Both the urgency of climate change issues and their complexity require innovation in diplomatic processes. Climate change diplomacy is a multi-disciplinary field demanding input from a wide variety of disciplines including science, technology, policy processes, legislation, ethics, and philosophy. Climate change is a global issue that transcends national borders, but it must be addressed on all levels from the individual to the United Nations, in local, national, regional, and global fora. By necessity, climate change diplomacy is multistakeholder diplomacy. Although states must take the leading role in addressing climate change issues, other actors, including civil society, the business community, and academia are essential partners. This conference will focus largely on capacity-building and will address the training and other needs of small states, and other actors who, due to limited financial or human resources, currently do not participate fully in climate change diplomacy.
