Contraction and convergence: an assessment of the CCOptions model.

Bows, Alice; Anderson, Kevin

Well before President Putin ratified the Kyoto Protocol, the debate had begun as to the appropriate form of any post-Kyoto agreement. Amongst the emission reduction regimes being considered is that of Contraction and Convergence; conceived by Global Commons Institute (GCI) as a practical interpretation of the philosophy that “every adult on the planet has an equal right to emit greenhouse gases”. To support the Contraction and Convergence regime, the GCI have developed a computer model, CCOptions, to correlate CO2 stabilisation levels with global, regional and national carbon reduction targets. This paper analyses the model, concluding that, whilst the aim of CCOptions is laudable, the application of the model in its current form is unnecessarily ambitious and as a consequence potentially misleading to all but the well-informed user.

UNITED Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (1992). Protocols, etc., 1997 December 11; GREENHOUSE gases; CARBON; EMISSIONS (Air pollution); COMPUTER simulation

Climatic Change, 2008, Vol 91, Issue 3/4, p275

0165-0009

Academic Journal

10.1007/s10584-008-9468-z