Environmental Science
The Politics of Climate Change Policy Negotiation
Quick fact
The Paris Agreement, adopted in 2015, was signed by 196 parties and relies on voluntary national pledges, not legally binding emission cuts. This was a deliberate design to overcome the political obstacles that doomed earlier top-down treaties.
Why this is interesting
Have you ever wondered why, despite overwhelming scientific consensus, international climate treaties are so hard to achieve? In global climate negotiations, every country holds a veto—yet somehow, a deal was reached in Paris.