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Global Environmental Governance

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Account for the growing importance of global civil society in global environmental politics. Is this phenomenon synonymous with global environmental governance?

The globalization phenomenon has altered many facets of the contemporary world. Areas of governance such as states’ policy making, the way companies do business, and how information is shared have all been affected by the increasingly globalized world. With all of these changes occurring at a rapid pace, state sovereignty has been challenged by a plethora of other actors who now can claim some form of governance in the global system. In the modern world sources of authority such as international governmental organizations, non-governmental organizations, social movements, and multinational corporations all have joined the state in establishing governance on a wide array of issues: “Activist groups, business associations and policy research institutes now provide research and policy advise, monitor the commitments of states, inform governments and the public about the actions of their own diplomats and those of negotiation partners, and give diplomats at international meetings direct feedback (Betsill 243). In particular, one such area of global governance where there is a question of governmental authority can be seen in global environmental politics. Over the last few decades, the role of non-state actors in global governance has increased as citizens have taken their own initiatives to instigate environmental reforms: “Carefully orchestrated campaigns of environmentalists have proved to be able to change foreign policy of powerful nation-states…or to initiate global rules, such as the global campaign on banning anti-personnel landmines (Betsill 243-44). This essay will aim to assess the growing influence of global civil society as it relates to the governance of global environmental politics by

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