scholarly journals Paris: Beyond the Climate Dead End through Pledge and Review?

2016 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 142-151 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert O. Keohane ◽  
Michael Oppenheimer
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Domestic Politics ◽  
Oecd Countries ◽  
Paris Agreement ◽  
Financial Transfers ◽  
Newly Industrializing Countries ◽  
Dead End ◽  
Climate Action ◽  
Nationally Determined Contributions ◽  
Paris Climate Agreement

The Paris Climate Agreement of December 2015 marks a decisive break from the unsuccessful Kyoto regime. Instead of targets and timetables, it established a Pledge and Review system, under which states will offer Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) to reducing emissions that cause climate change. But this successful negotiation outcome was achieved at the price of vagueness of obligations and substantial discretion for governments. Many governments will be tempted to use the vagueness of the Paris Agreement, and the discretion that it permits, to limit the scope or intensity of their proposed actions. Whether Pledge and Review under the Paris Agreement will lead to effective action against climate change will therefore depend on the inclination both of OECD countries and newly industrializing countries to take costly actions, which for the OECD countries will include financial transfers to their poorer partners. Domestic politics will be crucial in determining the attitudes of both sets of countries to pay such costs. The actual impact of the Paris Agreement will depend on whether it can be used by domestic groups favoring climate action as a point of leverage in domestic politics—that is, in a “two-level game” simultaneously involving both international and domestic politics.

scholarly journals Urban Informality in the Paris Climate Agreement: Content Analysis of the Nationally Determined Contributions of Highly Urbanized Developing Countries

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (19) ◽  
pp. 5228 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jose Rafael Núñez Collado ◽  
Han-Hsiang Wang ◽  
Tsung-Yi Tsai
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Content Analysis ◽  
Informal Settlements ◽  
Paris Agreement ◽  
Urban Informality ◽  
Climate Policies ◽  
Nationally Determined Contributions ◽  
Paris Climate Agreement

Climate change related events affect informal settlements, or slums, disproportionally more than other areas in a city or country. This article investigates the role of slums in the nationally determined contributions (NDCs) for the Paris Agreement of a selected group of 28 highly urbanized developing countries. Content analysis and descriptive statistics were used to analyze first the general content in these NDCs and second the proposed role, or lack thereof, of slums in these documents. The results show that for most of the analyzed countries, context-based climate policies for slums are not part of the strategies presented in the NDCs. We argue that a lack of policies involving informal settlements might limit the capacity of developing countries to contribute to the main goals of the Paris Agreement, as these settlements are significant portions of their urban populations. One of the hopeful prospects of the NDCs is that they will be reviewed in 2020 for the 26th Conference of the Parties (COP26). With this paper, we aim to stimulate discussions about the crucial role that informal settlements should play in the NDCs of developing countries in the background of the synergies required between climate change actions and sustainable development.

scholarly journals Climate Change: Reversing the Past and Advancing the Future

AJIL Unbound ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 115 ◽  
pp. 80-85
Author(s):  
Daniel Bodansky
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Change Policy ◽  
The United States ◽  
Paris Agreement ◽  
Montreal Protocol ◽  
Global Institutions ◽  
Change Policy ◽  
Global Action ◽  
Nationally Determined Contributions ◽  
Executive Action

After four years of not simply inaction but significant retrogression in U.S. climate change policy, the Biden administration has its work cut out. As a start, it needs to undo what Trump did. The Biden administration took a step in that direction on Day 1 by rejoining the Paris Agreement. But simply restoring the pre-Trump status quo ante is not enough. The United States also needs to push for more ambitious global action. In part, this will require strengthening parties’ nationally determined contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement; but it will also require actions by what Sue Biniaz, the former State Department climate change lawyer, likes to call the Greater Metropolitan Paris Agreement—that is, the array of other international actors that help advance the Paris Agreement's goals, including global institutions such as the International Maritime Organization (IMO), the Montreal Protocol, and the World Bank, as well as regional organizations and non-state actors. Although the Biden administration can pursue some of these international initiatives directly through executive action, new regulatory initiatives will face an uncertain fate in the Supreme Court. So how much the Biden Administration is able to achieve will likely depend significantly on how much a nearly evenly-divided Congress is willing to support.

