Voluntary Approaches in Climate Policy: Lessons learnt in Switzerland

This paper provides empirical evidence on the theoretical literature on voluntary agreements. The case study on fuel efficiency standards for passenger cars in Switzerland investigates the motivation for signing as well as the performance of the agreement. The qualitative part of the analysis deals with the firms’ perceptions of climate change and their positions on climate policies and measures, based on expert interviews. The findings suggest that there are potentially conflicting positions behind the association’s position communicated to political decision makers. The negotiated target and the defined measures were not sufficient to reach the national climate policy target. Theoretical propositions on preemptive strategic behavior and regulatory relief as motives for participation cannot be rejected.