Sovereignty and Climate Governance: Indonesia–Norway REDD+ Cooperation as a Two-Level Game

Abstract

This article examines the dynamics of REDD+ cooperation between Indonesia and Norway from 2010 to 2021, culminating in Indonesia’s unilateral termination of the partnership. Using a qualitative approach and Robert Putnam’s Two-Level Game framework, the article analyzes how international negotiations and domestic political and institutional interests shaped the implementation and continuity of the cooperation. The findings reveal that tensions emerged from divergent approaches to REDD+ governance, particularly between Norway’s requirements for international verification and Indonesia’s efforts to strengthen nationally established governance and verification mechanisms. These tensions were further complicated by institutional restructuring within Indonesia, which generated administrative challenges in implementing the Result-Based Payment mechanism. From a Two-Level Game perspective, the implementation of international commitments was shaped not only by negotiations between Indonesia and Norway but also by domestic institutional dynamics and Indonesia’s efforts to preserve policy autonomy in managing its REDD+ system. The article argues that the Indonesia–Norway REDD+ partnership should be understood not merely as a technical arrangement for climate finance and forest governance, but as a political negotiation in which international commitments interacted with domestic interests, institutional change, and competing understandings of sovereignty.