Editorial
by
Professor Evangelos Raftopoulos,
Editor and Director of MEPIELAN Centre,
Panteion University of Athens, Greece
Welcome to the new edition of
MEPIELAN E-Bulletin.
We are
gratified that the previous editions have been so well received by many
readers. Nearly a year after the MEPIELAN E-Bulletin’s launch, there
have been over 5.500 visits to the Bulletin’s website from 133 countries
worldwide. Once more, I wish to express my gratitude and thanks to all
those who have been instrumental in the success of this Bulletin.
Each
time we are striving to offer contributions from a variety of
perspectives and approaches. Commited to serve the vision of this
Bulletin, we provide a dynamic forum for inter-disciplinary knowledge
and discussion, engaging international scholars, enlightened policy
makers and promising young researchers in addressing critical
environmental issues from the standpoint of promoting and developing
international common interest. This edition is featured by several new
articles, along with the steady stream of thematic news and the
presentation of selected new, knowledge-advancing books. A Guest Article
written by
Peter M. Haas, Professor of Political Science,
University of Massachusetts Amherst, offers an insightful and critical
view of the effort of the next global environmental conference “Rio Plus
20” to accelerate the shift to a “green economy” and institutional
reform arrangements, “a seriously disjoined agenda” as he calls it,
underlining their deficiencies in view of the indispensable need for
building the social capacity for sustainable development and for
broadening the discussion for institutional reform extending it beyond
the monotonous UN restructuring.
Three Insight Articles also feature this edition:
Valerie Brachya,
Director of the Environmental Policy Center, Jerusalem Institute for
Israel Research, drawing upon her rich experience and using three
examples of transgovernmentalism for management of environmental issues
(MAP, OECD and EU-ENP), acutely proposes that effective environmental
governance requires reform of environmental performance that can be
attained not “through top down or bottom up processes, or a combination
of both”, but through a more horizontal approach, engaging the
environmental professional epistemic community across the participating
countries and developing links between the environmental and economic
community within a country.
Meinhard Doelle Associate Professor
of Environmental Law, Associate Director, Marine & Environmental Law
Institute, Schulich School of Law, Dalhousie University, skillfully
presents an overview of the complexities, dynamics and the various
stages of the negotiation process shaping the future UN Climate Change
regime, focusing on the legal, technical and policy complications of the
separate tracks of this process (the Kyoto track and the UNFCC track)
and highlighting the key issues at stake.
Ms. Ekaterini Lygkoni,
Environmentalist, provides an interesting presentation of the success
story of Shetland Islands, which set a world example of effective
sustainable development governance in the management of their oil and
gas resources for the benefit of their local community, and she analyzes
the legal, institutional and policy factors and instruments that
determine and affect the implementation of this governance process.
Finally, a Critical Forum Article, written by
Alexandros Kailis, a
Ph. D. Candidate and a Researcher at the MEPIELAN Centre, usefully and
perceptively points to the imperative need for education and
continuously training of negotiators engaged in all phases and aspects
of international environmental negotiation, underlining the multifaceted
complexities embedded in this process, and provides, in this context,
an interesting presentation of two Guides for negotiators of
international environmental agreements.
MEPIELAN E-Bulletin is a
dynamic electronic newsletter of MEPIELAN Centre, Panteion University of
Athens, Greece. It features guest articles, insights articles,
critical forum textual contributions and reflections, specially selected
documents and cases, book reviews as well as news on thematic topics of
direct interest of MEPIELAN Centre, presented in a clear, insightful
and attractive way whilst shedding light on topical issues of
environmental law, governance and policy significance. Content bridges
theory and practice perspectives of international law, international
environmental law, sustainable development, and international
negotiating process, and includes notifications of MEPIELAN cooperation
updates and news. The Bulletin is an addition to our communication
instruments which include an edited Series, the MEPIELAN Studies in
International Environmental Law and Negotiation.
It is hoped
that its content will contribute to a scholarly debate on important
issues of current interest, providing an independent, open access forum
for the promotion of innovative ideas and enlightened critical views of
distinguished authors. The Bulletin further aims at offering a
knowledge- and information-sharing platform for MEPIELAN audience,
striving to serve a modern thinking and questing community, in the hope
that it will stimulate constructive discussions on the issues
presented. The audience includes academics, researchers, university
students, international lawyers, officials and personnel of
international organizations and institutional arrangements, heads and
personnel of national authorities and administration at all levels
(national, regional and local), members of Non-Governmental
Organizations, as well as the relevant private sector.
My deepest
appreciation goes to the authors of the articles and other
contributions to this edition, to the members of the editorial team, and
to our worldwide audience sharing with us the ideas and message of this
Bulletin, who unfailingly keep up its momentum
against the odds.