{"id":63584,"date":"2022-12-16T10:13:12","date_gmt":"2022-12-16T10:13:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lse.ac.uk\/granthaminstitute\/?post_type=news&p=63584"},"modified":"2024-08-16T10:25:07","modified_gmt":"2024-08-16T09:25:07","slug":"the-importance-of-voluntary-climate-action-catalysed-by-the-cop-process","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/www.lse.ac.uk\/granthaminstitute\/news\/the-importance-of-voluntary-climate-action-catalysed-by-the-cop-process\/","title":{"rendered":"The importance of voluntary climate action catalysed by the COP process"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

International negotiations are a necessary but insufficient part of society’s response to climate change. Looking outside of the forum of COP climate conferences, Rob Macquarie and Eleonore Soubeyran review the vital contribution of voluntary initiatives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Following the COP27 climate change conference, many have questioned whether international negotiations have got what it takes to deliver the level of environmental action required. The conclusion<\/path><\/svg><\/a> of the official negotiations left many dissatisfied<\/path><\/svg><\/a>. Simon Steill, the new head of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), vowed<\/path><\/svg><\/a> afterwards to pursue a more ”streamlined” and ”effective” process that will ensure transparency and deliver on the goals of the Paris Agreement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some commentators have criticised COP for being bloated with greenwashing and proposed<\/path><\/svg><\/a> an alternative model focused on tackling concrete issues, without media attention. However, to assess the full picture of the state of the world’s response to climate change, it is important to also appreciate the range of voluntary initiatives that fall outside the formal international negotiations between governments that led to the UNFCCC and the Paris Agreement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A ‘whole of society’ approach to climate action<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Initiatives announced during the sessions of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the UNFCCC take many forms, depending on their participants and mission:<\/p>\n\n\n\n