scholarly journals Introduction: The Institutional Fragmentation of Global Environmental Governance: Causes, Consequences, and Responses

2013 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-13 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fariborz Zelli ◽  
Harro van Asselt
Keyword(s):  
International Relations ◽  
Environmental Governance ◽  
Biological Diversity ◽  
Global Environmental Governance ◽  
Special Issue ◽  
Global Environmental ◽  
Research Themes ◽  
Private And Public ◽  
Governance Architecture ◽  
Institutional Fragmentation

This article introduces a special issue on the expanding research agenda on institutional fragmentation. The term refers to the growing diversity and challenges to coordination among private and public norms, treaties, and organizations that address a given issue area of international politics. International relations scholars increasingly address this phenomenon, framing it with alternative concepts like regime complexes or polycentricity. A considerable part of the existing debate remains focused on whether a centralized or polycentric governance architecture is preferable. Instead, as this special issue shows, domains of global environmental governance—like climate change, biological diversity, renewable energy, and forestry—are already fragmented. It is time to address new, more pertinent questions and help advance institutionalist research on this phenomenon. We introduce four major research themes for analyzing the fragmentation of different domains of global environmental governance: taking stock, causes, consequences, and responses.

Studying Global Environmental Meetings to Understand Global Environmental Governance: Collaborative Event Ethnography at the Tenth Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity

2014 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa M. Campbell ◽  
Catherine Corson ◽  
Noella J. Gray ◽  
Kenneth I. MacDonald ◽  
J. Peter Brosius
Keyword(s):  
Biodiversity Conservation ◽  
Environmental Governance ◽  
Biological Diversity ◽  
Ethnographic Study ◽  
Convention On Biological Diversity ◽  
Global Environmental Governance ◽  
Special Issue ◽  
Research Practices ◽  
Global Environmental ◽  
Over Time

This special issue introduces readers to collaborative event ethnography (CEE), a method developed to support the ethnographic study of large global environmental meetings. CEE was applied by a group of seventeen researchers at the Tenth Conference of the Parties (COP10) to the Convention of Biological Diversity (CBD) to study the politics of biodiversity conservation. In this introduction, we describe our interests in global environmental meetings as sites where the politics of biodiversity conservation can be observed and as windows into broader governance networks. We specify the types of politics we attend to when observing such meetings and then describe the CBD, its COP, challenges meetings pose for ethnographic researchers, how CEE responds to these challenges generally, and the specifics of our research practices at COP10. Following a summary of the contributed papers, we conclude by reflecting on the evolution of CEE over time.

scholarly journals Private Environmental Governance and International Relations: Exploring the Links

2003 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 72-87 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Falkner
Keyword(s):  
International Relations ◽  
Environmental Governance ◽  
Environmental Politics ◽  
Institutional Arrangements ◽  
International Negotiations ◽  
Global Environmental Governance ◽  
Global Level ◽  
Private Governance ◽  
Global Environmental Politics ◽  
Global Environmental

This article discusses private environmental governance at the global level. It is widely acknowledged that corporations play an increasing role in global environmental politics, not only as lobbyists in international negotiations or agents of implementation, but also as actors creating private institutional arrangements that perform environmental governance functions. The rise of such private forms of global governance raises a number of questions for the study of global environmental politics: How does private governance interact with state-centric governance? In what ways are the roles/capacities of states and nonstate actors affected by private governance? Does the rise of private governance signify a shift in the ideological underpinnings of global environmental governance? This article explores these questions, seeking a better understanding of the significance of private environmental governance for International Relations.

scholarly journals What Does Collaborative Event Ethnography Tell Us About Global Environmental Governance?

2014 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 125-131 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rosaleen Duffy
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Environmental Governance ◽  
International Political Economy ◽  
Black Box ◽  
Epistemic Communities ◽  
Global Environmental Governance ◽  
Special Issue ◽  
Global Environmental ◽  
Insight Into

This forum places CEE at COP10 in the context of wider theoretical debates about global environmental governance. This special issue enhances our understanding of governance by examining how ideas travel and develop at meetings before they become the official documents and announcements that are the more common foci of such papers. The articles in this issue of GEP open up the ‘black box’ of decision-making and allow us to gain a better understanding of global environmental governance, in theory and in practice. These articles are firmly in line with International Political Economy approaches, allowing us to reflect on how regulations can mirror and deepen existing global inequalities, revealing the continuing power of epistemic communities, and demonstrating the important role of ideas. The special issue allows us insight into how global conventions work, how alliances are formed, how particular ideas emerge, and crucially, how alternatives are rendered silent and invisible.

