The United Nations has set in motion a process to discuss and potentially reach agreement on a Global Pact for the Environment. This book informs those discussions, providing a deep dive into the challenges that characterize international environmental law today as well as the necessary background on the past five decades during which these frameworks were created. The book also describes contemporary negotiations about how, and even whether, to clarify and strengthen the norms that guide us today. By providing a clear picture of the competing trajectories of the current state of the law and our environment, this book equips readers with the knowledge and confidence to shape the future evolution of international environmental law.
“Maria Antonia Tigre has produced the definitive study of what would be the fi rst, legally binding, global charter for the protection of the environment, tracing its full history, from its origins in France’s premier legal think tank, to the present, and even into the future as she outlines likely steps that need to be taken toward 2022. She methodically and painstakingly details the development of drafts and the arguments, pro and con, for the adoption of a Global Pact for the Environment, as she maps the work of the hundreds of people who have participated in this monumental endeavor. This book is essential reading not only for those seeking to understand this effort, but for anyone interested in the complexities and challenges of lawmaking at the international level.”
—Erin Daly Director, Global Network for Human Rights and the Environment
“Maria Antonia Tigre has created a much-needed resource for all of us working toward a Global Pact for the Environment.”
—Yann Aguila Environmental Law Commission Chair, Club des Juristes
“The development of the Global Pact for the Environment represents the most important single event in the formation of international environmental law since the Rio Declaration in 1992. The debates over the content and strategy of the Global Pact raise questions over what soft law, principles, and sustainable development can mean (and should mean) in the 21st century. Maria Antonia Tigre’s deep and informed analysis provides an invaluable history and assessment of this important work in progress.”
—James Salzman Donald Bren Distinguished Professor of Law, UCLA Law School Co-author, International Environmental Law and Policy