RE: Copenhagen result
I take Wil's "exogenous" comment to mean that the bulk of UK emissions reductions would have occured in the absence of Kyoto. From: owner-gep...@listserve1.allegheny.edu on behalf of Henrik SelinSent: Sun 12/20/2009 1:11 PMTo: gep-ed@listserve1.allegheny.eduSubject: RE: Copenhagen result 2. on legally binding. Youre right of course that international law is weak in terms of enforcement. But youre wrong that many Annex B countries will fail to meet their Kyoto targets the EU will get there easily enough, as will (for hot air reasons) most ex-soviet countries. NZ still has some to do but has set up a system which will mean it will buy hot air in effect. Australia and Japan arent too far off. Only really Canada is way off, and I despair at the idiots in charge of the country I moved to. So the q to my mind is not about enforcement, but rather about (a) the set of expectations that the term legally binding sets up amongst states that they tend to behave differently in the context of such a status to an agreement here Id claim that if Kyoto had just been a political declaration then I cant see the EU having set about achieving its targets so thoroughly without the legal status (although thats a judgement call of course), and (b) you cant set up any sort of institutional arrangements such as the CDM without the legal status of an agreement. And Kyoto compliance overall for the Annex B countries (they will get there collectively, canadian rubbishness being outweighed by russian hot air) has been driven by the Kyoto-CDM-EU ETS relationship, which couldnt have existed without a legal agreement. · The EU is only meeting its targets because the expansion, which brought in a lot of former Soviet entities whose economies (and thus emissions) collapsed in the 1990s and early twenty first century. Peel them away and you have a large number of EU states (Italy, Austria, Ireland) who arent going to make it (some by very large margins), and even purported stalwarts in the process e.g. the UK largely will meet their commitments because of exogenous factors, like shutting down large swaths of the coal industry. Until the recession, UK emissions, for example, were rising at levels clearly not in line with the KP;· You could certainly set up mechanisms like the CDM (which, incidentally, has produced almost nothing in terms of emissions reductions, and has wrought things like the HCFC scandals in China that may have resulted in a net negative impact on the environment) without KP, through bilateral agreements, so at least in terms of multilateral agreements, I dont think so. And again, the flexible mechanisms may be a poor rationale for binding international agreements;· If we get to the KP target through hot air, the agreement is indeed a chimera, and while you might be able to fool the public, you cant fool the atmosphere.I dont want to come across as an EU apologist here, but I think a few things should be pointed out. First, the EU Kyoto target is EU-15 and that has not changed with any subsequent enlargement. The EU-15 is still the EU-15. As such, the EU Kyoto target is separate from any gains that the EU-27 may have made since 1990 as a result of bringing in countries going through economic and industrial reconstruction. The fact that the EU-15 member states are on track collectively to meet their Kyoto target is not a result of enlargement (but you are absolutely right in your criticism of some individual EU-15 countries not doing their fair share). Second, so what if the UK is meeting its target in large part to switching away from coal; is that not something we want to see on a larger scale globally? How is that an "exogenous factor"?Cheers,Henrik
Experts on Emissions Trading legislation
Dear all, Speaking of comparative GEP, I'm working on a paper that compares the legislative initiatives currently being pursued by the US, EU, Australia and New Zealand that attempt to establish emissions trading systems at the domestic level. I am especially interested in allocation issues within and across different economic sectors. I've been able to glean much of what I need from internet sources but it'd be helpful if I could communicate directly with one or more individuals in the know that follow legislative developments closely in each of the above cases. I would welcome any suggestions along with contact info. Thanks in advance, Frank Frank Alcock Associate Professor of Political Science Director of Environmental Studies New College of Florida 5800 Bay Shore Road Sarasota, FL 34243 (941) 487-4483 (phone) (941) 487-4475 (fax)
Bamako Convention
I have a student that would like to write a paper on the Bamako convention...does anyone know of any in depth assessments on the surrounding politics and ultimate impacts? Frank Alcock Associate Professor of Political Science New College of Florida 5800 Bay Shore Road Sarasota, FL 34243 (941) 487-4483 (phone) (941) 487-4475 (fax)
RE: The Age of Stupid Premiers
I suspect that many of my colleagues will disagree with me but let me share some thoughts. If this film's intent is to catalyze action across a broad range of demographic groups I doubt it will have its intended effect. Worse, it might actually have some unintended consequences. I think that hard core climate change activists will see it as a therapeutic venting exercise and/or an energizing call to arms. But for most Americans I fear that it plays into the worst stereotypes of global warming alarmism and it violates just about every principle of effective communications strategies for stimulating social change (doomsday scenarios and shaming rarely invoke the desired response). There were a few segments that I liked. The cartoons were harsh societal critiques but presented in a witty sort of way. And the Alps and UK-NIMBY chronicles were compelling in many respects. On the whole, however, I had a lot of issues with the coherence and likely impact of the messages implicit