scholarly journals Indigenous Participation and the Incorporation of Indigenous Knowledge and Perspectives in Global Environmental Governance Forums: a Systematic Review

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melanie Zurba ◽  
Anastasia Papadopoulos
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Indigenous Peoples ◽  
Environmental Governance ◽  
Biological Diversity ◽  
Indigenous Communities ◽  
Convention On Biological Diversity ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Global Environmental Governance ◽  
Global Environmental ◽  
Indigenous Participation

AbstractGlobal environmental governance (GEG) forums, such as those convened through the United Nations, result in the development of monumental guiding frameworks such as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) Conference of Parties (COPs) Aichi and post-2020 targets. The ratification of policy frameworks by member and/or signatory states can result in major shifts in environmental policy and decision-making and has major implications for Indigenous communities. In this article, we present systematic review of the peer-reviewed literature on Indigenous participation in GEG forums, and focus on the specific questions: (1) what GEG forums include Indigenous participation and (2) how do Indigenous peoples participate in GEG forums, including how their perspectives and knowledges are framed and/or included/excluded within governance discussions, decisions, and negotiations. We provide a bibliometric analysis of the articles and derive seven inductively determined themes from our review: (1) Critical governance forums and decisions; (2) inclusion and exclusion of Indigenous voices and knowledge in GEG forums; (3) capacity barriers; (4) knowledge hierarchies: inclusion, integration, and bridging; (5) representation and grouping of Indigenous peoples in GEG; (6) need for networks among and between Indigenous peoples and other governance actors; and (7) Indigenous peoples influence on GEG decisions and processes. Our findings can be used to improve GEG forums by contributing to the development strategies that address the barriers and inequities to meaningful and beneficial Indigenous participation and can contribute to future research that is focused on understanding the experiences of Indigenous peoples within GEG forums.

UNEP in Global Environmental Governance: Design, Leadership, Location

2010 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 30-59 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Ivanova
Keyword(s):  
International Relations ◽  
Environmental Governance ◽  
United Nations Environment Programme ◽  
Global Environmental Governance ◽  
Key Factors ◽  
Subsequent Performance ◽  
Global Environmental ◽  
Systematic Methodology ◽  
Nations Environment ◽  
Environment Programme

As debates on reform of global environmental governance intensify, the future of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has come into acute political focus. Many argue that the organization has faltered in its role as the UN's leading agency for the environment. In this article, I use historical institutional analysis in combination with current international relations and management theory to explain UNEP's creation and evolution. Having described how the creators of UNEP envisioned the nascent organization, I analyze its subsequent performance, identifying the key factors that have shaped its record. I argue that the original vision for UNEP was ambitious but fundamentally pragmatic, and that the organization's mixed performance over the years can be explained by analysis of three factors: its design, leadership, and location. Thus, this article clarifies the record on UNEP's intended function, and lays the foundation for a systematic methodology for evaluating international organizations.

State Sovereignty in the Planetary Management of Natural Resources

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nico J. Schrijver
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
International Law ◽  
Environmental Governance ◽  
Biological Diversity ◽  
Environmental Conservation ◽  
Global Environmental Governance ◽  
Sovereign State ◽  
Progressive Development ◽  
Global Environmental ◽  
Global Values

Protagonists of global environmental governance often view the sovereign State as well as the principle of sovereignty as major stumbling blocks for effective environmental conservation and sustainable development. Some even herald the demise of the idea of the sovereign State. However, reality has it differently. Sovereignty is no longer an unqualified concept. Manifold new duties have been imposed upon the sovereign State as a result of the progressive development of international law. Much of the modern international law movement vests States with the responsibility to adopt regulations, to monitor and secure compliance and exercise justice in order to achieve its implementation, whereas supranational global environmental governance has remained notoriously weak. This article examines this proposition by reference to the environmental and developmental role of states in three landmark multilateral treaties: The United Nations Law of the Sea Convention (1982), the Convention on the Conservation of Biological Diversity (1992) and the Paris Agreement on climate change (2015). They demonstrate that sovereignty serves as a key organisational principle for the realization of global values, such as environmental conservation and sustainable development.

