Search Results

Maurice Strong organised two Earth summits. The first was held in Stockholm in 1972 and resulted in the creation of the United Nations Environment Programme, which, after the summit, Strong headed. The second was held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. These summits promoted the principle that development did not have to be sacrificed to protect the environment. Under the rubric of sustainable development, Strong built support for the environmental agenda among developing and developed countries. Unwilling to rely on governments alone, Strong welcomed the support of environmental nongovernment organisations, which were willing partners. Before Rio, however, Strong saw that the business community was not engaged. To address this problem, he helped industry leaders create the Business Council for Sustainable Development. Since Rio, international environmental rules and norms have become an important element of environmental governance. The other feature is the popularity of public-private partnerships to address environmental problems. This has led to criticism that the agenda is being dominated by corporate environmentalism, based on voluntary action, deregulation, free markets and trade.

The problem of transboundary transport of toxic and dangerous wastes and their disposal has become a major environmental issue acknowledged by the international community. Various international organizations initiated the elaboration of international legal instruments to address this issue. Among these legal instruments, the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal, negotiated under the auspices of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), is the first to attempt comprehensive regulation of transboundary movements and the disposal of hazardous waste on a global scale.

This chapter explores the transatlantic environmental relationship and tries to identify the underlying causes of the current strains. More broadly, it assesses the dispute-settlement capacities of the international environmental regime, including both the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the numerous Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs), and finds them severely wanting. Because a number of the EU–US environmental disputes have spilled over or are threatening to spill over into the trade regime, the chapter also examines the WTO as an environmental dispute-resolution mechanism – and finds it wanting as well. This analysis leads to the conclusion that a stronger system of international environmental governance is needed to accommodate the complexity of environmental challenges; to strengthen intergovernmental, transgovernmental, and transnational relationships; and to provide a more robust structure of checks and balances in support of systematic and effective international environmental decision making and action. The chapter closes with some thoughts on elements of a ‘strengthening’ agenda and what role the Transatlantic Partnership might play in bringing about the necessary reforms.

This chapter deals with the restructuring of international regimes for global sustainable development. It examines the idea of a ‘supra-nation-state’ entity, such as the World Environment Organization, against the backdrop of existing institutions, namely, the United Nations Environment Programme and Global Environmental Facility. It then argues that the real priority is to have a global governance system devoid of instrumentalism. Such organizations, while focusing on global public goods, should place greater emphasis on national and local aspirations as well as identities to ensure that everyone understands the importance of conserving the global commons. The prevailing global issues such as climate change are getting securitized. The goal of securitization of climate change and other global environmental problems is to ‘normalize’ behaviour and response strategies that give rise to instrumentalism and control.

U.N. agencies have worked relentlessly to define states obligations to respect, protect, and fulfill the economic and social human rights articulated in international law. Other international institutions have worked resolutely to define appropriate state policies for economic growth and development. In his chapter, Felice argues for a clear articulation of the nexus between these legal and economic approaches to economic and social human rights fulfillment. Helpful to such an articulation is an expanded conceptualization of “global public goods.” Through an examination of both the human “right to health” and the “right to a healthy environment,” Felice demonstrates the ways in which public policy development within international organizations can be enhanced through a lens of global public goods.

The Pleistocene Epoch, often referred to as the Ice Age, lasted from approximately 2.6 million to 11,700 years ago. The last major ice advance began about 110,000 years ago, and the most recent episode of maximum ice coverage, the Last Glacial Maximum, began about 26,500 years ago and ended approximately 19,000 years ago. Thereafter, glacier retreat began, largely ending by about 11,700 years ago. That marked the beginning of the Holocene interglacial geologic epoch, which continues to the present. During the last glacial period, sea level was much lower because so much water was locked up in ice sheets, largely at the poles. This lowering of the sea level exposed the margins of the continents (the continental shelves) around the world. When the Ice Age ended, sea level started to rise during the deglacial period, a process that continued into the Holocene. Deltaic regions received meltwaters from the thawing glaciers, along with glacier- derived sediments. Of particular note in the late Holocene is a climate episode called the Medieval Warm Period, originally identified by the English botanist Hubert Lamb. The Medieval Warm Period was a time of warm climate in the North Atlantic region and may have also impacted other areas around the world. It lasted from about the years 950 to 1250. Later in this chapter, I will discuss this climate anomaly, along with something called the “Hockey Stick” debate, which relates to exceptional warming during recent centuries of the Holocene (i.e., global warming). In any case, all modern and paleodeltas formed during periods of peak sea level in the Holocene. These new deltas had fertile soils that were constantly irrigated by the flow of fresh water, which promoted early settlement by humans. So, the Holocene started near the end of the retreat of the Pleistocene glaciers, and human civilizations arose entirely in the Holocene Epoch. To view the Holocene, simply look around you today. In this chapter, I will explore the natural and human-induced causes of global climate change and how they impact deltaic regions.

This chapter presents the main international platforms and conventions significant to the preservation of biodiversity and ecosystem services. It discusses the importance of other agreements, exploring the use and limitations of NDVI data in supporting current environmental policies and in informing future policies as well. It also explains that the NDVI is often the only option in providing long-term, free, and accessible data that is important in monitoring biodiversity and ecosystem services.