The UNFCCC: Humanity's Best Foot Forward

There is no problem—and there never will be a problem—that matches the

magnitude and urgency of anthropogenic climate change. Our shifting ecosystems and

warming atmosphere pose incomprehensible and irreversible threats to human

civilization. This wicked challenge—ceaselessly multiplex, yet spatially, temporally, and

institutionally fragmented—must be met with unprecedented action and cooperation

on behalf of all nations on earth.

The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is the capstone of an

effective climate solution. Global average temperature has climbed 1.1°C above the pre-industrial era. The Paris Accord, signed in 2015, incorporates both bottom-up and top-down approaches to limit temperature increases “well below 2 C” and to “pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5C” (Article 2). Although domestic policy is left to national discretion, the Paris Accords delineate international legal obligations to develop, implement, and strengthen commitments.

Skeptics argue against the Paris Accord, because the UNFCCC has not necessarily been successful in bringing agreements into effect. The organization lacks a concise method of combatting climate change, and has no enforcement mechanisms to hold countries accountable for their emissions. The Carbon Action Tracker, compiled by Germany-based nonprofits Climate Analytics and the NewClimate Institute, shows that the world is falling critically behind its climate goals. Skeptics therefore promote smaller-scale initiatives like localized Climate Action Plans as effective ways to mitigate and adapt to climate change.

With that said, the underpinnings of a multilateral approach to climate governance is not just our best bet, it’s our only chance. Here’s why:

1. Complexity. Climate lies at the nexus of energy, land use, investment, security, trade, transportation, agriculture, food, and water. In an ever-connected world, tethered by the strings of a global economy, collective action and agreements are required to scratch the surface of the issue.

2. Cooperation. Climate change is a “global commons problem;” GHG emissions from any location permeate in the upper atmosphere and affect the entire planet. In legal definitions, we call this a “nuisance.” It’s only sensible to have these global nuisances managed in a common arena. Moreover, as it now stands, the aggregate effect of current national pledges is expected to spell out a global mean temperature rise of 3.7–4.8 degrees this century (UNFCCC 2015b, 8). Humanity is facing a tragedy of the commons—an economic situation in which everyone has an incentive to consume a non-excludable resource, but only at the expense of everyone else. In game theory, this situation is that of a Prisonerʼs Dilemma involving a common resource. In other words, though it is collectively rational to reduce emissions, it is individually rational to defect. Without strong global institutions to facilitate cooperation, economies will continue business as usual to the detriment the global atmospheric commons. The UNFCCC framework provides the wherewithal to avoid this. Through multilateral cooperation, the UNFCCC makes collectively rational action—namely, carbon abatement—to also become individually rational.

International cooperation is not only required, but also preferred.

Transparency. The Paris Agreement has created a standardized framework—the enhanced transparency framework (ETF)—for measuring GHG emissions. The ETF provides clear accounting and reporting standards, sector guidance, and calculation tools for businesses and governments. Starting in 2024, countries will have to report their progress in climate change mitigation. This data will contribute to a Global stocktake. This is critical and beneficial for two reasons:

• Unified accounting. Today, economic globalization and production fragmentation has complicated emission accounting for GHG’s embodied in international trade. For example, nearly a quarter of China's CO2 emissions are a result of its exports. Outsourcing production overseas, therefore can make any national climate goals meaningless. Likewise, emissions can be “double counted,” or unfairly allotted according to tangible benefits or environmental costs. A homogenous carbon accounting system is necessary for any effective action.

• Clearer market information will be integral in promoting carbon market and pricing solutions to climate change. Better information will help expand work on new market-based initiatives like emissions trading systems and tax-and-offset programs.

Financing. According to the UNFCCC, climate finance refers to "local, national or transnational financing—drawn from public, private and alternative sources of financing—that seeks to support mitigation and adaptation actions that will address climate change." For both mitigation and adaptation, the Paris Agreement assures that developed countries provide financial assistance to countries at the frontlines of the crisis. The Agreement further aims to make global finance flows consistent with a pathway towards low emissions. While there is surely room for improvement, its baseline efficacy is irrevocable; since 2015, the financing landscape has shifted in favor of clean energy. For example, according to the International Energy Agency, in 2020, renewable energy made up about 90% of the new energy generation installed around the world. By 2025, renewable energy is projected to displace coal as the biggest source of power.

Technical. The Technology Mechanism provides overarching guidance to accelerate and integrate R&D to ensure that humanity maximizes its time and efficiency in its response to climate change. The Technology Mechanism also fosters public and private partnerships, sending clear market and policy signals for long-term climate commitments.

Credibility & Ambition. In order to maximize global efficacy, we must have a system that encourages reciprocal climate policies. Countries will take costlier climate action as others follow suit, in that free-riding concerns are kept to a minimum. In order to maximize global efficacy, we must have a system that encourages reciprocal climate policies.

We cannot escape the damage that is baked into the atmosphere. But that doesn’t mean that things have to get any worse. The Paris Agreement calls for reform; nonetheless, as a symbol of international climate diplomacy, it still represents the most promising pathway for the betterment of humanity.