This report explores the influence of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) on the design of the climate compliance regime and how they work to promote climate performance among both parties and non-parties to the Kyoto Protocol. NGOs have been quite successful in attaining their goals for the design of the compliance regime: They won acceptance for the dual approach to compliance, with both a facilitative and an enforcement branch, a strong enforcement mechanism, and potentially significant scope for NGO participation in enforcement branch deliberations. A few advisory NGOs seem to have had influence on the design of the compliance regime, but it is more uncertain what their influence would have been without the US coming up with essentially the same approach. NGO influence on the interpretation of sinks and the design of the flexibility mechanisms, issues closely related to the compliance regime, has been very modest. With regard to enhancing future compliance, it is shown that NGOs are likely to pursue both internal and external strategies. The internal strategy denotes using instruments in the compliance system, including participation in compliance, monitoring and verification proceedings. Using options outside the climate regime - the external strategy - includes activities such as promoting renewable energy, influencing consumers and target groups, and shaming 'laggards'. It is argued that the complex character of the climate change issue requires entrepreneurial skills and a wide NGO repertoire, giving a role to both expert groups and the large environmental organisations.
