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Globalization – in all its forms – offers people everywhere opportunities for prosperity and development. Globalization is usually thought of as an economic phenomenon of global movements of capital and trade. However there are environmental dimensions of globalization that are equally important both for the future of the life support system of the planet and for their impacts on human society. One challenge in a globalizing society is to empower people and institutions to respond effectively to their local environmental situations, wherever they are, while maintaining at the same time a global perspective on their environmental impacts.
Over the last several decades international environmental law has undergone major changes and rapid development. Globalization has been a major driving force behind such change combined with development, population growth and trade liberalization which have impacted the environment in one form or other. These impacts have required that the progressive development of environmental law take place in tandem with economic, institutional or human rights law.
The Division of Environmental Law and Conventions (DELC) works towards ensuring that the effects of globalization are addressed properly through environmental law and MEAs. Through partnerships with the international legal community, DELC ensures that the implementation of MEAs and the future development environmental law be guided by full understanding of the opportunities and challenges that globalization present.
In order to address these challenges, the activities of DELC, commencing in 2007, will be marked by new and strengthened activities in the following areas:
- Clustered-based approaches to national implementation of MEAs;
- Legal dimensions of equity, distribution and property rights of ecosystem services;
- Liability and redress and the link with ecosystem service valuation as a basis for compensation;
- Globalization and fragmentation of environmental law;
- Coordinated and synergetic implementation of MEAs; and
- Capacity building for national stakeholders on MEA negotiation, effective implementation and enforcement.
Tackling the growing number of complex emerging environmental issues requires innovative tools and approaches, as well as concerted efforts among stakeholders. DELC will continue to serve as the catalyst as it relates to environmental law and MEAs with the overall aim of achieving the internationally agreed sustainable development objectives
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Bakary Kante
Director, Division of Environmental Law and Conventions
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