Climate change research and analysis in India: an integrated assessment ofa South-North divide

For more than a decade climate change has been the focus of much research a nd analysis. Despite the global implications of the problem, the overwhelmi ng majority of the researchers involved worldwide in studying the problem a nd its possible solutions are from industrialized countries, and participat ion of lesser-industrialized countries has been limited. While the wide-ran ging implications of this South-North divide are sometimes recognized; ther e is little analysis on the reasons for this divide, why it continues to ex ist, and what steps might be required to narrow it. Towards this end, this paper analyzes how climate change research and analysis is performed in Ind ia, a major lesser-industrialized country. Based on detailed interviews, it explores the factors that play a role in shaping the capability of India t o perform, and respond to, climate-change analyses. Drawing on the Indian c ase study, the paper examines developing-country participation in the inter national climate science and assessment enterprise. This allows some reflec tion on the potential pitfalls for international discussions on climate cha nge and what the international community and countries of the South can do to overcome them in order to address this conspicuous South-North divide. ( C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.