At an international conference on global climate change,a representative of a developing country admits that each year,his country contributes the same amount of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere as the United States.However,he argues that because his country has only 10% of the wealth of the United States,the United States should pay much more of the costs of adaptation.This representative's arguments illustrate the

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The representative's argument is based on the equity principle, which suggests that those who have contributed the least to the problem should not be burdened with a disproportionately large share of the costs of mitigation and adaptation. The polluter pays principle emphasizes that the party responsible for pollution should bear the costs, the precautionary principle emphasizes the need to take action even in the absence of full scientific certainty, and the conservation of the commons principle emphasizes the need to use resources sustainably for the common good. While these principles may also be relevant to the issue of climate change, they are not specifically illustrated in the representative's argument.

At an International Conference on Global Climate Change,a Representative of a Developing