Common but Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities (CBDR–RC) is a key principle in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) that recognises the different capabilities and differing responsibilities of individual countries in tacking climate change. The principle of CBDR–RC is embedded in the 1992 UNFCCC treaty. The convention states: “… the global nature of climate change calls for the widest possible cooperation by all countries and their participation in an effective and appropriate international response, in accordance with their common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities and their social and economic conditions.” Since then the CBDR-RC principle has guided the UN climate negotiations.
COMMON BUT DIFFERENTIATED RESPONSIBILITIES AND RESPECTIVE CAPABILITIES (CBDR-RC)
