"Economic" and "Political" cooperation in various climate policy scenarios

Abstract

Cooperation in the economic sense considers efficiency issues. Cooperation in the political sense, like the Kyoto Protocol, considers other issues like equity and historical responsibility. The environmental and economic impacts of the Kyoto Protocol and other scenarios are thus examined. The US pullout may then be viewed, among others, as the result of not untying "economic" and "political" cooperation; and since the Protocol will be much less effective without the US, it is shown that an external economic stimulus should and may theoretically be found for retaining their participation. © 2003 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.