BREAKING THE JINX OF CLIMATE CHANGE DEBACLE: CAN THE CONFERENCE OF THE PARTIES (COPS) MEETINGS MEASURE UP?

Abstract

Despite the numerous agreements entered into effect since the United Convention on Climate Change/UNCCC in 1992 and the over two dozen Conferences of the Parties (COPs) to halt or reverse global warming and climate change, the effect of climate change is not abating. Climate scientists and communities across the world agree that heat waves, droughts, wildfires,
floods, and other climatic events are increasing in scope, frequency, and intensity in many parts of the world. These impacts are putting countries, systems, and communities to the test in terms of resilience and capacity to support sustainable development. In 2022 alone, climate change-induced disasters have cost affected countries hundreds of billions of dollars, primarily low- and middle-income nations. The socio-economic consequences of these events on families and communities in these countries have yet to be fully established. This paper seeks to examine why collective action on climate change has failed thus far, using the "Theory of Tragedy of the Commons." The research methodology consists of a content analysis of narrative documents
obtained from secondary sources such as the internet, newspapers, journals, magazines, and books. The findings suggest that the most important stumbling block that has been mitigating against the efforts to avoid an irreversible tragedy of the commons on global climate change is the inability of the Parties to the climate agreements to live up to expectations.