Policy

Table of contents

Climate change policies are economic, social and industrial policies that aim to minimize greenhouse gas emissions or to meet adaptation challenges resulting from the changing climate.  The largest greenhouse gas emissions reduction regime is the Kyoto Protocol, an international agreement that sets binding targets for 37 industrialized countries and the European community for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 5.2% below 1990 levels by 2012.1  There are also an increasing number of national and local climate change policies and initiatives being proposed as countries and communities become increasingly aware of the effects of and their role in climate change. 

Along with explicit climate change policies, Sustainable Development Policies and Measures (SDPAMs), which generally aim to achieve a sustainable balance between economic development, social development and environmental protection2, frequently include an important consideration of climate change.  The United Nations Division for Sustainable Development includes climate change as coming within the scope of sustainable development.3

 Some prominent carbon reduction policies include:

  • Cap and Trade Mechanisms: set a target for emissions reductions for an entire country, region or sector and assign carbon emissions permits to each actor in the system. Permits are traded among actors to achieve maximum efficiency and least cost emissions reductions.
  • Carbon Tax: levies duty on emissions across sectors designed to incentivize reductions.

Footnotes

1: Kyoto Protocol, UNFCCC.  R 30 Jan 2009.

2: 2005 World Summit Outcome Document, World Health Organization, 15 September 2005

3: United Nations Division for Sustainable Development. Documents: Sustainable Development Issues Accessed: 01-27-09

References

"Global Climate Change Policy Tracker: An Investor's Assessment" (Climate Tracker, report), Deutsche Bank Climate Advisors, October 26, 2009. Accessed 26 Oct 2009.  "Provides investors with an analysis of climate change policies and assigns a risk rating to 109 countries, states and regions based on key government mandates and supporting policy frameworks...It incorporates results of a model prepared by Columbia Climate Center researchers that estimates the impacts on carbon emissions of each of 270 major climate policies, and aggregates them at country, regional and global levels."

 

Featured Articles

Basel Convention
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Basel Convention

A treaty to reduce the movement of waste between nations, particularly movement of hazardous waste from developed to less-developed countries.

Carbon Tax
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Carbon Tax

A tax imposed on carbon dioxide emissions and one of two major market-based options to lower emissions, along with cap and trade schemes.

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