Multidisciplinary Composition of Climate Change Commissions: Transnational Trends and Expert Perspectives

Climate change governance has evolved from multilateral pacts such as the UNFCCC and the Paris Agreement to the enactment of Climate Change Commissions (CCCs), raising the question of how multidisciplinarity can influence the efficacy of climate governance measures. This study inquires into transnational circumstances around the disciplinary/multidisciplinary composition of CCCs and samples the perspectives of over 120 climate policy experts through a structured survey to draw insights into how countries could establish a suitable multidisciplinary CCC in legislative and policy processes. Results show that multiple countries have already incorporated diverse domains of expertise into their CCCs, and 98% of surveyed experts support CCCs, with respondents identifying legal, physical science, biosciences, energy and engineering, economics, planning, social sciences, ethics, governance, health, and communication as desirable multidisciplinary categories. The study also highlights caveats regarding multidisciplinarity and reflects on quasi-institutions in countries without dedicated CCCs.