ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses two different but associated questions. The first refers to the specific difficulties encountered by developing countries in the implementation of climate change policies. The other has to do with the role of multilateral institutions in the promotion of such polices in these countries. The Climate Convention was no exception and the issues involved were of much wider scope than climate change itself. The scientific community has been an extremely important actor in environment and climate change polices. Multilateral institutions have relied heavily on scientific contribution and have provided an adequate forum in which they can exercise international influence. Multilateral institutions fulfill this role, although in a manner different from that which would characterize a World Government. The power differences among developed nations are also relevant to the question of bilateral versus multilateral aid. The importance and the limitations of multilateral institutions are clearly seen in the case of climate change.
