Environmental protection

Supranational Organizations

Asia’s ecosystems and the clean air, water, food, disease management, climate regulation, economic livelihood, and natural beauty they provide, are fundamental to the health and prosperity of all Asians today and for generations to come.

UNDP, UNEP, OSCE, NATO, UNECE and REC have joined forces in the Environment and Security (ENVSEC) Initiative to offer countries their combined pool of expertise and resources.

The main role of the European Commission’s Environment Directorate-General (DG) is to initiate and define new environmental legislation and to ensure that agreed measures are put into practice in the EU Member States. The Environment DG is based in Brussels and has around 650 staff.

The EEA aims to support sustainable development and to help achieve significant and measurable improvement in Europe’s environment through the provision of timely, targeted, relevant and reliable information to policy making agents and the public.

The EU plays an important role in environmental policymaking. Environmental problems, such as air and water pollution, climate change and the decline in biodiversity, do not respect borders, so cooperation at EU level is necessary and well developed.

The IPCC was established to provide the decision-makers and others interested in climate change with an objective source of information about climate change.

The International Environment House (IEH) gathers under a common roof a range of United Nations and non-governmental organizations active in the field of environment and sustainable development.

Handbook for the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer

Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP)

The Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC) is an international organization created by Canada, Mexico and the United States under the North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation (NAAEC).

The United Nations Environment Programme mission is “to provide leadership and encourage partnership in caring for the environment by inspiring, informing and enabling nations and peoples to improve their quality of life without compromising that of the future generations.”

Treaties

The Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal is the most comprehensive global environmental agreement on hazardous and other wastes.

The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) resulted from the recognition that damage to biodiversity can only be effectively dealt with in a comprehensive manner, rather than through a variety of individual treaties dealing with specific species or habitats.

CITES is an international agreement between governments. Its aim is to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival.

The Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (also known as CMS or Bonn Convention) aims to conserve terrestrial, marine and avian migratory species throughout their range.

The Kyoto Protocol broke new ground by defining three innovative “flexibility mechanisms” to lower the overall costs of achieving its emissions targets. These mechanisms enable Parties to access cost-effective opportunities to reduce emissions or to remove carbon from the atmosphere in other countries. While the cost of limiting emissions varies considerably from region to region, the benefit for the atmosphere is the same, wherever the action is taken.

An intergovernmental treaty which provides the framework for national action and international cooperation for the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources.

A list of major U.S. federal laws pertaining to the environment.

United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in Countries Experiencing Serious Drought and/or Desertification, Particularly in Africa.

Most countries joined an international treaty — the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) — to begin to consider what can be done to reduce global warming and to cope with whatever temperature increases are inevitable.

Environmental Law

The Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) is a nonprofit organization working to use international law and institutions to protect the environment, promote human health, and ensure a just and sustainable society.

The Environmental Law Alliance Worldwide (ELAW) gives public interest lawyers and scientists the training and resources they need to help communities protect the environment through law.

The Environmental Law Institute provides information services, advice, publications, training courses, seminars, research programs and policy recommendations to engage and empower environmental leaders the world over. ELI’s audience is leading environmental professionals in government, industry, public interest groups and academia

Provides direct links to federal and state environmental laws and regulations, environmental laws of countries around the world,

The Journal of Environmental Law has become an authoritative source of informed analysis for all those who have any dealings in this vital field of legal study. The Journal exists primarily for academics and legal practitioners, but should also prove accessible for all other groups concerned with the environment, from scientists to planners.

Private Organizations

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