All Hands on Deck! Mobilizing Climate Change Action beyond the UNFCCC

The document examines the role of non-UNFCCC institutions in addressing climate change, suggesting that while the UNFCCC must remain the central coordinator due to its legitimacy and legal authority, other multilateral and minilateral venues can provide faster action or target specific pollutants. It warns against the risks of 'forum-shopping' and the marginalization of the UNFCCC, recommending formalized coordination and the application of UNFCCC principles, such as 'common but differentiated responsibilities', across all climate-related initiatives.

• While the UNFCCC remains the primary forum for international climate cooperation, countries are increasingly utilizing other venues, including multilateral environmental institutions, international trade talks, and small groupings of like-minded countries.
• Non-UNFCCC institutions have provided modest mitigation results so far, but they offer potential advantages: small 'clubs' of countries may reach faster or more ambitious agreements through economic or trade incentives, and other venues can reframe climate issues as matters of national security, human rights, or international trade to mobilize resistant governments.
• Specific international agreements are well-positioned to target short-lived climate forcers; for example, the Montreal Protocol can phase down hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), and the Gothenburg Protocol now includes black carbon.
• There are significant risks associated with 'outsourcing' climate action, including the potential for powerful states to engage in 'forum-shopping' to avoid stringent obligations, the marginalization of the UNFCCC, and the exclusion of less powerful developing countries from decision-making.
• The UNFCCC must maintain its central role because it possesses unparalleled legal authority, institutional capacity, and a high level of legitimacy, particularly among smaller and poorer nations, due to its commitment to equity and the principle of "common but differentiated responsibilities".
• To ensure that external initiatives complement rather than undermine the UNFCCC, the document recommends establishing clear relationships through information exchange, memoranda of understanding, and standardized procedures for tracking and quantifying mitigation benefits.

APA

van Asselt, H., & Moncel, R. (2012). All Hands on Deck! Mobilizing Climate Change Action beyond the UNFCCC. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Climate/sei-pb-2012-all-hands-on-deck.pdf

Chicago

van Asselt, Harro, and Remi Moncel. All Hands on Deck! Mobilizing Climate Change Action beyond the UNFCCC. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2012. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Climate/sei-pb-2012-all-hands-on-deck.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=van Asselt |first1=Harro |last2=Moncel |first2=Remi |title=All Hands on Deck! Mobilizing Climate Change Action beyond the UNFCCC |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=2012 |url=https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Climate/sei-pb-2012-all-hands-on-deck.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{vanasselt2012all, author = {van Asselt, Harro and Moncel, Remi}, title = {{All Hands on Deck! Mobilizing Climate Change Action beyond the UNFCCC}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2012}, url = {https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Climate/sei-pb-2012-all-hands-on-deck.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }