This chapter uses the lens of accountability to explore the shifting strategies of a range of civil society groups in their engagement with key actors in the global regime on climate change. Initially civil society players focused on influencing inter-state negotiations through the United Nations, in the form of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the subsequent Kyoto Protocol. Thereafter civil society strategies for accountability in respect of climate footprints have broadened also to target the corporate sector, consumers and multilateral development banks. Civil society groups aim to increase answerability of key actors for their actions as well as enforceability where those actors fail to deliver on their obligations. The discussion covers movements that adopt more confrontational tactics of protest and shaming, as well as groups that promote change through dialogue, partnerships and the construction of new institutions. The chapter first reviews traditional strategies aimed at increasing ‘public accountability’ of governments and UN bodies for agreed actions on climate change. This approach is then compared with the growing tendency to pursue the accountability of business corporations with respect to climate change. These strategies aim, among other things, to promote ‘civil regulation’: that is, governance of the private sector through civil society oversight. The final part of the chapter reflects on the possibilities and limitations of civil society actors performing such accountability roles in the contemporary politics of climate change and suggests potential future directions in this matter. Overall, the chapter argues that civil society interventions have had a highly uneven degree of success in enhancing the accountability of public and private actors on the issue of climate change. This mixed record relates both to the degree of effectiveness of the strategies adopted by civil society associations and to the level of responsiveness of the target actors and institutions.

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