Is Chile building good climate governance? Reflections on the drafting process of the climate change framework law

Abstract

This article provides a critical account of the genesis of the first Chilean climate change law. Analysis and discussion on national climate policies and laws must take into account the constitutional, legal, political and social context of each country. Along with a description of the main objectives and regulatory instruments in the law, this article contains a review of the drafting process -with a special focus on the actors involved and public participation-.This review demonstrates a centralised decision-making process which lacked meaningful public participation. These violations to the right of democracy lead to the disappointing prediction that this climate change law and the instruments that will be enacted to implement it will be unfit to respond to the climate crisis in a country that – like many others – desperately needs to take climate change-related action.