This issue focuses on a new and dangerous trend – the rise of trade and technology protectionism, in the name of climate change. New laws pending in the United States Congress contain trade measures linked to emissions that cause climate change, that are targeted at imports coming from developing countries. The laws also hinder technology transfer to developing countries as they prevent the relaxation of intellectual property rules. The new climate protectionism is causing controversy at the UN’s climate talks, and is also likely to be taken up at the WTO. The South Bulletin has 6 articles on this issue, explaining how the US laws work and their effects on developing countries, as well as reporting on how the developing countries took up the issue in the recent climate talks in Bonn.

The articles are on:

• The rise of climate protectionism
• Threat to block South’s exports on climate grounds
• India, G77 propose text against trade protection in Copenhagen Draft
• Analysis of the trade measures in the US climate bill
• Competitiveness, trade and climate change linkages: Developing countries’ perspectives
• Climate-technology protectionism and IPRs

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