Conversations in Diplomacy: Jairam Ramesh

In this “Conversation in Diplomacy,” with India’s Chief Climate Negotiator and 2014 fall Fisher Family Fellow, Jairam Ramesh, the Future of Diplomacy Project Director R. Nicholas Burns examines the issues of equity and commitment in international climate change negotiations as well as Indian responses to poverty and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's new leadership style. Ramesh examines the Indian, Chinese, and America responses to carbon emission reductions, noting the lack of Indian action and the Chinese government’s recent push to reduce carbon emissions. “India could well be the last man standing in Paris, the way thing’s are going; China and the United States are engaged in bilateral discussions on multiple levels and the Chinese have nuanced their traditional hardline position over the last five years in response to the fact that they’re today the world’s largest greenhouse gas emitter - accounting for 29% - and also because of domestic concerns.” Ramesh emphasizes the importance of the US and China in creating a “broad framework of action” at the 2015 UN Climate Change Conference in Paris. “Pollution effects the poor more than the middle class,” adds Ramesh, advocating for a continued multi-dimensional attack on poverty in India. Ramesh reflects also on how Prime Minister Narendra Modi's's leadership has been characterized by an "aggressive, personalized, and centralized style," bringing about a "major shift in which the world sees India."

Mr. Ramesh is the former Minister of Environment and Forests for India—and India's Chief Climate Negotiator. A Member of the upper house of India's Parliament from Andhra Pradesh, Ramesh was chief climate negotiator for India during the late 2000's. He has been a leading figure in international climate diplomacy for years.