in many of the chronicles - some of which are touched upon by Beth, Angus and Michelle - and I thought the solutions segment was a ripe target for political ridicule. For those of you that pay close attention to rhetoric in American political debates, you probably have noticed how hard the conservative talking heads have worked to associate the word rationing and images of Soviet style bread lines with liberal and/or democratic policy agendas. They don't want you to think of rationing when you think of health care reform, they want rationing to be an immediate psychological response to the word liberal or democrat in a word association exercise for every American. So you can probably guess what my reaction was to the carbon rationing card idea. I'd go so far as to say that those who would like to see American climate change legislation derailed would probably want as many Americans as possible to see that segment if not the entire film. I wouldn't be surprised to see some of the conservative talk show hosts drawing people's attention to the movie and encouraging them to see it. No need for presenting distorted caricatures. Here's your liberal worldview and accompanying policy agenda in all its glory. I'm afraid this movie (and the accompanying premier theatrics) reinforced my sense that climate activists like to make movies that appeal to climate activists. They also like to congratulate themselves for doing so. Meanwhile, powerful interest groups that have a stake in the status quo continue to pay people to communicate messages to targeted demographic groups through a variety of media channels with very effective results. Feel free to disagree. Frank From: owner-gep...@listserve1.allegheny.edu [mailto:owner-gep...@listserve1.allegheny.edu] On Behalf Of Betsill,Michele Sent: Tuesday, September 22, 2009 2:19 PM To: gep-ed@listserve1.allegheny.edu Subject: RE: The Age of Stupid Premiers I too went to the premier but left before the after show events (turns out kids must also be tended to!). I think I'm still processing my response and will be interested to hear reactions tomorrow from some of my students. I definitely went away with a sick feeling in my stomach but wasn't convinced it was a great mechanism for educating the general public about climate change. I agree with Angus that many points were unconnected and/or left vague and I wonder whether those who do not spend 24/7 thinking about climate change would really be able to put the pieces together. I'm afraid people will leave either feeling that the situation is hopeless or incredibly guilty, neither of which is particularly helpful in mobilizing society for change. Finally, I was surprised by the faith the filmmakers put in multilateral environmental agreements. At the end, they suggest the fate of the human species rests on the outcome of Copenhagen. That's a REALLY scary thought and misses so many of the other opportunities we have for addressing the issue. My two cents for what it's worth. Michele ___ Michele Betsill, PhD Associate Professor Department of Political Science Clark B350 Colorado State University Fort Collins, Colorado 80523 USA +1 970 491 5270 Founder and co-leader, Environmental Governance Working Group http://egwg.colostate.edu http://egwg.colostate.edu/ From: owner-gep...@listserve1.allegheny.edu [mailto:owner-gep...@listserve1.allegheny.edu] On Behalf Of Elizabeth Chalecki Sent: Tuesday, September 22, 2009 9:48 AM To: Alcock, Frank; gep-ed@listserve1.allegheny.edu Subject: Re: The Age of Stupid Premiers Yes, I went here in Boston, and the theater was packed (maybe because it was the only one accessible by public transit?). I found the film to be more than a little depressing! As far as scientific information goes, Al Gore did a better job in An Inconvenient Truth of explaining why climate change is happening and what
RE: The Age of Stupid Premiers
Title: "The Age of Stupid" Premiers Did anyone besides myself see the film tonight? If so, what did you think? From: owner-gep...@listserve1.allegheny.edu on behalf of rldavisSent: Sat 9/12/2009 4:48 PMTo: NEES List; Global Environmental EducationCc: Monique BoschSubject: "The Age of Stupid" Premiers Hi all-forgive me for cross posting. I wanted to bring the premier of a very important film to you attention. I was fortunate enough to see The Age of Stupid at a special showing for the attendees of the Climate Projects Nashville Summit in March. At that time, it had only been released in the UK. It is a provocative, powerful, plausible, and disturbing film set in a post global warming world of 2055. From that perspective, it looks back at our own time, the age of stupid and chronicles 6 highly plausible (in fact, I see most of them actually going on now) stories that are interwoven to show how we got to a destroyed world. It is beautifully acted with Pete Postlethwaite as the principle and the production is excellent. About 20% fiction and 80% documentary. Here is the blurb from the web site: The Age of Stupid is the new four-year epic from McLibel director Franny Armstrong. Oscar-nominated Pete Postlethwaite stars as a man living alone in the devastated world of 2055, looking at old footage from 2008 and asking: why didnt we stop climate change when we had the chance? MOREThis will be premiered at a special showing at 400 theaters in North America on Monday 21 September at 7:30 eastern (6:30 central, etc.). I will be urging my own students to attend and I urge you to bring it to the attention of your students, friends, colleagues. You can get further information on both the film at the premier at the following web site: http://www.ageofstupid.net/screenings/country/United%20States the actual web site for the film (there is a link on the previous web site) is www.ageofstudpid.net. This site also talks about where to see the premier in 149 other countries around the world.For a review of the film from the Sydney Herald (it premiered in Aust and NZ in late August) go to http://www.ageofstupid.net/review/the_age_of_stupid_movie_review.Larry Davis-- *R. Laurence Davis, Ph.D.Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences andUniversity Research ScholarDepartment of Biology and Environmental SciencesUniversity of New Haven300 Boston Post RoadWest Haven, Connecticut 06516rlda...@newhaven.eduOffice: 203-932-7108 Fax: 203-931-6097*
