Rhetorics of climate action from the South: analysis of the discourses of COP25 decision makers

Abstract The Conferences of the Parties function as transnational platforms to plan and implement mechanisms for climate action. The objective of this article is to analyze the discourses of the Global South in the context of COP 25, to unveil the environmental rhetoric of decision makers. For this, thematic content analysis was carried out on 60 statements of the high segment of COP25. It was possible to identify three rhetorics about climate action: urgent; ethical; cooperative, and two rhetorics about the climate regime from the South: the historical responsibility of the North and vulnerability as a condition that hinders climate action from the South. It is concluded that within the parties' discourses, a hegemonic rhetoric of climate inaction prevails, one which is focused on decision makers, is unable to implicate other actors, and reproduces the current logic of the climate regime.

摘要 缔约方大会（Conference of the Parties, COP）作为跨国平台，承担着规划并落实气候行动相关机制的职能。本文旨在剖析《联合国气候变化框架公约》第25次缔约方大会（COP25）背景下全球南方（Global South）的相关论述，以揭示决策者的环境修辞逻辑。为此，研究对COP25高级别环节的60份发言开展了主题内容分析。研究识别出三类与气候行动相关的修辞类型：紧迫性修辞、伦理性修辞与合作性修辞；同时识别出两类源自南方视角的气候制度相关修辞：北方的历史责任修辞，以及将脆弱性视作阻碍南方推进气候行动的制约因素的修辞。研究结论表明，在缔约方的各类论述中，占据霸权地位的气候不作为修辞仍占主流，这类修辞仅聚焦于决策者，无法联动其他行动主体，且复刻了当前气候制度的固有运行逻辑。