Technology transfer and climate change: a transnational law analysis

Abstract

ABSTRACT The role of technology transfer in climate change negotiations is vital. If technology is to help mitigate and adapt to climate change, the international community needs to ensure sufficient innovation and technology transfer. This article concentrates on the existing legal mechanisms that seek to ensure environmentally sustainable technologies are developed and available where needed. It problematises dominant international and public law frameworks, favouring instead a transnational lens that highlights the market, hybrid and non-market approaches to technology transfer. This conceptual framework allows one to focus on how states, international organisations and corporations shape this area of the law. Ultimately, the article presents the claim that discussions about technology transfer reflect a broader struggle, as the shift from fossil fuels to green energy opens up space to reconsider how one thinks about technology, intellectual property rights, dependency, and the role of the state.