Climate Governance at the Crossroads

The global response to climate change has reached a critical juncture. Since the 1992 signing of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the nations of the world have attempted to address climate change through large-scale multilateral treaty-making. These efforts have been heroic, but disappointing. As evidence for the quickening pace of climate change mounts, the treaty-making process has sputtered, and many are now skeptical about the prospect of an effective global response. Yet global treaty-making is not the only way that climate change can be addressed or, indeed, is being addressed. In the last decade myriad initiatives have emerged across the globe independently from, or only loosely connected to, the "official" UN-sponsored negotiations and treaties. In the face of stalemate in the formal negotiations, the world is experimenting with alternate means of responding to climate change. Climate Governance at the Crossroads chronicles these innovations--how cities, provinces and states, citizen groups, and corporations around the globe are addressing the causes and symptoms of global warming. The center of gravity in the global response to climate change is shifting from the multilateral treaty-making process to the diverse activities found beyond the negotiating halls. These innovations are pushing the envelope of climate action and demonstrating what is possible, and they provide hope that the world will respond effectively to the climate crisis. In introducing climate governance "experiments" and examining the development and functioning of this new world of climate policy-making, this book provides an exciting new perspective on the politics of climate change and the means to understand and influence how the global response to climate change will unfold in the coming years.
"The perennial quest for a seamless international bargain on climate change has yielded to a far more complex set of climate governance initiatives around the world. Matthew Hoffmann takes a fresh look at this ever-expanding arena of public policy and thoughtfully explores early lessons and possible next steps. This book represents a valuable scholarly contribution and provides an important public service."--Barry G. Rabe, Professor of Public Policy and Professor of the Environment, University of Michigan

"Growing concern about the impacts of climate change, coupled with frustration at the lack of progress in intergovernmental climate negotiations, has motivated numerous subnational governments and non-state actors to launch experiments with alternative approaches to climate governance. This important book provides the first systematic assessment of these initiatives. Focusing on the experimental governance system, it not only sheds light on ways forward regarding climate change; it also adds to our understanding of a trend of fundamental importance to the pursuit of governance more generally."--Oran R. Young, Professor of Institutional and International Governance, University of California-Santa Barbara

"Matthew Hoffman brings light to the darkening literature of climate change. He shows that, while negotiations at the international level have stalled, there is a multitude of promising governing efforts taking place in the municipal, corporate and nongovernmental sectors. Seen through Hoffman's incisive analytical lens, we can appreciate such 'experiments' as grounds for hope. If you care about and want to respond positively to climate change, read this book!"--Paul Wapner, Associate Professor and Director of the Global Environmental Politics Program, American University

"This timely, jargon-free book may be transformational by stimulating new perceptions of climate change policy dilemmas. Understanding this universe of climate governance expeLIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS ; PREFACE AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ; CHAPTER 1 INTO THE VOID ; CHAPTER 2 THE WORLD OF CLIMATE GOVERNANCE EXPERIMENTATION ; CHAPTER 3 MAKING SENSE OF CLIMATE GOVERNANCE EXPERIMENTATION ; CHAPTER 4 EXPERIMENTING IN PRACTICE ; CHAPTER 5 EXPERIMENTING WITH CITIES AND TECHNOLOGY ; CHAPTER 6 CONSTRUCTING CARBON MARKETS ; CHAPTER 7 LOST IN THE VOID OR FILLING THE VOID? ; APPENDIX ; LIST OF INTERVIEWS UNDERTAKEN ; WORKS CITED ; INDEX