Module 9 Neil Karmaker

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The diagram I have made depicts how the United States manipulated various countries into signing the Copenhagen Accord. Although it was not necessarily in their best interest for these various countries to sign the Accord, political pressure from the United States made opposition to the Accord incredibly difficult to maintain. The diagram begins in the upper left hand corner with climate change as the first step. Current fosil fuel usage and unsustainable economic, political, and societal practices have increased the temperature of the planet, which shows signs of incredibly deleterious effects on the planet. Climate change is recognized by the entire world, which is highlighted in the next box. A Copenhagen Accord is then drafted in order to promote more sustainable practices, reduce the use of unsustainable practices, and promise aid to countries who would be severely damaged by climate change. In the next box, the United States promise to provide aid to countries severely damaged, in accordance with the Copenhagen Accord. This box then links to two other boxes, one of them being the total number of countries who signed the Accord. Some countries signed the document just by the promise given by the United States. However, the former box is also connected with another box which highlights the United States manipulation of different countries to gain votes. In one box, the United States uses threats the to force different countries to sign the Accord. In another box, the United States bribes other countries with aid, and funding for various “projects” that the countries require. Both these boxes points to the final box which highlights the 140 out of a total of 193 countries that signed the Copenhagen Accord.

In order to combat climate change, there needs to be serious collective action on mitigation from every single country from around the world. Because every single country is contributing to climate change, every single country needs to reform their unsustainable practices to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, and find alternative energy sources that would not significantly affect the climate. Of course, different countries contribute to the issue in different ways, like the United States being the largest contributor to climate change whereas a small island country would not, but regardless every country needs to contribute. Collective action needs treaties like the Copenhagen Accord to very strictly change the way countries behave, but they need to be written to maximize the reduction of climate change. I believe what the United States did is highly unethical, where the Accord was definitely not agreed upon by other countries, whether or not for strictly political reasons or that the Accord did not combat climate change whether enough. But regardless, political manipulation by the United States was not done to reduce climate change, but to harm other powerful countries and make the United States more powerful. This practice is therefore highly unethical, as manipulation was conducted under a guise instead of actually promoting some positive change. I believe that the cables should definitely be made public, beforehand and afterwards. Ideally there should not be any secret discourse about climate change issues where countries can actually harm negotiations, deals, and political and economic progress.

5 thoughts on “Module 9 Neil Karmaker

  1. Hey Neil,
    My name is Kristin. I enjoyed reading your post! I think your diagram flows very nicely. I noticed that we had a lot of similar components in our diagrams- both ending with all arrows pointing to the amount of countries that signed the Copenhagen Accord. I definitely agree about there needing to be a collective action on mitigation! It is crucial that every country helps to make a difference, not just one since climate change is a huge problem in the world today. I too wrote in my post that I feel as though what the U.S. did was very unethical. They should be focusing on how this benefits for everyone, not the how it will benefit us.
    If you would like to check out my post here is the link
    https://wp.me/p3RCAy-dYz

  2. Hi Neil! My name is Kara. Your post was very interesting. Your diagram is very well put together and easy to understand. I also agree that in order to improve climate change that all countries need to get involved in the situation. For it to even improve, there needs to be a group effort to cut back on greenhouse gases. If you get the chance, check out my post! Here is the link. http://geog030.dutton.psu.edu/2016/04/08/module-9-climate-change-kara-timmons/

  3. Hi Neil, my name is Samantha, and I took the time to read your blog entry for this module. I like the detail in your system diagram. It made the act of reading it flow so much smoother for myself. I think that a bunch of us agree that the United States certainly handled the situation very unethically. Perhaps if nothing was hidden, and the truth were told, there would be much more support and willingness from those who have signed the Accord.

    Here is a link to my blog post: http://geog030.dutton.psu.edu/2016/04/08/learning-activity-climate-diplomacy/

  4. Hey Neil! My name is Tawnya and I really enjoyed reading your post. Your diagram is simple yet informative and I like how it all your subjects lead up to the signage of the Copenhagen Accord. I completely agree with the collective action that needs to take place in order for mitigation to occur. I also believe that every country should contribute to the reformation but in my post I also do not agree with the unethical way the United States handled it. Great Post! You can find mine at: http://geog030.dutton.psu.edu/2016/04/06/ix-ethical-climate-diplomacy/
    Thanks for your time!
    Sincerely,
    Tawnya

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