EU Think Tank Platform for Paris 2015 (TT2015) Background The Paris COP in November 2015, where a new global climate change agreement is to be reached under the UNFCCC, attracts increasing interest among stakeholders in the EU, and around the world, to understand the different positions of the key players, the rationales behind them and the process that leads to creation of these positions. The EU has played an important role in negotiating multilateral environmental agreements. Across Europe there is the increasing need for a debate on the climate policy strategy of the EU, as well as the individual positions it takes on the various technical issues of the UN negotiations. Moreover, the implications from key players' actions outside the EU must be included in the debates around the EU positioning. In the EU, the debate on the 2015 agreement has a strong connection to the proposed 2030 energy and climate framework, i.e. its content and level of ambition on different aspects of the package, including the reform of the EU ETS. The EU’s domestic ambition is its greatest political leverage on the international stage. Centre for European Policy Studies EU Think Tank Platform for Paris 2015 (TT2015) Objectives Institute for Sustainable Development and International Relations This initiative has the following objectives: • Catalyze internal EU debate on the EU objectives and strategic approach towards the 2015 agreement from a variety of member state and thematic perspectives; • Help provide an increasing international and global dimension to the debate in Brussels on energy and climate; • Provide a forum to debate issues of strategic importance for the EU in negotiating the 2015 agreement; • Provide a platform for information on the EU positions, their international implications, for both EU and international stakeholders. German Institute for International and Security Affairs What is the Paris 2015 EU Think Tank Platform? The Platform brings together five of the leading EU thinks tanks (CEPS, E3G, IDDRI, IES-‐VUB and SWP), active in the area of climate change policy, in their desire to catalyze and contribute to the debate in the EU on its strategy and positioning in the 2015 negotiations. EU Think Tank Platform for Paris 2015 (TT2015) Centre for European Policy Studies Activities of the Platform Institute for Sustainable Development and International Relations German Institute for International and Security Affairs The platform will act as an information hub and magnifying glass for those initiatives that the members of the Platform wish to explore. A limited number of strategic issues will be selected and examined through events and original intellectual contributions, either from members individually, or as a group. Information provided by individual Platform members will be made available, as well as information from other sources that is deemed credible and of appropriate quality by the members of the Platform. The discussions aim to provide clarity and challenge Europe’s role and positioning in relation to the 2015 agreement, providing a robust discussion which focuses on both strategy and policy. The initiative will engage in a number of activities in line with its stated objectives: • Provide a web-‐based platform where different written contributions, jointly or individually, will be posted; • Provide public and private forums where stakeholders can debate strategic issues with policy makers, based on intellectual input from the TT2015-‐platform members; • Highlight on the information platform and through events: o topics of strategic importance for the EU in the 2015 debate o specific areas of the agreement, which members have agreed to work on • Some of the activities and topics currently considered are: o "Paris 2015 – What’s in it for Europe?" – launch of the TT2015-‐Platform o The role of the carbon markets in the 2015 agreement o The transparency and accountability framework: What measures are required to build confidence between countries on implementation? o Using 2015 to align broader financial flows consistent with the 2 degrees target o Mitigation: which targets for whom? Who sets the stage? o Is the international community fit for purpose to manage climate risk? o The design of an agreement after 2020