On Behalf of My Delegation …

The document serves as a survival guide for climate change negotiators, detailing the scientific basis of the climate crisis, the evolution of the international regime from the 1992 UNFCCC to the Paris Agreement, and the formal and informal structures of the UN process. It specifically addresses the structural disadvantages faced by negotiators from developing countries, such as 'hollow mandates' and limited coalition-forming power, and offers practical strategies for drafting, bargaining, and coping with the pressures of high-stakes diplomacy.

• The international climate regime has shifted from a 'top-down' approach of legally binding targets for developed countries under the Kyoto Protocol to a 'post-equity' era under the Paris Agreement, where all parties submit voluntary Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
• Negotiators from developing countries often suffer from a 'hollow mandate,' where a lack of domestic policy frameworks, scientific capacity, and stakeholder engagement results in general or rhetorical positions rather than specific, data-driven objectives.
• The UNFCCC negotiation process is characterized by a significant lack of transparency, where critical decisions are often reached in 'informal-informals,' corridor discussions, and late-night meetings rather than in formal plenary sessions.
• Developing countries face a 'disadvantaged coalition-forming power' due to financial constraints, sporadic participation, and internal diversities, though they can increase leverage by aligning through groups like the G-77 and China or AOSIS.
• Effective climate negotiation requires a transition from 'distributive' (win-lose) bargaining to 'integrative' (win-win) bargaining, which involves creating packages of linked issues to satisfy multiple parties.
• The Paris Agreement establishes three primary long-term objectives: holding temperature increase to well below 2C (pursuing 1.5C), increasing adaptation and climate resilience, and aligning finance flows with low-emission development.
• Loss and Damage is distinguished from adaptation; while adaptation focuses on resilience, loss and damage addresses 'residual impacts' that are permanent and irreversible, such as sea-level rise and extreme weather events.
• The G-77 and China group, while diverse and occasionally struggling for a common position, remains a powerful tool for developing nations to negotiate collective economic interests and financial support.

APA

Gupta, J., & Allan, J. (n.d.). On Behalf of My Delegation …. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/books/on-behalf-my-delegation-second-edition.pdf

Chicago

Gupta, Joyeeta, and Jennifer Allan. On Behalf of My Delegation …. International Institute for Sustainable Development, n.d. https://www.iisd.org/books/on-behalf-my-delegation-second-edition.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Gupta |first1=Joyeeta |last2=Allan |first2=Jennifer |title=On Behalf of My Delegation … |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |url=https://www.iisd.org/books/on-behalf-my-delegation-second-edition.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{guptandbehalf, author = {Gupta, Joyeeta and Allan, Jennifer}, title = {{On Behalf of My Delegation …}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, url = {https://www.iisd.org/books/on-behalf-my-delegation-second-edition.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }