Who Are The Key Players At Copenhagen?
– 11 November 2009 While open and transparent decision making at Copenhagen will be crucial to lay the foundations for a binding international agreement, breakthroughs in the negotiations will depend on the wrangling that occurs away from the public gaze. Before we look at the main wheelers and dealers, it’s worth examining why it is so important that a deal is struck in Copenhagen. With many countries taking strong action at home via domestic emissions policies, does it really matter if no binding international obligations emerge from this round of negotiations? The answer is yes for two reasons. Firstly, most countries inevitably look for safety in numbers when crafting climate change policies. While a few may be prepared to go it alone, most will only be prepared to take strong action if they see comparable efforts being made in other countries; particularly major trading partners. It is true that over the last few years both the US and China along with a large number of other devel
