Is International Environmental Law Effective?

Abstract Chapter 13 examines the important question of whether international environmental law is effective in solving environmental problems. It begins by outlining different meanings of effectiveness—distinguishing between legal effectiveness, behavioral effectiveness, and problem-solving effectiveness—and explaining the different ways in which the effectiveness of international environmental regimes can be measured. The chapter then discusses the extent to which international environmental regimes have been effective, suggesting that while progress is being made, the problem-solving effectiveness of international environmental law is still limited. The chapter end by discussing factors that help explain why some agreements have been more effective than others, distinguishing between exogenous factors that are outside the control of treaty negotiators (such as the nature of the problem) and endogenous factors that can be addressed through better treaty design.