Making Influence Visible: Innovating Ethnography at the Paris Climate Summit

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 38-60 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kimberly R. Marion Suiseeya ◽  
Laura Zanotti
Keyword(s):  
International Relations ◽  
Political Ecology ◽  
Indigenous Peoples ◽  
Environmental Governance ◽  
Politics Of Representation ◽  
Global Environmental Governance ◽  
Environmental Challenges ◽  
Global Environmental ◽  
Power And Influence

Although Indigenous Peoples make significant contributions to global environmental governance and were prominent actors at the 2015 Paris Climate Summit, COP21, they remain largely invisible in conventional, mainstream, and academic accounts of COP21. In this article, we adopt feminist collaborative event ethnography to draw attention to often marginalized and unrecognized actors and help make visible processes that are often invisible in the study of power and influence at sites of global environmental governance. Specifically, we integrate current approaches to power from international relations and political ecology scholarship to investigate how Indigenous Peoples, critical actors for solving global environmental challenges, access, navigate, and cultivate power at COP21 to shape global environmental governance. Through conceptual and methodological innovations that illuminate how Indigenous Peoples overcome structural and spatial barriers to engagement, this article demonstrates how attention to the politics of representation through pluralistic approaches to power can help expand the repertoire of possibilities for advancing global environmental governance.

State Sovereignty in the Planetary Management of Natural Resources

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Nico J. Schrijver
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
International Law ◽  
Environmental Governance ◽  
Biological Diversity ◽  
Environmental Conservation ◽  
Global Environmental Governance ◽  
Sovereign State ◽  
Progressive Development ◽  
Global Environmental ◽  
Global Values

Protagonists of global environmental governance often view the sovereign State as well as the principle of sovereignty as major stumbling blocks for effective environmental conservation and sustainable development. Some even herald the demise of the idea of the sovereign State. However, reality has it differently. Sovereignty is no longer an unqualified concept. Manifold new duties have been imposed upon the sovereign State as a result of the progressive development of international law. Much of the modern international law movement vests States with the responsibility to adopt regulations, to monitor and secure compliance and exercise justice in order to achieve its implementation, whereas supranational global environmental governance has remained notoriously weak. This article examines this proposition by reference to the environmental and developmental role of states in three landmark multilateral treaties: The United Nations Law of the Sea Convention (1982), the Convention on the Conservation of Biological Diversity (1992) and the Paris Agreement on climate change (2015). They demonstrate that sovereignty serves as a key organisational principle for the realization of global values, such as environmental conservation and sustainable development.

The Transformative Capability of Transparency in Global Environmental Governance

2018 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 130-150 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Ciplet ◽  
Kevin M. Adams ◽  
Romain Weikmans ◽  
J. Timmons Roberts
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Environmental Governance ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Political Conflict ◽  
Climate Finance ◽  
Global Environmental Governance ◽  
Climate Regime ◽  
Global Environmental ◽  
Governance Architecture

We develop and apply a new theoretical framework for assessing the transformative capability of transparency in environmental governance. Our framework suggests that as norms related to transparency are recognized and translated into accountability mechanisms, and as these mechanisms are complied with, effects cascade and substantially influence the ability of transparency to transform relationships of inequality. Utilizing the case of climate finance in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, we find that while a variety of norms underpinning transparency are recognized within the governance architecture, their translation into accountability mechanisms has been weak, and information disclosed by countries is often opaque. This suggests that a focus on enhanced transparency is unlikely to be sufficient for realizing a climate regime that is adequate and equitable. Moreover, transparency should be seen as a terrain of political conflict over the conditions of inequality, employed differently by various coalitions to benefit their respective interests.

A political ecology of data

2021 ◽  
pp. 251484862110435
Author(s):  
Eric Nost ◽  
Jenny Elaine Goldstein
Keyword(s):  
Political Ecology ◽  
Science And Technology Studies ◽  
Environmental Governance ◽  
Digital Technologies ◽  
Environmental Data ◽  
Global Environmental Governance ◽  
Special Issue ◽  
Global Environmental ◽  
Data Infrastructures ◽  
Dominant Representation

Conservationists, governments, and corporations see promise in digital technologies to provide holistic, rapid, and objective information to inform policy, shape investments, and monitor ecosystems. But it is increasingly clear that environmental data does more than simply offer a better view of the planet. This special issue makes a single overarching argument: that we cannot fully understand the current conjuncture in global environmental governance without understanding the platforms, devices, and institutions that comprise environmental data infrastructures. The papers draw together scholarship from political ecology and science and technology studies to demonstrate how data has become a significant site in which contemporary environmental politics are waged and socionatures are materialized. We address: (1) the contested practices of utilizing and maintaining data infrastructures; (2) the ways they are governed and the territorial statecraft they enable; (3) the socionatural materiality they arise within but also produce. The papers in this special issue show that, against its dominant representation, data is material, governed, practiced, and requires praxis. Political ecologists could adopt such an approach to make sense of the emerging ways in which data technologies shape environments and their politics.

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