From November 30th to December 11th, climate negotiators from more than 190 countries will meet in Paris, France at the 21st Conference of the Parties (COP21) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Negotiators seek to produce the first legally binding and universal agreement on climate in over 20 years in order to keep global warming below 2°C. Various other attempts, such as the Kyoto Protocol and the meeting in Copenhagen, have failed to produce a mechanism or an agreement that can achieve the goal of the Convention to prevent dangerous anthropogenic climate change.
This is an extremely complicated agreement with contentious issues ranging from common but differentiated responsibility, mitigation, adaptation and loss and damage, forests and land use change, finance, capacity building, market mechanisms, legal form, review mechanisms, and INDCs. Additionally, there are over 190 negotiators, a number of party coalitions, and many non-state actors each pushing their own agenda. Nonetheless, the ability of the international community to prevent the worst effects of climate change greatly hinges on the success of this agreement.
Students from Global Environmental Politics have written on a variety of these issues relating to the climate negotiations, and you can check out their blog posts here!
A Piece of the Pie: by Michella Ore
ADP 2-11: From Non-Paper to Draft Agreement by Annie Tewksbury
AOSIS: Coalition Dynamics looking forward to COP21 in Paris by Skylar Smith
Can a Developing Country Shape Climate Change Aid Negotiations? Bolivia’s Stance in Paris by Nahiomy Alvarez
COP 21’s Unheralded Superstar: Sweden by Christopher Wayland
Cracking the Climate Finance Code by Jesse Payan
How will we see the forests from Paris? By Daniel Wong
Putting Aside out Differences: Climate Cooperation between China and the United States by Caroline Beckmann
Voting for Action: Canadian Voters and Climate Change by Max Dugan-Knight
What Role Does the Media Play in Climate Change Discussion? By Sarah Ladouceur
Where do Petroleum Exporters Stand on COP21? By Mona Sami
Who Gets the Last Word? Activism in Climate Change Negotiatons by Emory Strawn