RE: Ongoing issue -- responding to 'skeptics'
I'm enjoying the thread and hope it continues. Per the Krugman editorial, I'd love to hear some reactions. IMHO, I think it appeals to a narrowing portion of the American electorate while generating a dismissive reaction (as well as a few guffaws) from key constituencies that are on the fence regarding Waxman-Markey. My own sense is that the chances of a climate bill passing the Senate (that includes title III -- the cap and trade program) areincreasingly remote this year. There is a renewed wave of recycled skepticclaims attacking climate science, to be sure, but thereis also afusillade of arguments regarding multiple aspects of the bill that seem to be gaining traction. I just don't see 60 yea votes in the Senate happening. As for the arguments against the bill I realize that many are bogus but some raise legitimate concerns. Krugman's rant comes across as smug, obstinate, and somewhat out-of-touch, playing right into the stereotype of liberals that conservatives are trying to project. I don't doubt that Marc Morano was all smiles when he read it. Frank Alcock Associate Professor of Political Science New College of Florida 5800 Bay Shore Road Sarasota, FL 34243 (941) 487-4483 (phone) (941) 487-4475 (fax) From: owner-gep...@listserve1.allegheny.edu on behalf of Paul WapnerSent: Fri 7/3/2009 11:04 PMTo: williamcgbu...@comcast.netCc: gep-ed@listserve1.allegheny.edu; owner-gep...@listserve1.allegheny.edu; 'Steve Hoffman'Subject: RE: Ongoing issue -- responding to 'skeptics' Interesting discussion. Krugman takes issue with skeptics in congress. His views are not news but a nice context for the discussion: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/29/opinion/29krugman.html Paul WapnerAssociate ProfessorDirector, Global Environmental Politics ProgramSchool of International ServiceAmerican University4400 Massachusetts Avenue, NWWashington DC 20016(202) 885-1647
RE: Do you teach a climate change course?
Ditto. I'll soon be developing a course (possibly team taught) on the science and politics of climate change (first half science, second half politics) and would benefit greatly from seeing some syllabi. -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Betsill,Michele Sent: Thursday, July 10, 2008 2:54 PM To: GEP-Ed Subject: RE: Do you teach a climate change course? I'm currently putting together such a course for the fall and would be interested in seeing some of these syllabi. One thing I'm struggling with is how much time to devote to the science-both the underlying biogeochemistry as well as the skeptics. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Michele Michele M. Betsill, Ph.D. Associate Professor Department of Political Science Clark B350 Colorado State University Fort Collins, CO 80523 USA 970-491-5270 970-491-2490 (fax) [EMAIL PROTECTED] -Original Message- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Beth DeSombre Sent: Thursday, July 10, 2008 11:01 AM To: GEP-Ed Subject: Re: Do you teach a climate change course? OK, got a huge number of immediate volunteers, so that'll hold me for a climate text review essay for now. I'll do another general call for potential reviewers to express interest later in the summer. Thanks everyone -- and I can attest that there are a lot of climate change courses being taught these days! Beth
Another ISA Panel Idea - Uncertainty and Environmental Cooperation
Here's another panel/paper idea: Uncertainty and Environmental Cooperation Panel Abstract Different types of uncertainty have different implications for international environmental cooperation. Uncertainty about the causes of environmental problems can inhibit agreements over what to do about them. Uncertainty over the consequences of environmental problems can likewise inhibit agreements but it can also facilitate them by casting a veil over distributive interests. Uncertainty about the behavior of actors and/or the ability to monitor it inhibits the credibility of their commitments. And uncertainty regarding the modalities of alternative institutional arrangements and their likely outcomes can create a variety of confounding incentives. This panel will explore the topic of uncertainty and environmental cooperation by... Option A (theoretical) - exploring how different types of uncertainty affect a) the likelihood of international environmental agreements; b) the modalities of cooperation (precision, flexibility and duration of the terms of cooperation); and c) compliance with international environmental agreements. Option B (empirical) - exploring how uncertainty is affecting environmental cooperation in different issue areas (ozone, climate, fisheries, transboundary pollution, trade-environment rules, etc.) If anyone has an interest in teaming up for a panel proposal on this topic please say so (and give me an idea as to the paper you'd like to write and the option that's the best fit for it). Alternatively, if you're working on a panel proposal and you think this would work well as one of your papers say so as well. I'll see what if any responses come in through the weekend and decide what to do on Monday. I promise to return all emails by Monday. Thanks, Frank Frank Alcock Assistant Professor of Political Science New College of Florida 5800 Bay Shore Road Sarasota, FL 34243 Phone: (941) 487-4483 Fax: (941) 487-4475
Gender and Sustainable Development
I need to pull together material for a lecture/discussion on gender issues for my sustainable development class. Any short reading suggestions would be welcome.
