Climate Strategies Press Release: low carbon coalitions can help us make progress on climate change
Climate Strategies urges fresh and realistic approach to help drive forward international negotiations, as the UNFCCC meets next week
24 November 2010: A leading international network of climate change academics today called on countries to put more effort into forming ‘bottom up’ low carbon coalitions to help re-energise the UN climate change negotiations. Climate Strategies is calling for a new approach that does not hinge on US engagement, but rather emphasises the building of bilateral arrangements, coalitions and groupings of countries which are committed to developing a low carbon economy. The network of experts believes that this approach could help drive forward international action on climate change through the UN process.
Professor Michael Grubb, Chair of Climate Strategies said:
“It is vital that the international community continues to discuss collective action on climate change through the UN. However, if the US cannot move forward for now, the rest of the world should be looking at ways in which co-operation can be enhanced not weakened. In the short to medium-term, the emergence of low carbon coalitions could play a key role in 'unblocking' the UNFCCC negotiations, for example helping to overcome North-South division via collaborations on several dimensions of climate policy, including low carbon technologies and pricing structures.”
“While low-carbon coalitions could make a major contribution towards collective action, the UNFCCC will remain a crucial forum for the eventual conclusion of binding deals and in harmonising rules for carbon accounting, monitoring progress and establishing international financial architecture.”
Climate Strategies points to the recent agreement between the UK and India to cut emissions as an example of how carbon coalitions can be set up and administered. The two countries have committed to jointly developing projects that demonstrate carbon reductions, share information, and create university-led research projects and fellowship exchange programs. The deal is set to generate significant jobs as well as revenue in green goods and the services market.
According to Grubb:
“The deal between the UK and India shows that bi-lateral agreements are possible, and will produce tangible results not just in terms of reducing carbon emissions, but in contributing to economic growth. This is a step in the right direction but what we really need now is for agreements of this nature to involve more EU countries (or the EU itself), as a basis for reaching out to wider groups of developing countries. This could build political momentum internationally that cuts across traditional north-south lines, and cannot be stymied by the inability of one major industrialised country to take effective action.”
ENDS
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About Climate Strategies
Climate Strategies aims to assist governments in solving the collective action problem of climate change. It connects leading applied research on international climate change issues to the policy process and to public debate, raising the quality and coherence of advice provided on policy formation.
We convene international groups of experts to provide rigorous, fact-based and independent assessment on international climate change policy. To effectively communicate insights into climate change policy, Climate Strategies works with decision-makers in government and business, particularly, but not restricted to, the countries of the European Union and EU institutions.
