An overview of interlinkages approaches to environmental governance

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An overview of interlinkages approaches to
environmental governance

• W. Bradnee Chambers, UNU/IAS

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Overview

• What is Interlinkages
• Why Interlinkages
• Ecological and Institutional Factors
• History of Interlinkages
• Potential Benefits of Interlinkages
• The Challenge

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Definitions

• Interlinkages is an integrated approach to
  environmental decision making and management. Its
  objective is to identify and effectively use the
  synergies that exist in the natural environment,
  and to coordinate between international
  environmental agreements as well as other regimes
  in the three phases of international
  governance--Negotiation, Institutionalization and
  implementation

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Definitions

• Environmental Governance The sum of the many
  ways individuals and institutions, public and
  private, manage the global environment
  Commission on Global Environmental Governance
• Governance in not Government
• Certain novelties of environmental governance
• Varied Perceptions, strong inter-state-state-sub-s
  tate nexus, scientific intensive, NGO laden,
  complex interdependence, trade-offs are the key.

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Why Interlinkages? Ecological Factors
Water availability
Freshwater supply and demand
Food supply and demand
Water use and nutrient loss
Erosion andwater flow
Land transformation
Hydrologic CO2 and temperature changes
N, CH4, N20 emissions
Forest product supply and demand
Precipitation temperature
Climatechange
Habitat loss
Habitat loss
Loss and fragmentation of habitat
Loss of crop genetic diversity
Reduced resilience to change
Habitat change
Change in transpiration albedo
Biodiversityloss
Source Ayensu et al. 1999. Science
286685-686.
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Why Interlinkages? Institutional Factors

• Proliferation of organizations, treaties and
  actors.
• Separation of issues which are highly
  inter-related
• Worsening environmental degradation impression of
  inadequate institutional response
• Effectiveness/Efficiency
• Procedural and Management burden-relief
• Opportunity to strengthen the implementation of
  MEAs and the connection between local, regional
  and global priorities
• Greater opportunities for financing
• Strengthen international-national law nexus

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History of Interlinkages

• Tracing its Roots
• Conflict of laws
• International Trade
• Ecosystems Approach
• UN and IGO Reforms bend on Increasing
  Institutional efficiency and cost-effectiveness

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Recent History of Interlinkages

• 1997 UN Secretary General Report Renewing the
  United Nations
• 1998 World Bank, UNEP, NASA Scientific Report
  Protecting our Planet Securing Our Future.
• 1998 UN Task Force on Environment and Human
  Settlements

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Recent History of Interlinkages

• 1999 First International Conference Synergies and
  Coordination between MEAS
• Provided review all Interlinkages Activities
• Brought together leading experts and most UN
  agencies and MEA Secretariats
• Focused on 5 key areas (scientific mechanisms,
  finance, issue management, information
  harmonization and institutions)
• Produced Interlinkages Report

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Recent History of Interlinkages

• 2000 Malmo Declaration
• 2000-2002 UNEP Governing Council Decision 21/21
  and Establishment of Global Ministerial
  Environment Forum and IEG Process
• WSSD No results

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Benefits From Interlinkages?

• Meeting MEA Objectives
• Provide greater consistency and coherence between
  MEA (standardized interpretation, definitions and
  indicators)
• Solving Related Problems outside and MEAS Mandate
  (ex bush meat)

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Benefits From Interlinkages?

• Meeting Forgotten MEA Supporting Provisions
  These provisions include non-binding techniques
  for the achievement of the Treaty objectives
  include capacity building programmes, financial
  assistance clauses and technology transfer
  provisions
• Joint programmes are an effective means of
  achieving these goals
• National architectures improving focal point
  coordination
• Scientific Coordination international level

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Benefits From Interlinkages?

• Robustness mechanisms that allow a treaty to take
  on changes, learn and adapt
• interlinkages can build more support with
  governments and the public for the recipient
  treaty (ex. marine pollution in the North East
  Atlantic)
• Secondly, interlinkages can inspire recipient
  treaties to learn through best practices in other
  treaties (Kyoto and Montreal Protocols, CBD and
  International Treaty) But Effects can also be
  negative (stalling tactic)

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Benefits From Interlinkages?

• Increasing Compliance
• Relieving procedural burdens such as reporting
  requirements
• Harmonized custom codes
• Reduce possibility of dispute settlement
  forum-shopping
• Sanctions in other treaties (ex. trade related)
• Common dispute settlement (specialized)

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Benefits From Interlinkages?

• Increasing Financing
• common financial arrangements that work to
  achieve common objectives in more than one treaty
  
• Larger conventions can assist smaller conventions
  without financial mechanisms
• Cost efficiency (joint meetings)
• Avoid costly negative impacts with other
  conventions (CBD-Kyoto Protocol, Montreal

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How to Interlink

• Clustering
• What is it?
• grouping a number of international environmental
  regimes together so as to make them more
  efficient and effective Molke
• Clustering could be a strong initial step to IEG
  based reform based the following approaches
  issue, functions, bioregions, other approaches

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Other Possibilities

• New Regional Environment Organizations (or
  strengthen UN Social and economic councils,
  better coordination with existing regional
  organizations
• WEO
• WEC
• Trusteeship Council
• Expand Mandate of UNSC
• ECOSCO
• G8

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The Challenge

• Practical Modalities
• We need case studies, best practices
• Improving Scientific understanding of ecosystem
  interlinkages
• Improving better understanding of effective
  policy interventions on ecosystems
• Timing

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THANK YOU