Multilateral efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions are accelerating but climate scientists and environmental activists believe that far more ambitious efforts are needed to avoid the risk of irreparable, grave harm in the Earth's climate system and cascading failures which will imperil ecosystems and society. The recent global climate conference, in Glasgow in November 2021, demonstrated that the political and economic challenges to improving international climate law remain as difficult as ever, though some modest progress was made. This course examines the international legal and policy features which govern efforts to manage global climate change, and explores what governance reforms could or should be made. Such an enquiry introduces important ethical, political and scientific issues, which require that the course subject matter be approached through a critical, interdisciplinary lens. The course comprises six principal topics, and begins with the science and geopolitical context of climate change, as well as introducing the foundational elements of international environmental law that underpin much of the field of climate law. We then delve into the development of the principal intergovernmental agreements, beginning with the Framework Convention on Climate Change and concluding with the Glasgow agreement of 2021. Specialist topics are then examined, including the role of market mechanisms and finance as tools for mobilising climate action, and the role of environmental activists and climate litigation to spur changes to law and policy. The readings in the course draw on a mix of scholarly research and recent media literature.
Multilateral efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions are accelerating but climate scientists and environmental activists believe that far more ambitious efforts are needed to avoid the risk of irreparable, grave harm in the Earth's climate system and cascading failures which will imperil ecosystems and society. The recent global climate conference, in Glasgow in November 2021, demonstrated that the political and economic challenges to improving international climate law remain as difficult as ever, though some modest progress was made. This course examines the international legal and policy features which govern efforts to manage global climate change, and explores what governance reforms could or should be made. Such an enquiry introduces important ethical, political and scientific issues, which require that the course subject matter be approached through a critical, interdisciplinary lens. The course comprises six principal topics, and begins with the science and geopolitical context of climate change, as well as introducing the foundational elements of international environmental law that underpin much of the field of climate law. We then delve into the development of the principal intergovernmental agreements, beginning with the Framework Convention on Climate Change and concluding with the Glasgow agreement of 2021. Specialist topics are then examined, including the role of market mechanisms and finance as tools for mobilising climate action, and the role of environmental activists and climate litigation to spur changes to law and policy. The readings in the course draw on a mix of scholarly research and recent media literature.
