Lecture 25 february 2013

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The Organization of Global Environmental Governance

Gunilla Reischl, 25 February 2013© Gunilla Reischl 2013

Outline of the lecture

• Conceptual exercise• Foundations of global governance• Practice and functions of GEG/GEP

© Gunilla Reischl 2013

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Global governance• Climate change, global terrorism, pandemics, effects of higher food

and oil prices, and financial crises are example of problems that:

- require cooperation of some sort among states and non state actors

- some of them demand new international mechanisms for monitoring or the negotiation of new rules

- most of them require improved means for securing compliance

• In short, there is a wide variety of international policy problems that require governance


Defining global governance• Global governance defined in general terms as “an

order that lacks a centralized authority with the capacity to enforce decisions on a global scale” (Rosenau 1992b: 7).

= the order that exists for the management of interdependence in the absence of a global state/world government.

• This definition is very broad and has relatively little to say about who or what makes decisions, or precisely how enforcement takes place.


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Defining global governance• ”The sum of the many ways individuals and

institutions, public and private, manage their common affairs. It is a continuing process through which conflicting or diverse interests may be accommodated and cooperative action may be taken. It includes formal … as well as informal arrangements that people and institutions have agreed to or perceive to be in their interest” (Commission on Global Governance 1995: 2)


To summarize…• Global complex problems require cooperation of

some sort among governments and non state actors

• Global governance: the network of international agreements and organizations by which states and other actors manage global, shared problems

• The norms, laws, rules, expectations and structures established to guide behaviour according to a set of public purposes


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Pieces of global governance• The pieces of global governance are the cooperative problem-solving

arrangements and activities that states and other actors have put into place to deal with various issues and problems. E.g. :

• International structures and mechanisms• International rules and laws • International norms or soft law• International regimes • Ad hoc groups, global conferences• Private and hybrid public-private governance


International institutions• Though a range of usages exists, most scholars have

come to regard international institutions as sets of rules meant to govern international behavior.

• Rules are often conceived as statements that forbid, require, or permit particular kinds of actions (Ostrom1990:139).

• A useful definition: ‘sets of rules that stipulate the ways in which states should cooperate and compete with each other’ (Mearsheimer 1994/95) (ironically a neorealist who doesn’t believe that institutions are effective)


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International Regimes

• Response to the demand of governance in a specific issue area

• Institutional frameworks with formal rules and informal practices

• Shape and constrain actors behaviour


International Regimes: definition

• International regimes can be defined as sets of implicit or explicit principles, norms, rules, and decision-making procedures around which actors’ expectations converge in a given area of international relations. (Krasner, 1983, p2)


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Non-regimes• One debate has concerned if an issue area is a regime or

not. This discussion has been particular prominent in the context of environmental issues.

• The concept of ‘non-regimes’ has emerged:

• “A public policy arena characterized by the absence of an interstate policy agreement where states have either tried or failed to create one, or when governments have not even initiated negotiations”(Dimitrov, 2006: 9).

• Example Deforestation and coral reefes


International organisations

• International bureaucratic structures connected to norm and rule systems

• Characterized by: permanent headquarter, secretariat, members, budget


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Regimes, organisations: international institutions

• International institution: Though a range of usages exists, most scholars have come to regard international institutions as sets of rules (explicit and/or implicit)meant to govern international behavior.

• International regime: describes principles, norms, rules and decision-making procedures within an issue area.

• International organization: international bureaucratic structures connected to norm and rule systems: characterized by: permanent headquarter, secretariat, members, budget.

Within international politics the term international institution increasingly is used as an umbrella term for all forms of institutionalized cooperation at international level


2. Foundations of GEG


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The emergence of the environment as an issue area

• International environmental issues have become part of the public agenda in the past four decades

• Gradual expansion of scientific knowledge enabled to verify environmental degradation

• The rise of environment-oriented civil society associations


The emergence of the environment as an issue area

• From independent problems to connected, global problems

• From bilateral cooperation to global cooperation, increased number and types of actors

• From apolitical issue to an acknowledged issue on the international political agenda


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The UN Framework

• UN has played an important role in the international response of environmental problems:

• environmental problems have become part of the international political agenda,

• have draw attention to environmental problems and our knowledge about the environment has increased.


