Non-market mechanisms under Article 6.8 of the Paris Agreement: A transnational perspective

Article 6.8 was included in the Paris Agreement in the last minutes of COP15 after years of advocacy for non-market approaches (NMAs), predominately from Bolivia. Between 2015 - 2021, however, the development of NMAs remained largely stagnant and was hindered by ideological and financial disagreements during negotiations. Despite challenges, the operationalisation of NMAs under Article 6.8 has recently started to take shape. Major developments driving this are the development and maturing of relevant pilot projects, such as the Adaptation Benefits Mechanism (ABM) and the Local Climate Adaptive Living Facility (LoCAL), as well as the finalisation of the Paris Agreement Rulebook at COP26. Accordingly, this paper uses a transnational framing to explore these developments and the potential impacts of NMAs under Article 6.8, with particular attention towards financial and ideological considerations.