A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF CLIMATE POLICIES OF INDIA, SOUTH AFRICA, GERMANY, AND THE UNITED STATES

2025-1
Erbil, Eray
Climate change represents one of the most pressing challenges in the modern era, requiring a unified, equitable global response. This dissertation offers a comparative analysis of the climate change approaches employed by four key countries—India, South Africa, Germany, and the United States—each embodying a unique economic, geographical, and political context. This dissertation investigates the similarities and differences in climate finance, technology transfer, and capacity building, and Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) by reviewing these countries' UNFCCC submissions. The dissertation also investigates the climate-related issues that these nations brought up during UNFCCC negotiations, which took place from COP 1 to COP 28, providing insights into their negotiation positions and strategies for resolving conflicts between national interests and international climate obligations. The findings demonstrate the intricate dynamics of international climate governance, where substantial differences in national priorities, historical responsibilities, and economic capacities influence each country's contributions to global climate action. The thesis highlights that effective climate governance necessitates not only formal approaches of collaboration but also a commitment to resolving power inequalities and underlying systemic challenges that define parties' participation in global climate action. Hence, it is crucial to focus on institutional processes to address both new and existing inequities and maintain the mutually beneficial nature of cooperative frameworks. Consequently, this dissertation compares these four countries comprehensively, enhancing the understanding of obstacles and opportunities in global climate negotiations and underscoring the necessity of customized, adaptive, and collaborative solutions to tackle the climate crisis.
Citation Formats
E. Erbil, “A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF CLIMATE POLICIES OF INDIA, SOUTH AFRICA, GERMANY, AND THE UNITED STATES,” Ph.D. - Doctoral Program, Middle East Technical University, 2025.