LEADERSHIP AND LEGITIMACY: BANGLADESH’S CLIMATE DIPLOMACY THROUGH THE CLIMATE VULNERABLE FORUM’S LENS

This paper analyses Bangladesh’s leadership and credibility in the realm of global climate diplomacy by examining its role during its two terms of chairmanship in the Climate Vulnerable Forum (CVF). Bangladesh has become an important voice from the Global South, advocating for climate justice and adaptation despite having limited natural resources and a status of one of the world’s most climatevulnerable nations. Applying a framework of four types of leadership, including ideational, structural, directional, and instrumental, the paper examines how Bangladesh leveraged its credibility and domestic policy to influence international negotiations. It finds that Bangladesh’s ideational leadership has been reflected in reshaping discussions on global narratives on vulnerability and resilience through initiatives such as “Climate Prosperity plan” which stands as the world’s first strategic investment roadmap created by a CVF nation. Bangladesh established the climate financing tools within the CVF/V20 framework and initiated the creation of the CVF Trust Fund in partnership with UNDP which demonstrate its structural leadership. Dictionally, The country has shown directional leadership by implementing comprehensive internal adoption plan such as installing 6 million solar panel, while instrumental leadership is reflected in its attempt to forge stronger alliance with G77+ China, AOSIS, LDC group and SIDS to recover loss and damage funds. The findings suggest that Bangladesh’s legitimacy arise from congruence of rhetoric and action acknowledged by its peer. The paper concludes that Bangladesh exemplifies a form of “weak power leadership,” illustrating how moral and coalition-based influence can shape global climate governance.