Justice-Oriented Climate Diplomacy in the Mediterranean: Türkiye as a Norm Entrepreneur

Abstract

This article examines the persistent gap between formal commitments and effective outcomes in global climate governance by arguing that this disconnect is not merely institutional or technical, but fundamentally conceptual. Contemporary approaches frame climate change in predominantly technocratic and economistic terms, while neglecting sociopolitical determinants of vulnerability. As a result, climate policies often reproduce or exacerbate existing inequalities, limiting both their effectiveness and legitimacy. To address this limitation, the article takes up environmental justice as a diagnostic and analytical framework for rethinking climate governance. Drawing on its tripartite structure—distributive, procedural, and recognition justice—it demonstrates how climate risks and policy outcomes are unevenly distributed across and within societies, shaped by power relations, institutional arrangements, and social hierarchies. Building on this framework, the article reconceptualizes climate diplomacy as a political arena that must move beyond its state-centric and technocratic orientation. Focusing on the Mediterranean as a climate hotspot, it introduces the concept of “justice-oriented climate diplomacy,” integrating social vulnerability, human rights, and inclusive governance into diplomatic practice. The article further argues that incorporation of social dimensions into climate policy enhances effectiveness and legitimacy by addressing structural drivers of vulnerability. Finally, it examines Türkiye’s role as a potential norm entrepreneur in climate diplomacy, particularly in the context of its COP31 presidency, suggesting that intermediary actors can shape the evolving agenda of climate governance by advancing inclusive, context-sensitive, and justice-oriented approaches to implementation.