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Abstract
This paper examines the problem of achieving global cooperation to reduce greenhouse
gas emissions. Contributions to this problem are reviewed from noncooperative game
theory, cooperative game theory, and implementation theory. We examine the solutions
to games where players have a continuous choice about how much to pollute, and
games where players make decisions about treaty participation. The implications of
linking cooperation on climate change with cooperation on other issues, such as trade, is
also examined. Cooperative and non-cooperative approaches to coalition formation are
investigated in order to examine the behaviour of coalitions cooperating on climate
change. One way to achieve cooperation is to design a game, known as a mechanism,
whose equilibrium corresponds to an optimal outcome. This paper examines some
mechanisms that are based on conditional commitments, and their policy implications.
These mechanisms could make cooperation on climate change mitigation more likely.