Work

The disappearance of land use from UNFCCC decisions: A guided topic analysis

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) plays a pivotal role in shaping global environmental policies, yet a topic analysis of UNFCCC decisions reveals variations in the emphasis on distinct topics each year. This study critically examines all UNFCCC decisions from COP1 in 1995 to COP28 in 2023, along with decisions of the Kyoto Protocol and Paris Agreement. We utilize a form of Natural Language Processing called Guided Latent Dirichlet Allocation to examine how 16 topics that were predefined by the UNFCCC are represented within decisions. The results show how “Land Use”, a topic critical for climate change mitigation, is prominently featured only in certain years. Through network analysis, we illustrate land use’s limited cooccurrence with other topics within decisions and conferences. We draw on Punctuated Equilibrium and Policy Bubble theories to describe land uses’s broader geopolitical trends.

Source: Land Use Policy

DOI: 10.1016/j.landusepol.2025.107722

Authors: Keith Goldstein, Bruna Rodrigues, Pedro Jacobetty, Kathryn Hahn-Madole, Helge Jörgens, Nina Kolleck

Institutions: University of Potsdam, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Iscte – Instituto Universitário de Lisboa, University of Lisbon

Language: English

Topic: Climate Change Policy and Economics

Subfield: Economics and Econometrics

Field: Economics, Econometrics and Finance

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Climate action

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,830