ABSTRACT
When the CDM was agreed at the Kyoto conference, it was called a great surprise. 2 For the first time, a market mechanism for a global public good had been created. The CDM provides a mechanism to bridge the gap between the 39 Annex I Parties that have agreed to quantified emissions limits under the Protocol and the remaining approximately 140 countries who have not. Participation in the CDM is voluntary and thus cannot be forced on anyone. However, the CDM is not just about trading greenhouse gas emissions credits. Its equally important goal is the promotion of sustainable development of the host countries. Therefore each CDM project has to be approved by the host country. Ideally, each host country would have defined rules to assess the contribution of projects to its development. As sustainability can be understood in many different nuances, a wide range of rules is conceivable.
