Reconceptualizing global governance

Governance is a process whereby actors cooperate to achieve common objectives. Climate governance is characterized by negotiation among governments, leading to a collection of international agreements, such as the Kyoto Protocol. There have been measures and actions at other levels of governance which include voluntary national policies and programs, regulations by substate actors to limit pollution, initiatives by non-governmental actors, and changes in individual behaviours that do likewise. These actions have significant effect on greenhouse gas (GHG) pollution. However, they have been grossly inadequate. It is argued that relevant institutions and regimes do not require revitalization, unless of course they reject existing institutions outright. The failures of a climate change regime premised on prevailing interstate doctrine suggest that an alternative concept is needed to underlie the climate change regime. What is needed is a reconceptualization of climate governance away from the state and toward cosmopolitan values and interests. © The several contributors 2011. All rights reserved.