Global governance of climate

The adoption of the Bali Action Plan during the Conference of the Parties in December 2007 launched a two-year round of international negotiations with a view to reaching a vital agreement that would follow on from the Kyoto Protocol. The key issues of these negotiations, which concluded in Copenhagen on 19 December 2009, have concerned the establishment of tougher emissions reduction policies in developed countries (and the return of the United States to the arena), the need to rapidly undertake ambitious initiatives in the main emerging countries, and the need to give assistance to the poorest countries faced with the inevitable impacts of climate change.

With regard to the international negotiation process, IDDRI welcomed and supported Michael Zammit Cutajar, Chair of the Ad Hoc Working Group on Long-term Cooperative Action under the Convention (AWG-LCA). IDDRI’s support concerned both the substance (strategic foresight, analysis, proposals on the different negotiating parts) and the facilitation of his diplomatic work (organising bilateral meetings and discussions with key negotiators on the vital political elements of the Copenhagen agreement).

In autumn 2008, IDDRI launched the “Copenhagen Club”, which regularly brings together the industrial and institutional partners of its climate programme to share the latest information and review the progress made in international negotiations.

IDDRI has focused more specifically on the issue of sectoral approaches to involve emerging economies in global climate governance and acknowledged the fight against deforestation in tropical countries. It conducted in-depth studies on these two issues for Tony Blair’s Breaking the Climate Deadlock initiative.

Climate issues are no longer exclusively the realm of environmental policies. There is increasing awareness of the changes in our economy and of the investment needed to build a new low-carbon economy. In energy production, but also in the infrastructure, transport and building sectors, the scale of changes to be implemented to meet the climate challenge implies renewing the approach to climate policies. This means creating the conditions for a new industrial revolution, transforming the business models of many economic sectors.

Climate Strategies
IDDRI also takes part in Climate Strategies, which aim is to assist governments in solving the collective action problem of climate change. Michel Colombier is a Member of the Board of Directors of Climate Strategies.