SUS-POL

Reconciling the right to develop with leaving fossil fuels underground in the Global South To address climate change, supply-side action and policy are urgently needed for leaving fossil fuels underground. Low- and Middle-Income Countries ho…

A global fossil phase-out must engage with the politics of energy transitions, not just the economics.

Only then can fairness and the 1.5°C goal go hand in hand. 🤝

Check out the full paper here: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

And the blog here: www.sussex.ac.uk/research/pro...

The authors call for a reframing of the right to development as a right to sustainable development, anchored in justice, equity, and democratic control over resources. ⚖️

Their study of 127 countries maps seven rationales for the right to develop - from fossil-fuel dependency to pathways for phase-out - revealing sharp differences within the Global South. 📶

Heras, Rammelt & Gupta show that the “Right to Development” isn’t fixed it’s an ideograph, a flexible idea used to defend extraction or argue for sustainable transformation. 💡

The Global South holds 78% of fossil reserves. For many states, fossil fuels promise growth but bring risks - stranded assets, instability, and climate damage. 🛢️

Reconciling the Global South’s Right to Develop with Leaving Fossil Fuels Underground The Global South is home to 78% of unburnable reserves, which raises urgent questions of equity, justice and the right to development.

📣 New blog from the University of Amsterdam’s CLIFF project team asking:

'Can the Global South exercise its right to develop while the world must leave fossil fuels underground?' 🧵

www.sussex.ac.uk/research/pro...

Amazing contribution from @rebeccasolnit.bsky.social at the @fossiltreaty.bsky.social virtual summit. Grateful for her conviction that ‘the fossil fuel treaty is making the future liveable for humans & more than humans alike’. @suspol.bsky.social @sussexfss.bsky.social @andrewsimms.bsky.social

Radical Reform of the International Investment Treaty Regime: A Role for Climate Clubs? There is growing concern that provisions in international investment treaties are being used to delay the critically needed transition away from fossil fuels. Although various procedural and substant...

New paper with Kyla Tienhaara & Harro van Asselt in Global Policy exploring whether climate clubs might be able to resist ISDS measures being used to slow the energy transition onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/... @suspol.bsky.social @sussexsrp.bsky.social

@environmentalpol.bsky.social @peternewell.bsky.social

Fossil fuel phase-out clubs: the new kid on the block in climate governance? As global climate negotiations struggle with the urgency of phasing out fossil fuels, a new form of climate governance has emerged: phase-out clubs.

Phase-out clubs won’t deliver 1.5°C alone - but they’re shaping climate politics in ways we can’t ignore.

Full analysis 👉 www.sussex.ac.uk/research/pro...

Full paper from Koppenborg here: www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

🥊 The trade-off: Full phase-outs are politically harder than “phase-downs.” Future club design needs to balance ambition with political feasibility

📶 Bigger clubs aren’t always weaker. The GMP is large and strong - challenging assumptions about “watering down” commitments

💪 Effectiveness varies:

Global Methane Pledge (GMP) → strong design, clear targets, broad membership ✅

Others (like Zero Routine Flaring) → weak obligations & compliance ❌

💬 They have influenced global talks: methane & coal language now appear in COP decisions, thanks in part to these clubs. Agenda-setting power matters!

🤝 They don’t compete with the Paris Agreement - they implement it. These phase-out clubs raise awareness, set agendas, and push for ambition in UNFCCC negotiations.

📣 NEW BLOG 📣

Are “phase-out clubs” the new frontier in global climate governance? 🌍

Florentine Koppenborg analyzed 6 major coalitions like the Global Methane Pledge and Powering Past Coal Alliance.

Here’s what she found out 🧵

What does the International Court of Justice ruling mean for fossil fuel phase outs? The world must phase out fossil fuel production to achieve the Paris Agreement. This isn't just a scientific demand, it is now a legal imperative.

