1. "If Equity's In, We're Out": Scope for Fairness in the Next Global Climate Agreement
- Author:
- Steve Vanderheiden, Jonathan Pickering, and Seumas Miller
- Publication Date:
- 01-2013
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Institution:
- Carnegie Council
- Abstract:
- In the final hours of the United Nations climate change conference held in Durban, South Africa, in late 2011, senior negotiators from wealthy and developing countries clustered in a widely reported "huddle" to resolve out- standing points of discord on how to launch negotiations for a long-term global climate agreement to succeed the Kyoto Protocol. Among the statements voiced in the huddle, one of the most intriguing was attributed to the lead United States negotiator, Todd Stern: "If equity's in, we're out." In other words, if the resulting decision contained any references to the term "equity," the United States would refuse to participate. As it transpired, the United States and like-minded countries succeeded on this point. The agreed upon Durban Platform for Enhanced Action contained no references either to equity or to the "common but differentiated responsibilities" of all parties for protecting the climate system. These omissions were notable since both are core principles of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC, Article), under whose auspices the negotiations took place.
- Political Geography:
- United States, South Africa, and Durban