491. After the Flop in Copenhagen
- Author:
- Gary Clyde Hufbauer
- Publication Date:
- 03-2010
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Peterson Institute for International Economics
- Abstract:
- Despite high drama, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) conference, held in Copenhagen between December 7 and 18, 2009, ended as a flop. The failure to secure a comprehensive treaty came as no surprise: hopes for the Copenhagen conference to wrap up two years of negotiations with a successor treaty to the Kyoto Protocol had faded long before December. But it was still disappointing that so little was accomplished, especially after President Barack Obama, Premier Wen Jiabao, and over 100 world leaders decided (at the last moment) to join thousands of delegates, environmentalists, and climate activists in Copenhagen. Our own benchmarks for a reasonable outcome from Copenhagen include much greater specificity as to targets, time paths, and control measures by major emitting countries; more detailed commitments on financial support and conditionality terms for developing countries; and acceptance by all major emitters, whether developed or developing countries, of robust and independent monitoring, reporting, and verification (MRV) standards. We do not place great stress on the legal form of the ultimate agreement, whether a treaty or a political accord or something in between (Werksman and Herbertson 2009), but we do think the sense of obligation must be equivalent between all major emitters. Again, equivalence was not achieved.
- Topic:
- Climate Change, Environment, International Cooperation, Treaties and Agreements, and United Nations