A history of international climate change policy

Abstract

This article presents an overview of the history of international climate change policy over the last 30 years, divided into five periods. It examines the pre-1990 period, the period leading up to the adoption of the Climate Change Convention, the period of the Kyoto Protocol until US withdrawal, the period thereafter focusing on the entry into force of the Kyoto Protocol, and the post-2008 period that coincides with the financial crisis. For each period, it discusses the relevant science, actors, and coalitions, the agreements emerging in that period, and the key issues and the major trends. In doing so, it examines the evolving articulation of the leadership paradigm, which is the centerpiece of the discussion on how climate change should be addressed. The article shows (1) the increasing complexity of the definition of the climate change issue from an environmental to a development issue; (2) the inability of the developed countries to reduce their own emissions and raise funds commensurate with the nature of the problem and their initial commitments;(3) the increasing engagement of different social actors in the discussion and, in particular, the gradual use of market mechanisms in the regime; (4) the increasing search for alternative solutions within the formal negotiations-such as the identification of nationally appropriate mitigation actions for the developing world, reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation, and the use of geo-engineering solutions; and (5) the search for solutions outside the regime-the mobilization of sub-national policies on climate change, litigation, and markets on biofuels.

Reassessing the Links between GHG Emissions, Economic Growth, and the UNFCCC: A Difference-in-Differences Approach

“…The UNFCCC is a global collaboration by the United Nations to limit anthropogenic climate change (for a concise history of the UNFCCC, the reader may also refer to http://unfccc.int/timeline/; for a more detailed history, see [11]). The agreement was first opened for signature in 1992 at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.…”

O Sistema Internacional No Antropoceno

“…Sua evolução é bastante conhecida. Antes de 1990, a preocupação era com a definição do problema (Gupta, 2010). Em 1992, foi assinada a Convenção Quadro das Nações Unidas sobre Mudanças Climáticas (CQNUMC), que estabelece os parâmetros para negociação do tema das mudanças climáticas e inaugura a busca de soluções para o problema, mas não elenca obrigações específicas de implementação.…”

“…Na fase de negociação do Protocolo, economias industrializadas assumiram a liderança nos compromissos de redução de emissões de GEE (Gupta, 2010;Viola, 2002). O protocolo estabelece que essas economias, agrupadas no Anexo I da CQNUMC, deveriam impor limites compulsórios para suas emissões, reduzindo-as em pelo menos 5% entre 2008 e 2012 em relação aos patamares de 1990.…”

“…Elas articulavam-se principalmente por meio do G-77+China, lideradas pelo Brasil, Índia e China, utilizando o princípio das responsabilidades comuns, porém diferenciadas, e a responsabilidade histórica das economias desenvolvidas para justificar seu posicionamento. Entre 1997 e 2001, o regime do clima caminha para a consolidação (Gupta, 2010) for totalmente implementado, a temperatura média do planeta subirá 2,7o C até 2100 (Climate Action Tracker, 2015).…”

Cambio climático. Perspectivas futuras

“…Entre otros aspectos, dicho protocolo incluye, por un lado, políticas de eficiencia energética, forestación y reforestación, agricultura sostenible, la investigación y el uso de energías renovables, así como fomentar reformas en el sector transporte y control de las emisiones de metano (Gupta, 2010). Por otro lado, incluyen objetivos obligatorios relativos a las emisiones de GEI para las principales economías mundiales que lo hayan aceptado.…”