Climate Change Diplomacy
Online Course for Small States Diplomats
Climate change is becoming an important issue in a diverse range of global and regional negotiation processes. In the past, climate change issues could be effectively covered by a few negotiators trained specifically for the Kyoto process, but today officials involved in discussion of an increasing range of fields (such as energy, human rights, telecommunications and health) need knowledge about climate change issues as well. Small island states in particular suffer from a lack of trained people who can address climate change issues within their specific fields. This course addresses this gap by providing an introduction to climate change diplomacy for diplomats and government officials involved in the increasingly diversified climate change policy processes.
Objectives
This course will equip participants to more effectively represent and promote the interests of their own countries in the global climate change policy process. By the end of the course, participants should:
- demonstrate understanding and the ability to participate in current diplomatic and policy processes in the field of climate change;
- be familiar with, and be able to employ current scientific and policy-related climate change terminology;
- be able to identify those international institutional climate change frameworks where their national interests may be most effectively promoted;
- be able to identify appropriate partners for climate change policy initiatives;
- recognise opportunities where global initiatives and processes can contribute to local development needs;
- be able to propose or contribute to an effective national approach for participation in global climate change processes.
In addition, the course will broaden participants’ general understanding of climate change and the global policy response to climate change. In this regard, by the end of the course, participants should be able to:
- demonstrate understanding of the climate change phenomenon and the impact of climate change on human society, including different views and schools of thought regarding climate change;
- identify and describe the interests of the main players in the climate change policy process;
- identify the various international legal documents and institutional frameworks dealing with climate change;
- explain the local relevance of global/regional climate change initiatives.
Topics Covered
| Module |
Topics |
| 1. WHAT |
- description of climate change
- scientific view on climate change
- evolution of global discussion on climate change |
| 2. WHAT |
- multidisciplinary nature of climate change
- conceptual framework and terminology
- climate change and development
- use of numbers and statistics in climate change policy processes |
| 3. WHO |
- survey of the main actors in climate change diplomacy
- national states
- position of the main players
(USA, EU, Oil-exporters, BRICs, small states)
- international organisations and global initiatives |
| 4. WHO |
- business sector
- NGOs and civil society
- scientific community, academia and think-tanks
- media
- prominent individuals (e.g. Al Gore – celebrity diplomacy) |
| 5. WHERE |
- global
- regional
- national, and
- local levels |
| 6. HOW |
- mitigation
- adaptation
- standardisation
- economic measures |
| 7. HOW |
- international legal documents
(Framework Convention, Kyoto Protocol)
- IPCC Report
- soft law – declarations and resolutions
- studies and other important documents (e.g. Stern Report) |
| 8. HOW & WHEN |
- the Bali process
- dispute resolution
- temporary aspect of climate change policy process
(current objectives and rights of future generations). |
Practical Information
Who should apply: diplomats, civil servants and academics from small developing states involved in climate change policy processes and negotiations.
Application deadline: 21 November 2008.
Timetable: The first session of Climate Change Diplomacy will run from 1 December 2008 – 12 February 2009.
Fees: Euro 550 per participant. For the first session of this course full scholarships will be provided for diplomats, civil servants and academics representing small developing states. Scholarship support is provided by the Maltese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation.
Requirements: Applicants must have:
- an undergraduate university degree; OR three years work experience in a relevant field;
- sufficient ability in English language to undertake postgraduate level studies (including reading academic texts, discussing complex concepts with other course participants, and submitting written essay assignments of up to 2500 words in length);
- unrestricted access to the Internet using Firefox or Internet Explorer web browsers (please contact us for more details if you are in doubt about your level of access).
Selection process: Diplo will select up to 25 participants to attend the first session of this course. Selected applicants will be notified by 28 November 2008.
Structure and Methodology
This course is conducted entirely online over a period of 10 weeks (1 December 2008 – 12 February 2009, with a break from 18 December to 2 January).
Reading materials and tools for online interaction are provided through an online classroom. Courses are based on a collaborative approach to learning, involving a high level of interaction. Each week, participants read the provided lecture text, adding questions, comments and references in the form of hypertext entries. Tutors and other participants read and respond to these entries, creating interaction based on the lecture text. During the week, participants complete additional online activities (for example, further discussion via blogs or forums, quizzes, group tasks, simulations or short assignments). At the end of the week, participants and lecturers meet online in a chat room to discuss the week’s topic.
To complete the course successfully, participants must also write one essay assignment. Participants who meet course requirements will receive a certificate at the end of the course.
How to Apply
We are no longer accepting applications for the first session of this course (2008). If you are interested in applying, please check back in 2009 for the dates and application procedure for the next session.
In case of inquiries, please contact us at admissions@diplomacy.edu.