FW: Job Opportunity
FYI... CIDER Consortium for Inter-Disciplinary Environmental Research at Stony Brook University In October, 2006, Stony Brook University announced the creation of a new center, the Consortium for Inter-Disciplinary Environmental Research (CIDER). This initiative was undertaken to bring together the many faculty at the university from diverse disciplines, housed in many departments, to create synergistic collaborations that could address large, complex environmental issues. The participants (faculty, postdoctoral investigators, and graduate students) in CIDER are formally associated with existing academic departments at Stony Brook University, including departments in Arts and Sciences, Engineering, the Medical School, and the Marine Sciences Research Center. However, all participants also see the value in working across disciplines, not necessarily reflective of traditional academic separations, to form multi-disciplinary teams of researchers that can tackle the complexities of large environmental problems. Thus, individuals in the natural and medical sciences combine with social scientists and engineers to pursue large research programs. Such teams are required to develop new research centers for environmental research at Stony Brook, and as well provide new and exciting educational opportunities for the next generation of environmental researchers. Currently CIDER has opportunities for a total of six new tenure-track positions in all disciplines. http://ws.cc.stonybrook.edu/cider/opportunities/index.html Consortium for Inter-Disciplinary Environmental Research (CIDER) New Tenure-track Positions Stony Brook University invites applicants for six new tenure-track positions associated with its new Consortium for Inter-Disciplinary Environmental Research (CIDER), designed to bring together faculty from the natural sciences, medical sciences, engineering, social sciences and humanities. Individuals with demonstrated expertise in any of the following areas are encouraged to apply: (a) environmental health, including investigations of contaminants in air, food and water, mechanistic studies of their toxic effects on mammals and their societal impact on different subpopulations; (b) the causes and influence of global climate change, including effects on biogeochemical cycles, pattern of disease and human living conditions and (c) environmental remediation, land use planning, and conservation. Applications from individuals or from teams that address any of these research areas are welcome. A successful candidate will hold a tenure track or tenured appointment in an academic department that best suits his/her expertise; affiliation with nearby Brookhaven National Laboratory is also possible. Faculty will be expected to teach at the undergraduate and/or graduate level, generate external funding to support their research and participate in interdisciplinary activities to support CIDER's mission. Required: Ph.D. or M.D., outstanding research and teaching potential. Positions generally will be filled at the Assistant Professor level, however applications from exceptional established individuals also will be considered. The review of applications will begin on February 1, 2007 and will continue until all six positions are filled. To apply, please send a resume; a statement of research and career goals; the proposed Stony Brook University departmental affiliation(s); and arrange to have three letters of reference sent to: CIDER Search Committee Positing number F-3755-06-12 Stony Brook University Stony Brook, NY 11794-1401 For on-line applications visit: www.stonybrook.edu/cjo , posting number F-3755-06-12. On-line applicants should request reference letters be sent to the CIDER Search Committee address above. Dr. Scott J. Basinger Director, M.A. in Public Policy Program Assistant Professor of Political Science Stony Brook University http://www.sunysb.edu/polsci/sbasinger/index.html
RE: Theory in International Environmental Politics
Neil company. You also might want to take a look at Ron Mitchells chapter on International Environment for Risse et al.s Handbook of International Relations. http://www.uoregon.edu/~rmitchel/resume/2002-HandbookofIR.pdf Frank From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Joseph Domask Sent: Monday, November 28, 2005 10:29 AM To: Geped list (E-mail) Subject: Re: Theory in International Environmental Politics Neil, Maria, Pam, others, I did some work on these issues (IR theory and international environmental politics/change) in my dissertation a good number of years back (1997), and this might be of interest to some of you. In particular, I adapted a structural realist framework developed by Buzan, Jones, and Little in The Logic of Anarchy and applied this framework to a case study (on Brazil and politics/policy