The Environment A Global Collective Goods Problem

Protecting the Global Environment  A Collective Goods Problem: “ The problem of how to provide something that benefits all members regardless of what each contributes to it” (Goldstein and Pevehouse 2014, p.4)  It is difficult to get states to cooperate to protect the “global commons” (e.g. shared part of the earth, such as the oceans and space).  Tragedy of the Commons : Watch this 3 minute video 

 Key Question: If everyone wants to protect the environment, why is it so difficult to achieve?  Answer: There are strong incentives to “ free ride”--- all states rationalize that they would rather let someone else bear the burden of environmental regulation. Without a global government, states cannot be certain that other members will contribute their fair share to the common goal or ‘public good’.  International agreements to protect the environment rely on voluntary compliance. It is difficult for states to agree on who should bear what costs of environmental protection and preservation.

.  While cooperation has not been easy to achieve, and we still face many roadblocks, there have been some notable achievements toward internationally shared environmental goals  States have established international institutions to work toward greater cooperation on environmental issues  Important examples: The Commission on Sustainable Development; the UN Environment Program; The International Whaling Commission

 In addition to international institutions, states have also been able to reach some agreements over how to work collectively to protect and preserve our global environment through international treaties and protocols.  The Kyoto Protocol and the Montreal Protocol are the most well-known

The Kyoto Protocol  An amendment to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, adopted in 1997 and entered into force in 2005, that establishes specific targets for reducing emissions of carbon dioxide and five other gasses (Frieden et al. 2010).  The United States signed the treaty, but the U.S. Congress did not ratify it. Therefore the U.S. is not a party to Kyoto. However, 160 other countries have signed and ratified this agreement to reduce their carbon dioxide emissions.

The Montreal Protocol  Goal: To reduce the emissions of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) gasses, which deplete the ozone layer.  In countries agreed to reduce CFC emissions by 50%  As scientific evidence mounted and demonstrated severe depletion to the ozone layer, the Montreal Protocol was revisited and strengthened in  By 1996 rich countries stopped making CFCs!  UN Secretary General Kofi Annan declared the Montreal Protocol to be “perhaps the single most successful international agreement to date.”

 Efforts to reach international agreements to address climate change continue…although sometimes at a painstakingly slow pace.  Recent UN Climate Change Conferences in Copenhagen and Warsaw have failed to reach a comprehensive solution to replace and advance the Kyoto agreement.  In 2011 at a conference in South Africa, 195 states agreed to extend Kyoto until 2017.

Green Climate Fund  At the sixteenth session of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), held in Cancun, Mexico, the participating states decided to establish the Green Climate Fund. United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)  The Green Climate Fund aims to disperse $100 million dollars to developing countries to help them adapt to international environmental regulations. 