The Principle of "Common But Differentiated Responsibilities"

The Principle of "Common But Differentiated Responsibilities"

The principle of "common but differentiated responsibilities" began to win general acceptance in the early 1970s. The United Nations Conference on the Human Environment, held in Stockholm in 1972, declared that the protection and improvement of the human environment was the duty of the whole world. It also drew attention to the fact that environmental deficiencies in developing countries are themselves generated by the conditions of underdevelopment. This concept constitutes an essential element of the principle of "common but differentiated responsibilities."

The principle was written into Article 4 of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change adopted in 1992. Under this principle, developed countries should take the lead in emissions reduction and provide support in terms of finance and technology to developing countries, while developing countries should apply this financial and technological support to actions designed to mitigate or adapt to climate change. Notwithstanding, economic and social development and poverty eradication still remain the first and overriding priorities for the developing world.

China has never forsaken this principle in any of the international climate negotiations in which it has participated.

“共同但有区别的责任”原则

“共同但有区别的责任”发端于上世纪70年代初。1972年斯德哥尔摩人类环境会议宣示，保护环境是全人类的“共同责任”；会议同时指出，发展中国家的环境问题“在很大程度上是发展不足造成的”，这已是“共同但有区别的责任”的雏形。1992年，《联合国气候变化框架公约》第四条正式明确了这一原则。根据这个原则，发达国家要率先减排，并向发展中国家提供资金和技术支持；发展中国家仍以经济和社会发展及消除贫困为首要和压倒一切的优先事项，在得到发达国家技术和资金支持的情况下，采取措施减缓或适应气候变化。

这一原则也一直是中国参与国际气候谈判的基础。