Climate action may be in nations' own interest, study challenges
A new analysis questions the widely accepted view that countries benefit from ignoring climate change while others pay the cost. Researchers argue economic efficiency and security concerns make mitigation rational for most nations—a finding that could reshape how policymakers frame climate investment to skeptical stakeholders.
Originaltitel: Climate Change and National Self-Interest
<p>Mitigation of climate change is often described as a tragedy of the commons. According to this theoretical framework, it is collectively rational for present-generation countries to mitigate climate change, but not individually rational to do so. It is rather in national self-interest to ‘free-ride’ on the mitigation actions of other countries. In this paper, I discuss two arguments criticizing this view. According to these arguments, it is in most cases individually rational for present-generation countries to mitigate, i.e., it is in their national self-interest. The first argument focuses on national self-interest in terms of economic efficiency, the second on national self-interest in terms of national security. I conclude that the critical arguments to a large extent are tenable, but that they seem to underestimate the significance of those cases in which it is not in national self-interest to mitigate climate change. In these cases the tragedy of the commons framework is still applicable.</p>