The Paris Agreement

Julia Kreienkamp, UCL Global Governance Institute.

The 2015 Paris Agreement has been breaking new ground in international climate policy. It marks a fundamental shift away from the 'top-down' governance model of its predecessor, the Kyoto Protocol. Recognising the primacy of domestic politics for galvanising climate action, the Paris Agreement follows a decentralised, 'bottom-up' approach that makes it more flexible and, arguably, more resilient to political shocks such as the US decision to withdraw from the treaty. The Agreement, however, can only deliver if ambition is scaled up over time.