The advent of ‘radical’ transparency: Transforming multilateral climate politics?

‘Data is the new oil’ is now a widely heard mantra in our Information Age. But is it? And should this be cause for celebration or concern?

This is a compelling question for global governance of climate change, and the role for climate-related data and transparency in such governance. Transparency, by which I mean here rendering visible through information disclosure, is now at the core of a wide range of global environmental governance arrangements. The reason is straightforward and intuitive: transparency is assumed to be vital to enhancing accountability, informed participation, and ultimately better environmental outcomes. Closer scrutiny suggests that such transformative promises associated with transparency are often not fulfilled, whether for the state-based or private disclosure initiatives now proliferating in the climate realm.

Gupta A (2023) The advent of ‘radical’ transparency: Transforming multilateral climate politics? PLOS Clim 2(1): e0000117. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pclm.0000117

https://journals.plos.org/climate/article?id=10.1371/journal.pclm.0000117