Workshop Report - From Production to Consumption: Legal and Policy Challenges for a New Approach to Climate Change

Sustainable consumption has become not just an option, but an imperative for a successful climate strategy. Production-focused policies are not enough and they must be complemented by approaches that take into account the role of consumption in climate change. A consumption-based approach implies a move towards allocating national responsibility for emissions and emissions reduction, based on the supply chains of goods consumed within a country, rather than the emissions occurring within that country’s own borders. On 30 May 2008, a workshop held at the University of Surrey explored possible legal and policy challenges moving towards consumption as the basis for responsibility for emissions and their reduction.