Howard E. Woodin ES Colloquium Series

Adequacy and Equity under Neoliberal Climate Governance: Assessing the Paris Moment
Timmons Roberts, Ittleson Professor of Environmental Studies; Professor of Sociology Brown University, Institute at Brown for the Environment and Society

Dr. Roberts will speak on the current paradigm of international climate change governance, including synthesis of important developments at the 21st Conference of the Parties in Paris, starting November 30. What are the prospects for the Paris climate change negotiations? Based on the new book Power in a Warming World (MIT Press, September), this talk reviews Paris and previous rounds of climate negotiations by their level of adequacy to avert the worst impacts of climate change and whether their process and implications are equitable. The voluntary Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDC) pledging process and the importance of bilateral and “minilateral” announcements reveal a turn to inequitable and undemocratic but somewhat more adequate outcomes, from exclusive inaction towards exclusive action. The talk assesses some of the implications of the Paris moment for developing countries and civil society campaigners focused on fair burden sharing and democratic process.

Co-sponsored by the Geography Department and Rohatyn Center for Global Affairs.