Cold War of global warming
The science on global warming is now incontrovertible: the climate is changing, man is helping to make that happen. more at FinacialTimes.com
Stern Review on the economics of climate change more
Framework for Understanding International Collective Action for Climate Change
Key Messages Climate change mitigation raises the classic problem of the provision of a global public good. It shares some key characteristics with other environmental challenges that require the international management of common resources to avoid free riding.
International collective action is already taking place in a wide variety of forms, including multilateral, coordinated and parallel approaches.
Multilateral frameworks such as the UNFCCC and Kyoto Protocol provide an essential foundation to build further co-operation.
Partnerships, networks and organisations such as the International Energy Agency facilitate coordinated international action.
Mutual understanding of domestic policy goals supports further action: the EU, China,and California are amongst those that have adopted strong mandatory initiatives that will reduce the growth of greenhouse gas emissions.
Stronger, more coordinated action is required to stabilise concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Successful efforts in many areas, including the protection of the ozone layer, have demonstrated that international co-operation can overcome issues of free riding.
Insights from game theory help to inform the design of frameworks for international action. Countries usually honour international commitments where they conform to shared notions of responsible behaviour, even through international law provides weak tools to enforce co-operation. Existing multilateral frameworks can be enhanced by creating a shared understanding of long-term goals and responsible behaviour. The transparency and comparability of national action across a range of dimensions of effort are key to mutual understanding and recognition of what others are doing, as well as ensuring public accountability. Enhancing them will require a strong response from existing multilateral institutions, including those with expertise in monitoring economic policy. Widespread public understanding of the climate change problem and support for action is growing rapidly. Public awareness and support is crucial for encouraging and sustaining co-operation.
Climate change is one of the greatest challenges to nternational co-operation the world is currently facing. As we have described in the preceding Parts of this Review, the scale of the problem and consequences of failure to tackle it are immense. This Review has made a compelling case for action on both mitigation and daptation demonstrating that the global economic costs of business as usual paths are likely to far outweigh the costs of taking action to reduce the risks. We have also explored some of the local and regional co-benefits that can act as incentives to take action. A wide range of policy tools for mitigation and adaptation are available to national governments. However, no two countries will face exactly the same situation in terms of impacts or the costs and benefits of action, and no country can take effective action to control the risks that they face alone. International collective action to tackle the problem is required because climate change is a global public good countries can freeride on each others' efforts and because co-operative action will greatly reduce the costs of both mitigation and adaptation. The international collective response to the climate change problem required is therefore unique, both in terms of its complexity and depth.
