Great powers, climate change, and global environmental responsibilities
Rebecca Peters
Abstract
The advent of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 1992 created a multilateral system for climate negotiations. Since then, the themes of responsibility and equity have been central and contentious. To this day, parties dispute how to interpret the principle of ‘common but differentiated responsibilities’, enshrined in the UNFCCC's treaty. While resistance to the concept of equity is not new, to accept the principle would force a reckoning for industrialized countries to fulfil a leadership role and satisfy corresponding responsibilities. Until this timely contribution, work at the intersection of International Relations (IR) and global environmental politics (GEP) remained limited. Robert Falkner and Barry Buzan have gathered a sterling set of contributors—11 of 16 of which are women—to advance their arguments and build a compelling framework. Compared with earlier surveys, such as International relations and global climate change (edited by Urs Luterbacher and Detlef F. Sprinz, Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2001), this edited volume develops a more global yet focused approach that will help academics and policy-makers grapple with environmental issues beyond country-specific analyses.