{"id":18992,"date":"2019-12-18T20:44:27","date_gmt":"2019-12-18T20:44:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/?p=18992"},"modified":"2019-12-19T22:49:37","modified_gmt":"2019-12-19T22:49:37","slug":"the-madrid-climate-conferences-real-failure-was-not-getting-a-broad-deal-on-global-carbon-markets","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/the-madrid-climate-conferences-real-failure-was-not-getting-a-broad-deal-on-global-carbon-markets\/","title":{"rendered":"The Madrid climate conference’s real failure was not getting a broad deal on global carbon markets"},"content":{"rendered":"

Robert Stavins<\/a>, Harvard Kennedy School<\/a><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Press accounts of the Madrid climate conference<\/a> that adjourned on Dec. 15 are calling it a failure in the face of inspirational calls from youth activists<\/a> and others for greater ambition. But based on my 25 years following and analyzing this process<\/a> together with scholars and government officials from around the world, I believe the reality is more complicated.<\/p>\n

True, this round of climate talks did not produce an aspirational statement calling for greater ambition in the next round of national pledges. In my view, that\u2019s not actually very significant in terms of its real effects, even though organizations such as Greenpeace<\/a> and Extinction Rebellion<\/a> framed this as the key task for this meeting. <\/p>\n

On the other hand, the talks failed to reach one of their key stated goals: writing meaningful rules to help facilitate global carbon markets. As an economist<\/a>, I see this as a real disappointment \u2013 although not the fatal failure<\/a> some portray it to be.<\/p>\n

Tackling the free-rider problem<\/h2>\n

Here\u2019s some context to explain why international cooperation is essential to tackle climate change. Regardless of where they\u2019re emitted, greenhouse gases mix in the atmosphere. That\u2019s different from other air pollutants, which can affect localities or large areas, but not the entire world. <\/p>\n

This means that any jurisdiction that reduces its emissions incurs all of the costs of doing so, but receives only a share of the global benefits. Everyone has an incentive to free-ride, relying on others to cut emissions while taking minimal steps themselves.<\/p>\n

Recognizing this problem, nations adopted the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change at the Rio Earth Summit in 1992. As with many other international treaties, member countries agreed to hold regular meetings to devise rules for achieving the goals set out in the agreement. That\u2019s how the Conference of Parties, or COP, process was launched. <\/p>\n

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