Abstract
In April 2018, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) reached agreement on its Initial Strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from international shipping. The Initial Strategy was a success for the EU, as it achieved its long-term objective of reaching an international agreement on greening shipping. However, several factors call into question whether the “success” was the result of the role played by the EU. Using process-tracing, we provide insight into the factors and the mechanism that led the EU to achieve its objective with the Initial Strategy. The article finds that the EU’s goal achievement was the result of a mechanism triggered by (1) its overarching objective for action in the IMO on emissions in international shipping; (2) an entrepreneurial coalition partner; and (3) mounting momentum for action in the IMO. While the EU, including through its member states, played an important role in the negotiations, it only did so relatively late in the process, building on the successful work of the Shipping High Ambition Coalition. Based on this case study, we note implications not only for the proposed aspects of the European Green Deal related to greenhouse gas emissions from shipping, but also our understanding of the EU as an international (climate) actor.
Highlights
As the urgency of the climate crisis has become increas‐ ingly apparent, various international initiatives have been taken to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emis‐ sions, both comprehensively and in specific sectors
With an internal mandate and a designation by the Kyoto Protocol as the competent forum for climate change issues related to international shipping, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) has come under signifi‐ cant pressure to act on emissions reductions, from ambitious climate actors like the EU
In April 2018, at the 72nd Meeting of the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC), the IMO adopted its Initial Strategy on Reducing GHG Emissions in Shipping which lays down the first steps for the decarbonization of the sector
Summary
As the urgency of the climate crisis has become increas‐ ingly apparent, various international initiatives have been taken to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emis‐ sions, both comprehensively and in specific sectors. An understanding of how the EU reached its objective with the Initial Strategy can help us frame the challenges and opportunities facing the European Green Deal’s attempts to fit sectors like shipping within its climate goals and to drive change around the world. There is a rich literature on how the EU acts in international insti‐ tutions, focusing on its actorness (Drieskens, 2017), per‐ formance (Jørgensen et al, 2011), or the EU’s ultimate effectiveness, impact, or influence Research on the latter dimension has mostly assessed the EU’s effec‐ tiveness by comparing the EU’s initial position to the outcome of the international negotiations (Blavoukos & Bourantonis, 2017; da Conceição‐Heldt & Meunier, 2014; Van Willigen & Kleistra, 2013), scholarship increasingly takes into account what the EU did to achieve its prede‐ termined goals (Groen, 2019; Oberthür & Groen, 2015). The EU has sought to extend its leadership beyond the UNFCCC— multilaterally in other international fora, bilaterally via agreements, support and conditionality, and unilaterally
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