ORIN 2150 - International Climate Negotiations

Climate change is one of the defining challenges of the 21st century. Despite nearly 30 years of international negotiations under the UNFCCC, global greenhouse gas emissions have not been significantly reduced. This seminar explores why reaching and implementing a political response to climate change is so difficult. It introduces students to the origins, evolution and architecture of the UNFCCC process; examines the interests, strategies and coalitions of the actors involved — states, negotiating blocs and non-state participants; and identifies key milestones and persistent stumbling blocks. Students will engage critically with academic literature, participate in group debates, and conduct original empirical research presented as an academic poster.

Intensive seminar over three sessions (approximately 4 hours each). As such, it resembles more a workshop than a traditional class. To function, the course requires students’ active participation and therefore preparation. Please read the required texts careful before each session. All texts will be made available online via Moodle.

Each session combines lecture input, close reading discussion, group exercises and debates. Session 3 includes a full negotiation simulation and poster presentations.

No formal prerequisites. Students are expected to have a general interest in international relations and environmental politics. Before the first session, students should read the IPCC Sixth Assessment Report Summary for Policymakers (available at ipcc.ch) to acquire a baseline understanding of current climate science.

Intensive seminar over three sessions (approximately 4 hours each). As such, it resembles more a workshop than a traditional class. To function, the course requires students’ active participation and therefore preparation. Please read the required texts careful before each session. All texts will be made available online via Moodle.

Each session combines lecture input, close reading discussion, group exercises and debates. Session 3 includes a full negotiation simulation and poster presentations.

Learning diary and participation (45%). Students prepare required readings before each session and actively participate in discussions and exercises. They submit a one-page reflective summary proposing a participation mark, as PDF on Moodle.

Academic poster (55%). In groups of up to three, students identify an empirical research question related to climate negotiations, conduct independent research, and present findings as an academic poster during Session 3. Topics must be approved in advance. Final poster submitted as PDF on Moodle after the session.

Students are permitted to use AI tools in accordance with Sciences Po institutional rules but are reminded that AI tools frequently produce hallucinated references and superficial analyses. All AI-generated content must be independently verified – think critically. AI is not a substitute for engaging with the assigned readings or for developing original analytical argument. Any use of AI in assessed work must be declared explicitly (tool used, purpose). Undisclosed use is treated as academic misconduct.

The final course mark will be composed of three elements:

• reflection paper (40%). On day 3 (see outline below), we will simulate part of the

UNFCCC negotiations. After the simulation, you will write a short 2-page paper in

which you reflect the exercise and your experience. Think about questions such as:

What did you learn, and how? What went well/wrong, and why? What could be

improved? Please submit your reflection paper as a pdf entitled

“LastName_FirstName _Reflection.pdf” on Moodle by 27 November 2022.

• poster (40%). In groups of 2-3 people, you explore an empirical research question of

your choice in more depth, and present your findings in the form of an academic

poster. The topic of the poster needs to be approved; topics need to submitted by 1st

October 2022. You will present your poster in class on day 3 (i.e., 23 November 2022),

after which you have time to finalise the poster. The final posters need to be

submitted as a pdf entitled “LastName_FirstName_Poster.pdf” on Moodle by 1st

December 2022.

• active participation (20%). Throughout the three sessions, we will critically examine

and discuss some core readings (see outline below) and engage in various group

exercises and debates. You are expected to carefully read the texts before each

session and actively participate in discussions and exercises

See prerequisites.