surrounding the Amazon). You can find chapters of this online at: http://www.brazilink.org/environment_domask.asp Chapters 2 and 3 are most pertinent to this discussion. I haven't done much with this framework or theoretical inquires about IR since then, but I think much of what I wrote in 97 still applies. Best, Joe -- Joseph Domask, Ph.D. Assistant Professor and Academic Director International Environment Development Washington Semester Program American University Washington, DC tel. 202-895-4927 http://www.iedonline.net On 11/27/05, Neil E Harrison [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Maria: The paucity of responses to my request for sources of work on a general theory in international environmental politics, to my mind speaks volumes about the immaturity and incoherence of the (sub-)field. I received two responses in addition to yours, one from Kate O'Neill and one from Pan Chasek (Pam did not yet answer the question in my response to her), both of which I think went to the whole list. For those who may have missed them, I summarize their suggestions here. Kate O'Neill is working on a manuscript on this topic and suggested three principal sources of discussion on this theory in IEP: Vogler, J. and M. F. Imber, Eds. (1996). The Environment and International Relations. London, Routledge. Redclift, M. and T. Benton, Eds. (1994). Social Theory and the Global Environment. London, Routledge. Paterson, M. (2001). Understanding Global Environmental Politics: Domination, Accumulation, Resistance. Basingstoke, Palgrave. Pam suggested the 4th edition of Global Environmental Politics and Regina S. Axelrod, David L. Downie and Norman J. Vig, The Global Environment: Institutions, Law and Policy, 2nd Ed. You have suggested Paths to a Green World by Dauvergne and Clapp. Many other texts may have something to contribute like Eric Laferriere and Peter Stoett, International Relations Theory and Ecological Thought: Towards a Synthesis and even Ronnie Lipschutz Global Environmental Politics: Power, Perspectives, and Practice but I see a huge need for some theory building to guide the where and how we dig for knowledge on international environmental politics. I have a chapter in Eric Laferriere and Peter Stoett (eds), Nature and International Relations: Theory and Applications (forthcoming from UBC Press) that sketches one way to approach a general theory of IEP and other chapters talk to the matter. With respect to your comment that you have to go to the IR literature to deduce theories of success or failure in international environmental politics, I think that you cannot get there from here. In my view, orthodox IR theories are generally inapplicable to the subject matter of IEP. I and several colleagues argue in Complexity in World Politics (in press at SUNY) that common IR theories are inappropriate to the study of world politics. Thanks for your interest. It seems to me that there is a need for a collective effort among the small number of us who may be interested in developing a general theory (from ontology to method) of IEP, Cheers, Neil -Original Message- From: Maria Ivanova [mailto: [EMAIL PROTECTED]] Sent: Sunday, November 27, 2005 7:54 AM To: Neil E Harrison Subject: RE: Theory in International Environmental Politics Dear Neil, I wanted to follow up on your earlier email and suggest Paths to a Green World by Dauvergne and Clapp. It concentrates more on the political economic aspect - trade and environment, investment and environment, etc - but could be a good tool. Pam Chasek's book also covers some theoretical ground and I would be intersted in knowing how she replied to your question regarding the existence of a coherent theory statement. I am myself working on identifying the key theories explaining success and failure in global environmental governance but with little success. Mostly, I have to deduce from the IR literature. If you have any suggestions, I would greatly appreciate it. Thank you very much, maria Maria Ivanova Department of Government The College of William Mary Williamsburg, VA 23187
Regional Data on Russian Environmental Performance
I have a thesis student that wants to examine the impacts of varying levels of fiscal decentralization and/or state capture (hypotheses from Sonja Walti work) on environmental regulation/performance in Russia. He came across some good data on state capture at regional levels in Russia but is still looking for fiscal data and, more importantly, regional level indicators of environmental performance. I'd be most obliged if anyone could offer suggestions about where to look. He speaks Russian. -- Frank Alcock Assistant Professor of Political Science New College of Florida 5700 North Tamiami Trail Sarasota, FL 34243 Phone: (941) 359-4483 Fax: (941) 359-4475 Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
