NEPAL, Nov. 18 -- How China and India address climate change and reduce greenhouse gas emissions will have a significant impact on the planet's future, given their growing economic and demographic weight.

China and India are among the top emitters; recent estimates put their shares at roughly 33.9% and 7.5% respectively. Climate cooperation between the two neighbouring Asian giants will not only be mutually beneficial but also have the significant effect in blunting impacts of climate change in the region.

However, for such a cooperative agenda to materialise and sustain, there must be a discursive reconstruction of the issue of climate change, which transcends realist preoccupations with strategic advantage, relative power, and enduri...