IDB Group and Climate Action

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Paris Agreement ◽  
Climate Finance ◽  
Development Bank ◽  
Multilateral Development Banks ◽  
Climate Action ◽  
The Caribbean ◽  
Development Banks ◽  
Bank Group

As one of the leading development partners for Latin American and the Caribbean (LAC), the Inter-American Development Bank Group (IDB Group) is fully committed to lead by example on climate change action. Since the signing of the Paris Agreement, the IDB Group has provided over $20 billion in Climate Finance, amounting to about 60% of all Climate Finance to the region from Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs).

scholarly journals KONSEP PERTANIAN PULAU-PULAU KECIL BERBASIS GUGUS PULAU MENGHADAPI PERUBAHAN IKLIM GLOBAL DI PROVINSI MALUKU

2016 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Agustinus Kastanya
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Indigenous Rights ◽  
Agroforestry System ◽  
Paris Agreement ◽  
Economic Conditions ◽  
Small Islands ◽  
Adaptation To Climate Change ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Nationally Determined Contributions ◽  
Concept Framework

Indonesia has already agreed to and submitted Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDC) to the UNFCCC, to reduce emission gases by 29% on its own and by 41% with outside help by 2030. This step follows the Paris Agreement (COP 21) to reduce world emission gases to prevent the earth warming by 20C . Maluku is characterized by small islands, narrow and short watersheds and needs an innovative approach to development. Multi landscape based development of small islands means using island clusters, watersheds, ecological conditions and socio-economic conditions. An agricultural concept for small islands based on multi landscape plans like green economics has been developed in 3 base concepts : (1) conceptual framework; (2) macro concept framework; (3) micro concept framework. The multi landscape format integrates water catchments and RTRWP/K which are organized into the smallest management units in accordance with indigenous rights. The complete landscape is managed using an agroforestry system for conservation of the watersheds, islands, cluster groups and seas. Thus, the agricultural concept can deliver productivity and services to meet the needs of the community and the environment as well as for mitigation of and adaptation to climate change.

International Law Obligations Arising in relation to Nationally Determined Contributions

2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 251-275 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benoit Mayer
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
International Law ◽  
Paris Agreement ◽  
The Other ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
Legal Obligations ◽  
Nationally Determined Contributions ◽  
The One

AbstractThis article analyzes the international law obligations that arise in relation to nationally determined contributions (NDCs). It argues that distinct and concurrent obligations arise from two separate sources. On the one hand, treaty obligations arise under the Paris Agreement, which imposes an obligation of conduct on parties: they must take adequate measures towards the realization of the mitigation targets contained in their NDCs. On the other hand, communications such as NDCs may constitute unilateral declarations that also create legal obligations. These unilateral declarations impose obligations of various types, which may extend beyond mitigation. For example, they may specify measures of implementation or demand the achievement of a particular result. The potential ‘double-bindingness’ of NDCs should be a central consideration in the interpretation of international law obligations regarding climate change.

The Elusive Governance of Climate Change: Nationally Determined Contributions as Commitments and Negotiating Positions

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-26
Author(s):  
Justin Leinaweaver ◽  
Robert Thomson
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Paris Agreement ◽  
The Political ◽  
Review System ◽  
Main Approach ◽  
National Policies ◽  
Key Characteristics ◽  
Nationally Determined Contributions ◽  
International Interactions ◽  
New Framework

Since the Paris Agreement of 2016, the international community’s main approach to addressing climate change is for states to determine their own commitments in a pledge and review system. Parties to the Paris Agreement formulate Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), which are documents that give details of their national policies and plans. They are free to formulate and present national policies as they choose, and as a result, there is substantial variation in the content and form of NDCs. This study presents a new framework for assessing and comparing the political meanings of these documents. The framework builds on two distinct ways in which NDCs can be understood. NDCs may be commitments to the international community and domestic actors. Alternatively, they may embody states’ negotiating positions in an ongoing process of national and international interactions. The framework consists of a set of thematic categories to which each sentence of these documents can be allocated. The application of this framework enables us to compare the political content of states’ NDCs systematically. The study demonstrates the validity of the framework by correlating its results with key characteristics of states. The findings also provide evidence for the two distinct perspectives on these documents.

