Climate Foreign Policy

“Agriculture, Forestry, and Other Land Uses” (AFOLU) is a collective term that refers to human use of and influence on land areas.

The Business-As-Usual (BAU) scenario describes the development of the concentration of greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere under the assumption that no further efforts to reduce emissions will be made. It is used in climate models to examine inaction in the areas of climate politics, social behavior, and technological progress and the consequences this inaction will have for climate impacts that will affect societies and natural systems in the future.

Climate foreign policy encompasses the issue areas of climate protection, adaptation, prevention, and management of climate-related crises, in which national interests converge or conflict with those of other countries.

Climate Justice is a normative concept that considers man-made climate change as an ethical and social problem. It consists of two main aspects: justice in terms of responsibility for climate change and justice in terms of the impacts of climate change. Populations in poor countries are disproportionately affected by climate impacts.

Climate migration or climate-induced migration describes the permanent or temporary relocation of an individual or group of people due to environmental impacts caused by climate change.

The principle of Common But Differentiated Responsibilities (CBDR) establishes the common governmental responsibility for anthropogenic climate change and the environmental destruction associated with it. It acknowledges that responsibility among countries is unequally distributed due to their differing contributions to the causes of climate change and their varying economic capacities.

In international criminal law as well as in European and national criminal law, the term “ecocide” refers to criminal liability for massive damage to or the destruction of ecosystems by human actions.

According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), “energy security” is defined as the “uninterrupted availability of energy sources at an affordable price.”

Industrial policy becomes green when decarbonized economic activity and respect for other planetary boundaries become government objectives that are as important as social welfare. Green industrial policy is now at the top of the political agenda in many countries because it is essential for addressing those socio-environmental challenges that markets do not usually solve alone.

Amid multiple crises and slow progress on climate protection, hope is elusive. Yet hope is a key ingredient in climate foreign policy.

The concept of Intergenerational Justice is characterized by the question of what kind of world those living today will leave to their children and grandchildren. According to this concept, it is essential that different generations have an equal level of opportunity and quality of life, and that material resources are distributed equitably across them.

Just Energy Transition Partnerships (JETPs) are a new plurilateral structure for accelerating the phase-out of fossil fuels. These intergovernmental partnerships coordinate financial resources and technical assistance from countries in the Global North to a recipient country to help it in this regard. To date, JETPs have targeted emerging economies that produce and consume coal on a large scale.