sei-policybrief-olsson-basic-climatechangeconundrum-67cfcf2d4f2eec83.pdf

This policy brief examines the formation and dynamics of the BASIC group (Brazil, South Africa, India, and China) in the context of international climate change negotiations following COP15. It analyzes the group's shared goals, such as maintaining the principle of differentiated responsibility and advocating for developing country interests, while highlighting the significant material and economic differences between the four members that may challenge future cohesion.

• The BASIC countries possess significant economic and geopolitical influence, allowing them to act as key brokers in future international climate agreements and to take a firm stance against industrialised countries.
• The group advocates for the continued differentiation of responsibility, arguing that industrialised countries—specifically the US—must make more ambitious commitments before a global agreement can be reached.
• Despite their collective front, the four countries have vastly different domestic realities and GHG emission profiles: China is a 'developing country superpower' and the largest emitter; India has very low per capita emissions; Brazil's emissions are primarily driven by land use and forestry (LULUCF) rather than energy; and South Africa has high per capita emissions due to a coal-dominated energy sector.
• The BASIC group maintains a strategic alignment with the G77 to protect its members from industrialised country demands for greater emission reductions, though this solidarity may be tested as negotiations move into finer details at COP16 and COP17.
• The group has struggled to reach a consensus on the issue of 'equity' regarding the division of the global carbon budget, as each country frames equity in a way that favors its own material interests (e.g., India focuses on per capita emissions, while China focuses on cumulative historical emissions).
• There is a disconnect between the international pledges made by BASIC countries and their domestic actions, such as China's National Climate Change Program (2007) and India's National Action Plan on Climate Change (2008), which are not always fully recognized internationally.

APA

Stockholm Environment Institute (n.d.). sei-policybrief-olsson-basic-climatechangeconundrum-67cfcf2d4f2eec83.pdf. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/SEI-PolicyBrief-Olsson-BASIC-ClimateChangeConundrum.pdf

Chicago

Stockholm Environment Institute. sei-policybrief-olsson-basic-climatechangeconundrum-67cfcf2d4f2eec83.pdf. n.d. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/SEI-PolicyBrief-Olsson-BASIC-ClimateChangeConundrum.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Stockholm Environment Institute |title=sei-policybrief-olsson-basic-climatechangeconundrum-67cfcf2d4f2eec83.pdf |url=https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/SEI-PolicyBrief-Olsson-BASIC-ClimateChangeConundrum.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{stockholmenvironmentinstitutendseipolicybriefolssonbasicclimatechangeconundrum67cfcf2d4f2eec83pdf, author = {{Stockholm Environment Institute}}, title = {{sei-policybrief-olsson-basic-climatechangeconundrum-67cfcf2d4f2eec83.pdf}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, url = {https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/SEI-PolicyBrief-Olsson-BASIC-ClimateChangeConundrum.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }