Review of “Navigating Climate Change Policy: The Opportunities of Federalism”

Reviewed by: Carly Wolfrom
Book by: Edella C. Schlager, Kristen H. Engel, and Sally Rider, eds.

Because of climate change’s inherently global nature, most proposed solutions have been tailored to a global scale. Navigating Climate Change Policy: The Opportunities of Federalism challenges the idea that because climate change is a global issue, only actions on a worldwide scale can lead to a resolution. It considers the perspective that since climate change itself has both global and local causes and implications, the most effective policies for adapting to and mitigating climate change must involve governments and communities at many different levels. The editors and authors feel federalism is well-suited to address the challenges of climate change because it permits distinctive policy responses at a variety of scales. This book uses a variety of viewpoints and blends legal and policy analyses to provide thought-provoking coverage of how governments in a federal system can cooperate, coordinate, and accommodate one another to address climate change.