Beyond Politics
The Private Governance Response to Climate Change

This book argues that government action alone will not prevent dangerous climate change, but that private governance can fill the gap.

Michael P. Vandenbergh (Author), Jonathan M. Gilligan (Author)

9781107181229, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 21 December 2017

492 pages
23.5 x 16 x 2.5 cm, 0.88 kg

'In a thoughtful and far-ranging new book, Michael P. Vandenbergh and Jonathan M. Gilligan …explain why firms from Coca-Cola to UPS are motivated to be leaders in cutting emissions. … Particularly important is the book's attention to firms that have become adept at realigning incentives across the whole supply chain. Walmart is a standout, having achieved 28 million tons of emissions reductions from 2010 to 2015, mainly through making their supply chains and operations smarter and getting their suppliers to line up. Private governance could change the nature of government itself, suggest Vandenbergh and Gilligan. It could also change how society achieves justice and its lines of accountability. Work like this helps reveal what is possible, even without formal governments doing much or all the work. … Vandenbergh and Gilligan offer a sober and well-grounded reminder that real change depends on much more than formal government.' David G. Victor, Science Magazine

Private sector action provides one of the most promising opportunities to reduce the risks of climate change, buying time while governments move slowly or even oppose climate mitigation. Starting with the insight that much of the resistance to climate mitigation is grounded in concern about the role of government, this books draws on law, policy, social science, and climate science to demonstrate how private initiatives are already bypassing government inaction in the US and around the globe. It makes a persuasive case that private governance can reduce global carbon emissions by a billion tons per year over the next decade. Combining an examination of the growth of private climate initiatives over the last decade, a theory of why private actors are motivated to reduce emissions, and a review of viable next steps, this book speaks to scholars, business and advocacy group managers, philanthropists, policymakers, and anyone interested in climate change.

Part I. Setting the Table: 1. Introduction
2. The climate challenge
3. The governance challenge
Part II. Private Governance: 4. The private governance opportunity
5. The corporate sector
6. The household sector
7. Cross-cutting initiatives
Part III. Next Steps: 8. Objections
9. New directions and extensions
10. Conclusion.

Subject Areas: Political economy [KCP], Constitution: government & the state [JPHC]