countries. This article will explore the key building blocks of the Paris Agreement—ambition and differentiation—with an eye to mining the text of the Agreement for its interpretative possibilities and underlying politics.

BRICS and Global Governance: Will the Grouping be able to Reform the United Nations Security Council?

2021 ◽  
pp. 002088172110294
Author(s):  
Francesco Petrone
Keyword(s):  
United Nations ◽  
Global Governance ◽  
Security Council ◽  
World Order ◽  
United Nations Security Council ◽  
Central Position ◽  
Brics Countries ◽  
Specific Effects ◽  
The United Nations ◽  
Emerging Powers

This article analyses the role played by the Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) countries within the context of the reform of international institutions, in primis the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). In recent years, the new emerging powers, among which the BRICS occupy a central position, have instigated a paradigm shift in international relations and global governance (GG). Furthermore, some scholars argue that the BRICS could inaugurate a new world order. Since the United Nations (UN) is one of the institutions in which these changes need to be more broadly reflected due to its global projection, it is doubtful if the BRICS will be able to bring about its reform. In fact, several debates were conducted about the need to reform the UN and, in particular, the Security Council (SC). In order to do this, the article examines the interests of the BRICS countries, within the group itself, and their vision for the UNSC. Only a common vision within the group could have specific effects in reforming the UNSC, thus giving a new shape to GG, which may not be possible. There are several obstacles from within the BRICS itself in this regard, despite the fact that during their summits, they have repeatedly called for the UN reforms.

Negotiating the Paris Agreement

2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Driving Forces ◽  
Paris Agreement ◽  
United Nations Framework Convention ◽  
Global Challenges ◽  
Full Picture ◽  
High Level

The 2015 Paris Agreement represents the culmination of years of intense negotiations under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Designed to curb climate change, it was negotiated by almost 200 countries who came to the table with different backgrounds, perceptions and interests. As such, the Agreement represents a triumph for multilateralism in a period otherwise characterized by nationalist turns. How did countries reach the historical agreement, and what were the driving forces behind it? This book paints a full picture by providing and analysing multifaceted insider accounts from high-level delegates who represented developed and developing countries, civil society, businesses, the French Presidency, and the UNFCCC Secretariat. In doing so, the book documents not only the negotiation of the Paris Agreement but also the dynamics and factors that shaped it. A better understanding of these dynamics and factors can guide future negotiations and help us solve global challenges.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document