Doctoral Dissertation Reseach: Transnational Oil Corporations in the Climate Debates

面对《联合国气候变化框架公约》（United Nations Framework Convention on climate change）下正在谈判的气候变化条约，石油公司做出了不同的反应。一些人表示支持气候变化条约，而大多数人则对气候变化科学提出质疑，并游说反对强制性的二氧化碳和其他温室气体减排。理解商界在气候辩论上的这种分歧，有助于了解跨国组织对国际政治的重要性，以及非国家行为体在政府间国际条约谈判中的作用。利用四家石油公司的定性数据和50家最大石油公司的定量数据，该项目解决了四个问题：1)石油公司采取了什么样的气候战略；2)哪些因素导致了战略差异；3)石油公司如何回应环保主义者的倡导努力；4)石油行业的分裂如何影响气候变化谈判的进展和结果？

In the face of the climate change treaty being negotiated under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, oil corporations have responded differently. Some have expressed support for the climate change treaty, while most have challenged climate change science and lobbied against mandated carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emission reductions. Understanding this split in business views on the climate debates offers insights into the importance of transnational organizations for international politics, and into the role of non-state actors in negotiating international treaties among governments. Using qualitative data on four oil corporations, and quantitative data on the 50 largest oil corporations, the project thus addresses four questions: 1) what climate strategies have the oil corporations pursued, 2) what factors have accounted for differences in strategies, 3) how have the oil corporations responded to advocacy efforts of environmentalists, and 4) how has the split in the oil industry affected the progress and outcomes of the climate change negotiations?