Glossary

 "Compliance": an act in accordance with, and in fulfillment of, measures that have been adopted. It has two dimensions - at the international level and at the national level. The International level refers to measures taken by the Parties to comply with the obligations of the convention. The national level refers to actions taken by individuals or other bodies or legal persons (e.g., government bodies, corporate bodies, non-governmental organizations) to comply with domestic legislation.

 "Domestication": .It means incorporation of the provisions of the convention, or the main ones, into the national legal system - to facilitate its regular application through the ordinary motions of the established constitutional machinery. As these provisions then form part of the ordinary law of the land, there will be a constitutional duty to apply it through the executive organ, and it will be subject to enforcement through the regular judicial process, in a proper case.

 "Enforcement": means the formal response of a state's procedures and institutions to a finding of non-compliance or to encourage compliance.

 "Hard law": law duly created through the recognized procedure of law-making in international law, such as a treaty adopted by a meeting of plenipotentiaries, ratified and has entered into force. Such law carries binding obligations for the Parties and is recognized as such before international tribunals.

 "Implementation": generic term covering all the measures taken by governments to fulfil their obligations under a relevant treaty. This includes enacting national legislation, adopting particular policies, formulating particular programmes, etc.

 "Range states": states affected by the natural movements of biological species that are the subject of protection or conservation under treaty law. Such movement is likely to be through shared medium, such as an expansive stretch of water, a continuous dense forest, or air. The affected states have an interest in the relevant treaties and are thus likely to be signatories and ultimately Parties. The success of such treaties depends on countries that are directly affected bearing obligations to do certain things in the cause of conservation, etc.

 "Soft law": used as a counterpart to "hard law" in international relations. It refers to the more informal stages in the conception of rules of international law, when these have not yet crystallized; or to emerging bilateral or multilateral understanding or common positions between or among states, that have not yet become mandatory even though they point towards more or less accepted usage's. Typically soft law takes the form of declarations, resolutions, guidelines, action plans, etc., and, where it fills an important gap in international practice, it later crystallizes into a treaty, i.e., hard law. Compliance with soft law generally indicates acceptance of certain practices, and thus sets the stage for consolidation in hard law to regulate the matter on a more assured basis.