The case for an alternative approach to managing the atmospheric commons: Small island states and the climate change regime

This dissertation examines the circumstances of small island states in the face of the impacts of climate change due to global warming, and the results of their efforts to elicit strong international action to avert the problem. It analyzes the disjuncture between the objectives and policies of the climate change regime, and the prospect of island triage.; A theoretical analysis is used to evaluate mainstream theories of international regime development and modern economics, and explain why they are unable to analyze the island implications of the climate change regime. An alternative theory is developed and applied to analyze the two key dimensions of island vulnerability and regime negotiations, showing that the regime outcomes are a product of an underlying paradigm of economic commodification and capitalization. The analysis also shows that within this paradigm of wealth creation and economic efficiency, neither the created international regime approach nor the global economic system can be relied upon to address the urgency of the ecological and development problem faced by small island states with regard to climate change.; To overcome the disparity among the countries responsible for climate change and those that will most acutely suffer the consequences, an alternative international approach to governing the atmospheric commons is needed. Elements of an alternative political economy approach are offered, that place greater emphasis on the principles of equity and sustainability. This expands the opportunities for creating a regime more sensitive to island needs.