Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea: Enhancing Flexibility in International Climate Change Law

This research paper examines the capacity of the international climate policy regime to adapt to evolving scientific insights and socio-economic conditions, evaluating the trade-offs between a pluralist approach to flexibility and the need for predictability and stability within the UNFCCC framework.

• The international climate change regime faces challenges in governance because scientific understanding of causes and impacts, as well as the socio-economic conditions of various countries, are constantly changing.
• While the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has implemented various flexibility mechanisms to handle temporal challenges, the regime frequently struggles to adapt.
• The author argues that while the rigidities of the current climate regime require attention, any move toward a more adaptive pluralist approach must not compromise stability and predictability.

APA

Stockholm Environment Institute (2015). Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea: Enhancing Flexibility in International Climate Change Law. https://www.sei.org/publications/between-the-devil-and-the-deep-blue-sea-enhancing-flexibility-in-international-climate-change-law/

Chicago

Stockholm Environment Institute. Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea: Enhancing Flexibility in International Climate Change Law. 2015. https://www.sei.org/publications/between-the-devil-and-the-deep-blue-sea-enhancing-flexibility-in-international-climate-change-law/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Stockholm Environment Institute |title=Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea: Enhancing Flexibility in International Climate Change Law |date=1 May 2015 |url=https://www.sei.org/publications/between-the-devil-and-the-deep-blue-sea-enhancing-flexibility-in-international-climate-change-law/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{stockholmenvironmentinstitute2015between, author = {{Stockholm Environment Institute}}, title = {{Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea: Enhancing Flexibility in International Climate Change Law}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2015}, month = may, url = {https://www.sei.org/publications/between-the-devil-and-the-deep-blue-sea-enhancing-flexibility-in-international-climate-change-law/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }