An Analysis of the Role and Participation of Small Island States in International Climate Negotiations
Date Issued
2011
Date
2011
Author(s)
Chao, Wei-Ting
Abstract
Global climate change is a crisis that emerged in the 20th century, and rising temperatures are causing abnormal phenomena. Heat waves, hurricanes and other catastrophes are rapidly changing and threatening human life. Global environmental problems pose significant diplomatic and legal challenges to the international community, the nature of these problems requires an unprecedented degree of international cooperation achieved through multilateral negotiation, but multilateral negotiation is a very complicated process and often fails to reach a consensus. An understanding of multilateral negotiation requires the consideration of many factors which might affect the process and the results of negotiation, such as numbers of participants, the wide range of actors and interest and the complexity of the issues. Furthermore, scientific uncertainty makes the negotiation of climate change more difficult. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), which was signed by some 153 countries in 1992, and Kyoto Protocol, which was signed in 1997, are two of the most important regime of climate change negotiation.
For many small island states, climate change is an urgent problem that threatens their very survival; and goes directly to the roots of sustainability. According to United Nation (U.N.), there are 51 small island developing states and regions (SIDs) in the world; for these kind of low lying states, not only will their social-economic viability be compromised, but also the risks from sea level rise threaten their physical existence, as they would very easily be inundated by sea levels in excess of one meter above current levels. Because of their weak diplomatic power and scarce resources, these small island states are vulnerable to marginalization in international negotiations, and it’s difficult for them to influence the international policies. The threat of climate change has motivated 43 lowland and small island states to align themselves into the Alliance of the Small Island States(AOSIS), and the delegates of AOSIS have actively participated in international climate change conferences and informal sessions.
The motive of this project is to find out how the small island states participated in international climate change conferences and negotiations from 1987 to 2005, and what kind of roles they played in the process. This thesis uses multilateral negotiation thesis to characterize, develop, and analyze the negotiation process and negotiation agreements. By analyzing the difficulties and challenges which the AOSIS face, the ways they participate, the issues and agreements they propose and the roles they play to know how relatively weaker states or alliances can be able to confront another party hat is militarily or economically more powerful to reach its objectives and how they impact the climate regimes.
Subjects
Global climate change
multilateral negotiation
small island states
Alliance of the Small Island States(AOSIS)
negotiation process and negotiation agreements.
SDGs
Type
thesis
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