Policymakers around the world are working out the logistics for the next climate change agreement. Given the international political disparity a binding agreement may be out of reach. But that doesn’t have to be a bad thing. Non-binding climate agreements, like the Kyoto Protocol, have turned out to be most effective in limiting global climate emissions. On average countries reduced emissions more than they initially agreed to. There are two reasons why non-binding agreements work. First, the more binding an agreement is, the less likely a country is to sign it. Secondly, no agreement is that binding, aside from sanctions or going to war there is no other recourse for countries that break binding agreements. Sometimes it is better to leave big decisions like reducing greenhouse gas emissions to individual countries, and let them make the right call on their own.
Non-binding climate agreements work best
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