The UN Framework• Problems with participation and implementation, the

lowest common denominator:

• The structure of the system is designed after states and does not fully take other actors into account.

• Sovereign states is a problem for the pursuit of global environmental politics

• The state that have the least interest in achieving an agreement sets the agenda


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Global conferences (summits)Stockholm 1972

UN Conference on the Human

Environment

•Tension between environment and development –developing countries viewed it as a problem for the developed countries

•Principle of national sovereignty over natural resources

•Creation of UNEP

•’Awareness-raising’

Rio de Janeiro 1992UN Conference on Environment and

Development

• End of Cold war –’window of opportunity’

• Environment and development. Developing countries saw opportunities for ODA

• Political success!

• Agenda 21 – ’To do list’

Johannesburg 2002World Summit on

Sustainable Development

•Follow up of Rio

•Marked by 11 September – war on terrorism

•Focus on social development -’poverty eradication’

•Implementation

Rio de Janeiro 2012UN Conference on

Sustainable Development

Green economy

Institutional framework


Global Environmental Politics

Main determinants of policy:

– Scientific knowledge– Finance– Veto Power and Coalitions– Trade– Economic power


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3. The practice of GEP/GEG


Global environmental politics

• Treaties• Actors and coalitions • Decision-making: negotiations


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Climate change: UNFCCC

• Initiative: World Meteorological Organization and United Nations Environmental Programme conference in 1985, growing consensus of climate change as a reality

• Framework convention and protocol

• Conference of the Parties (CoP), last year in Doha, this year CoP 19 in November in Warsaw

• Secretariat in Bonn

• Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change


Actors in global environmental governance

• States: continue to be key actors in global governance, states alone have sovereignty, they create IGOs and set their mandates, they create international law

• Intergovernmental organizations: have resources, play important roles in analyzing information, prompt action, set the agenda, limit ability to enforce decisions

• Non-state actors

• Experts: epistemic communities


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Environmental organizationsSome were created specifically to address environmental problems, e.g.:

• United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP)• Global Environmental Facility (GEF)• Commission of Sustainable Development (CSD)

Some were originally tasked with development and trade but have been pressured to respond to environmental issues, e.g.:

• World Bank (WB)• World Trade Organization (WTO)


Non Governmental Organizations

• Important role• Diverse approaches, goals, ideological

orientation (status quo, oppose change, radical change)

• Serve as critics, able to take critical positions• High credibility – not driven by state interests• Experts, pushing the agenda• Work often through IGOs• Influence states directly, lobbyism,

information of policy options


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Epistemic communities • “Network of individuals or groups with an

authoritative claim to policy relevant knowledge in their domain of expertise” (Adler 1992)

• Expose problems and consult with governments about the best way to proceed

• Vital role: policy makers turn to them under conditions of uncertainty

• Scientists in various specialized fields form e.c. for different issues


Actor strategies

• States: coalitions

• NGOs: networksOrganization of NGOs and sub-national actors, self-organization. Important for implementation , innovative mechanisms such as benchmarking


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Negotiations• Negotiations are a mode of decision-making, or

management tools in international politics

• Meaning that negotiations are used to identify common interests, bring parties closer together and work out acceptable solutions to a variety of issues

• Every negotiation has its own characteristics depending on which area it concerns.

• The characteristics relate to the issues being discussed, the actors and the solution or outcome of a negotiation.


A negotiation process

Conference of the Parties (CoP)

Generally once a year

EU-coordination on spot. EU speaks with one voice

EU-coordinationMeetings in Brussels Formation of a common EU position.

Swedish preparationWithin the government offices with actors concerned. Formulation of a Swedish position

Intersessional meetings

Technical/scientific meetings


Documents

Lecture 25 february 2013