Actors, interests and values : the Norwegian emissions trading system from an institutional perspective
Master thesis
Permanent lenke
http://hdl.handle.net/11250/187761Utgivelsesdato
2011-09-28Metadata
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Sammendrag
This thesis covers the Norwegian emissions trading process from the early steps in
1998-2001 towards articulating a climate policy including emissions trading, up until the
integration of the Norwegian emissions trading system with the EU system parallel to the
beginning of the Kyoto commitment period from 2008-2012.
The purpose of my thesis is to understand the relationship between actors, interests
and values in shaping the institutional structure, and how the institutions once established
influence the actors and their preferences. Through analyzing the Norwegian emissions
trading process from an institutional perspective I have been able to reveal the importance of
the institutional structure in influencing how certain interests and values become protected.
In this thesis I have revealed how the economic discourse‘s emphasis on costeffectiveness
has limited the inclusion of more general equity concerns and alternative
perspectives. From a constructivist perspective, I explore how the emissions trading system
has influenced the actors‘ preferences and values, and thus which arguments have been
perceived as valid.