International Responses to Climate Change

Remaining scientific uncertainties about climate change include the amount of warming expected in the future, and how warming and related changes will vary from region to region around the globe. Most national governments have signed and ratified the Kyoto Protocol aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and many have taken actions to reduce CO2 emissions.  However, there is ongoing political and public debate worldwide regarding what, if any, action should be taken to reduce or reverse future warming or to adapt to its expected consequences and the timetable for taking such actions⁴. 

The United Nations plays a leading role in the public debate, winning the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007 its efforts to improve the science of climate change.  The UN Environmental Program’s (UNEP’s) Climate Change Programme focuses on four strategic priority areas: mitigation, adaptation, science and deforestation⁴.

• In the area of mitigation, UNEP supports the development of the carbon market in both developing and least developed countries; promotes sound energy supply choices with a focus on renewable energy options; partners with various actors to improve the efficiency with which energy is used, promotes energy conservation measures; and works to improve land use.

• In the area of adaptation, UNEP facilitates the development of better local climate data and its use in determining possible impacts of long-term climate change and short-term increased variability; and it supports the improvement of the ability to undertake adaptation planning and cost effective preventive action, including that linked to disaster prevention efforts.

• The best available science on climate change is provided through the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) set up by UNEP and the World Meteorological Organization 20 years ago.

• UNEP’s  REDD Programme (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation in Developing Countries) focuses on slowing the rate of deforestation which is the second leading cause of climate change behind energy use.

The European Union (EU) also plays an important role in the fight against climate change. The EU has set a goal of a 50% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050⁵.   The EU has also set interim goals of an 8% reduction of emissions from 1990 levels by 2012 and a 20% reduction by 2020. The EU is already on track to meet the 2012 goal⁴. 

The cornerstone of the EU’s strategy for fighting climate change is the EU emission trading scheme (EU ETS), launched in January 2005. It was the first international cap-and-trade system for CO2 emissions and has become the main driver behind the rapid expansion in carbon trading around the world. It is similar to the approach used to eliminate the chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) that were destroying the ozone layer.  Cap-and-trade systems are generally recognized as the most effective mechanisms for achieving governmental environmental goals at the least cost due to their reliance on market mechanisms rather than government regulations to reduce emissions⁴.  

The EU ETS currently covers around 11,600 installations in the energy and industrial sectors which are collectively responsible for close to half the EU’s emissions of CO2. By putting a cost on the carbon emissions of these installations, the scheme creates a permanent incentive for participating companies to minimize emissions⁴.

Under the cap-and-trade scheme, the national authorities in each EU country allocate a certain number of emission allowances to each installation. The ‘cap’, or limit, on the total number of allowances creates the scarcity needed for the market to function. Companies that keep their emissions below the level of their allowances can sell the allowances they do not need. The largest market for these credits is the European Climate Exchange (ECX).  Those facing difficulty in keeping to their allowances must either take measures to reduce their own emissions (for example, by investing in more efficient technology or using less carbon-intensive energy sources), or buy the extra allowances needed on the market — effectively paying another company for reducing emissions on their behalf⁴.

Companies covered by the EU ETS are also allowed to use emission credits generated by emission-saving projects in non-EU countries. This is organized under the Kyoto Protocol’s clean development mechanism (CDM) and joint implementation (JI) instrument.  Demand for these credits is a strong driver for investment in ideas that reduce emissions in other countries⁴.

President Obama has proposed a similar carbon cap and trade system to achieve CO2 emission reduction goals in the United States⁶.