scholarly journals The risk of carbon leakage in global climate agreements

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tobias Nielsen ◽  
Nicolai Baumert ◽  
Astrid Kander ◽  
Magnus Jiborn ◽  
Viktoras Kulionis
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Kyoto Protocol ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Carbon Leakage ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Climate Agreements ◽  
Climate Action ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Nationally Determined Contributions

Abstract Although climate change and international trade are interdependent, policy-makers often address the two topics separately. This may inhibit progress at the intersection of climate change and trade and could present a serious constraint for global climate action. One key risk is carbon leakage through emission outsourcing, i.e. reductions in emissions in countries with rigorous climate policies being offset by increased emissions in countries with less stringent policies. We first analyze the Paris Agreement’s nationally determined contributions (NDC) and investigate how carbon leakage is addressed. We find that the risk of carbon leakage is insufficiently accounted for in these documents. Then, we apply a novel quantitative approach (Jiborn et al., 2018; Baumert et al., 2019) to analyze trends in carbon outsourcing related to a previous international climate regime—the Kyoto Protocol—in order to assess whether reported emission reductions were offset by carbon outsourcing in the past. Our results for 2000–2014 show a more nuanced picture of carbon leakage during the Kyoto Protocol than previous studies have reported. Carbon outsourcing from developed to developing countries was dominated by the USA outsourcing to China, while the evidence for other developed countries was mixed. Against conventional wisdom, we find that, in general, countries that stayed committed to their Kyoto Protocol emission targets were either only minor carbon outsourcers or actually even insourcers—although the trend was slightly negative—indicating that binding emissions targets do not necessarily lead to carbon outsourcing. We argue that multiple carbon monitoring approaches are needed to reduce the risk of carbon leakage.

scholarly journals Fusing subnational with national climate action is central to decarbonization: the case of the United States

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nathan E. Hultman ◽  
Leon Clarke ◽  
Carla Frisch ◽  
Kevin Kennedy ◽  
Haewon McJeon ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
The United States ◽  
Paris Agreement ◽  
Integrated Assessment Model ◽  
Assessment Model ◽  
Emissions Reductions ◽  
Climate Action ◽  
Nationally Determined Contributions ◽  
Potential Impact ◽  
Reduce Emissions

Abstract Approaches that root national climate strategies in local actions will be essential for all countries as they develop new nationally determined contributions under the Paris Agreement. The potential impact of climate action from non-national actors in delivering higher global ambition is significant. Sub-national action in the United States provides a test for how such actions can accelerate emissions reductions. We aggregated U.S. state, city, and business commitments within an integrated assessment model to assess how a national climate strategy can be built upon non-state actions. We find that existing commitments alone could reduce emissions 25% below 2005 levels by 2030, and that enhancing actions by these actors could reduce emissions up to 37%. We show how these actions can provide a stepped-up basis for additional federal action to reduce emissions by 49%—consistent with 1.5 °C. Our analysis demonstrates sub-national actions can lead to substantial reductions and support increased national action.

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.

Filling in for Governments? The Role of the Private Actors in the International Climate Regime

2020 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-28
Author(s):  
Charlotte Streck
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
Paris Agreement ◽  
Climate Regime ◽  
Climate Action ◽  
Private And Public ◽  
State Actor ◽  
International Climate ◽  
Private Actors

The 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change abandons the Kyoto Protocol’s paradigm of binding emissions targets and relies instead on countries’ voluntary contributions. However, the Paris Agreement encourages not only governments but also sub-national governments, corporations and civil society to contribute to reaching ambitious climate goals. In a transition from the regulated architecture of the Kyoto Protocol to the open system of the Paris Agreement, the Agreement seeks to integrate non-state actors into the treaty-based climate regime. In 2014 the secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Peru and France created the Non-State Actor Zone for Climate Action (and launched the Global Climate Action portal). In December 2019, this portal recorded more than twenty thousand climate-commitments of private and public non-state entities, making the non-state venues of international climate meetings decisively more exciting than the formal negotiation space. This level engagement and governments’ response to it raises a flurry of questions in relation to the evolving nature of the climate regime and climate change governance, including the role of private actors as standard setters and the lack of accountability mechanisms for non-state actions. This paper takes these developments as occasion to discuss the changing role of private actors in the climate regime.

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