Australia and climate change

1. Australia and climate change March 26, 2014

2. Overview • Global climate change and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) regime • Australia and climate change: environmental and economic concerns • Australian governments and UNFCCC

3. Why this case? • Foreign policy from a middle power perspective • Challenges around international agreements/cooperation • Ethical considerations in FP • Impact of domestic and external factors on FP • Role of identity & ideology in FP • Being a “good international citizen”

4. Global climate change and the UNFCCC regime We know there is a problem: • 97% of climate scientists indicated that they believed that climate change is related to human activity (Anderegg et al 2010) But…. • Challenge of predicting specific impacts • Building & maintaining collective action against climate change has been difficult • Inconsistent political will to act

5. Ethical dilemmas • Historical vs contemporary emissions • West didn’t know impact of emissions • Per capita vs volume of emissions • Australia & Canada vs India & China • Differentiated vulnerabilities • Some much more vulnerable than others • Luxury vs survival emissions • Rich vs poorer countries • Future generations and other living being

6. The UNFCC • 1991, an intergovernmental committee of state representatives was established to move towards an international agreement on climate change and emissions reductions. • The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was agreed in 1992. • Kyoto Protocol was successfully negotiated in 1997.

7. Australia & climate change Dilemmas how to go about climate change are associated with: • Australia’s foreign policy tradition • The “good international citizen” • Economic interests associated with fossil fuel export and use • World’s largest coal exporter • Politics of domestic support and opposition • Vulnerabilities to climate change

8. Australian governments & UNFCC • Hawke government (1983-1992) • Keating government (1992-1996) • Howard government (1996-2007) • Rudd government (2007-2010) • Governments post-2010

9. Hawke Administration (Labour) • In 1990, the Hawke government adopted an interim planning target for the reduction, by 2005, of greenhouse gas emissions by 20% from 1988 levels. • The position of Australia was seen as a strong and committed international voice.

10. Keating Administration (Labour) Keating was seen by many as a backwards step on environmental issues: • It called on industry to reduce emissions ‘wherever economically efficient’ • 1995, it began to side with the USA in calling for differentiated emissions targets for developed states.

11. Howard Administration (Liberal) • The Howard government denigrated the notion of ‘good international citizenship’ • At the COP 2 in Geneva in 1996, government representatives challenged the notion of IPCC findings. • At Kyoto, Howard, argues that it was ‘not in Australia’s interests’ to ratify the Kyoto protocol.

12. Rudd Administration (Labour) • Prime Minister Rudd ratified the Kyoto Protocol as a first order of government business and announced a draft of domestic policy initiatives on climate change. • However, failed to pass Carbon Pollution Reduction Scheme legislation and his public support eroded in 2010.

13. Governments post-2010 • Gillard (Labour) minority government passes a wide-reaching carbon tax in the face of significant public opposition but with support in the Senate. • Abbott (Liberal/National Coalition) working to repeal carbon tax • Repeal voted down in March 2014

14. Conclusion • See important influence of domestic and external factors in developing FP • Governments often need to balance competing priorities in FP • Image and reputation can have a strong influence on FP decisions • Middle powers struggle to balance specific interest with broader interests in multilateralism