What does the ICJ advisory opinion mean for fossil fuel production? I wrote for @suspol.bsky.social on this question: www.sussex.ac.uk/research/pro... #AOLetsGo

What does the International Court of Justice ruling mean for fossil fuel phase outs? The world must phase out fossil fuel production to achieve the Paris Agreement. This isn't just a scientific demand, it is now a legal imperative.

What does the ICJ climate opinion mean for #FossilFuels?
According to the advisory opinion:
➡️Production, licensing & subsidizing of fossil fuels could breach int’l law
➡️Phase out standards vary with state capabilities

@nataliejones.bsky.social | @suspol.bsky.social www.sussex.ac.uk/research/pro...

What does the International Court of Justice ruling mean for fossil fuel phase outs? The world must phase out fossil fuel production to achieve the Paris Agreement. This isn't just a scientific demand, it is now a legal imperative.

In a landmark opinion, the ICJ found that phasing out fossil fuels isn’t just a scientific demand—it’s a legal imperative.

IISD’s @nataliejones.bsky.social takes a closer look at what the court said on fossil fuels + what it could mean for efforts to phase them out.
@suspol.bsky.social

⚠️Who should phase out fossil fuels first?⚠️

As countries confront the need to ditch oil, gas, and coal to meet climate goals, one question looms:

Which nations should move first and fastest?

@lslothuus.bsky.social offers a geopolitical approach to answering this question

🧵

nice thread outlining @lslothuus.bsky.social's new article on a geopolitical approach to fossil fuel phase-out

Phasing out fossil fuel production: Who should go first? How do we figure out who should move first in phasing out fossil fuels and in what sequence?

Moving to this geopolitical lens is messy and politically difficult.

But without it, fossil fuel phaseouts risk being unfair, ineffective, and easily reversed.

Read more:
🔗 Blog: sussex.ac.uk/research/pro...

🔗 Article in Geopolitics: www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

💰 Ownership Structures

It matters who owns the reserves.

State-owned fuels: governments can phase out (in theory).

Privately-owned fuels: corporations can sue states via mechanisms like ISDS.

Ownership shapes what’s possible, durable and fair

🌍 Imperialist Power Relations

The fossil fuel system is rigged by unequal power. From military interventions (Iran 1953, Libya 2011) to global trade rules, the Global North dominates.

Those benefiting most should lead the phaseout

⚖️ Historical & Colonial Injustice

Legacies of exploitation still define fossil fuel economies. Colonial powers built wealth on extraction and displaced ecological damage to the Global South.

The most ecologically indebted nations should phase out fossil fuels first

That’s why SUS_POL's Lukas Slothuus argues for a geopolitical approach to sequencing phaseouts.

One that sees nations not as isolated actors, but as interlinked nodes in global systems of production and power.

Here’s what that looks like 👇

Most answers lean on GDP, emissions, or production levels to rank countries.

But these metrics alone miss the bigger picture:

The global fossil fuel economy is shaped by deep power dynamics – history, imperialism, and ownership.

⚠️Who should phase out fossil fuels first?⚠️

As countries confront the need to ditch oil, gas, and coal to meet climate goals, one question looms:

Which nations should move first and fastest?

@lslothuus.bsky.social offers a geopolitical approach to answering this question

🧵

Rosebank & Jackdaw fields face 'tightened' approval process Last year, the Supreme Court ruled that firms must account for emissions created by the burning of fossil fuels.

The UK gov has just published new guidance for environmental impact assessments for oil & gas projects. Despite reports/industry spin, it includes a genuinely robust, credible approach to assessing the emissions caused by burning oil & gas. Let's take a look! 🧵
www.heraldscotland.com/news/2525207...

What could a Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty look like? As climate negotiations get underway in Bonn, an initiative set up to work on a pact against fossil fuels is discussing its structure and ways to promote the phase-out of coal, oil and gas

This is a really great deep dive from @climatechangenews.com on what a @fossiltreaty.bsky.social could look like and the challenges it must navigate.

The piece features extensive insight from SUS-POL's @peternewell.bsky.social 👇

www.climatechangenews.com/2025/06/17/w...