Micropolitics in Carbon Pricing: Ethnographic Insights into the Introduction of Germany’s Emissions Trading System

Carbon pricing is considered a key instrument against the climate crisis, yet adoption remains hesitant. Existing research offers limited insights into its real-world policy processes, especially regarding aspects of power and micropolitics. Therefore, I conducted an ethnographic analysis of the introduction of the national Emissions Trading System (nETS) in Germany. Despite being a key climate actor, Germany has long been hesitant in pricing its emissions. The nETS-introduction in 2019 was thus unexpected by policymakers and advisors. Using sensitizing concepts of factors, means, and levels of power, I conducted two months of participant observation at the Federal Environment Ministry (BMU) and 17 semistructured interviews. Key factors for the nETS-introduction include noticeable climate impacts, large-scale protests, and EU climate-targets with potential penalty payments. Advocacy from BMU actors, pro-climate Conservatives, scientific advisors, businesses, and labor unions overcame longstanding resistance. Different means of power and micropolitics within these factors proved essential to understand the nETS-introduction. These include personal experiences of climate impacts, becoming aware of EU penalties, close relations between advisors and decision-makers, and partisan framing to enable compromises. The study underscores that micropolitics—such as interpersonal trust, tacit beliefs, and internal conflicts — can substantially shape policy processes.