International Agreements on Climate Change

Write 500 words to explain why international agreements are essential if anything is to be done about global warming

In the vulnerable world we live in today it is obvious that one country alone will not be able to combat global warming and climate change, therefore it is necessary for every country to work together in an effort to reduce CO2 emissions.

The Kyoto protocol was introduced in 1997 in an agreement to reduce emissions produced by the countries in the protocol. It was agreed that the way forward was to sign such protocols due to the global impact it would have. If one country was to try and dramatically cut emissions, it would simply not work. For example if England tried to cuts emissions, there would still be a great demand for products produced by England and therefore our industries would still need to produce the same amount, using the same amount of energy. Also if the English population refrained from travelling by airplane which is very polluting, there is no guarantee that others around the world would not still use airplanes to travel to the UK, therefore adding to the UK's CO2 emissions.

If countries were to try and combat global warming single handedly, the chances are that they would not succeed. If a global power such as America tried to combat climate change on it's on, the chances of success are more probable than those of a smaller less powerful country for example France, however the chances of success are still minimal due to the lack of the knock on effect which is needed. When many countries sign the same protocol, each country is aware of their emissions and work together in an effort to reduce them, therefore having an impact on the countries that have not signed the protocol due to the reduced demand for products and fewer people being wasteful and flying so often. This is evident in the case of China, where half of the emissions produced are due to western areas such as America and the UK. These emissions are produced down to the high demand these western areas have for products and transport. If internationally, every country signed these agreements then there would be a cumulative causation of the world becoming generally more aware of the wasteful society we live, therefore reducing everyone's emissions. There is often fear amongst the developing countries of signing protocols such as these due to an uncertainty about their future. They may have fear of cutting down on their development and falling far behind the richer countries, therefore never gaining the technology they have. Many hold the opinion that they should develop now, whatever the cost as this will boost their economy and they can worry about sustainable energy and cutting emissions after their development period.

It is evident that the only way forwards in combating climate change is with the full support of many countries. In this way,