Papers by Sebastian Oberthür
Journal of European Integration, 2011
This article introduces the analytical framework of the collection on the performance of the EU i... more This article introduces the analytical framework of the collection on the performance of the EU in international institutions and summarizes its main findings. We focus on the role of the EU in the decision-making within international organizations and regimes as a major locus of global governance. We suggest unpacking the concept of EU performance into four core elements: effectiveness (goal
The EU in Turbulence:
What are the Implications for EU
Climate and Energy Policy?
Views from Memb... more The EU in Turbulence:
What are the Implications for EU
Climate and Energy Policy?
Views from Member States
Sebastian Oberthür
Benjamin Görlach
Istvan Bart
Krzysztof Księżopolski
Pedro Barata
Martin Nesbit
October 2016
The Paris Agreement on climate change adopted in December 2015 reflects EU policy objectives to l... more The Paris Agreement on climate change adopted in December 2015 reflects EU policy objectives to large extent. To find an explanation, we develop a general framework that incorporates both structural and actor-/process-related factors, paying particular attention to negotiation strategy and diplomacy. On this basis, we argue that the high level of EU goal achievement in Paris resulted from the interplay of (1) evolving international structures, (2) effective EU strategy fitting these structures and domestic politics, and (3) favourable situational circumstances. While the EU arguably pushed others to their limits, downscaled ambitions also meant that it accepted a Paris Agreement that is insufficient by itself and needs to be strengthened quickly. The application of our conceptual framework to the Paris Agreement demonstrates its added value and that it can build the basis of a fresh programme of work comparing the EU’s performance in international institutions/negotiations across time and policy fields.
Journal of European Integration, 2011
... Side payments to the new EU Member States in the ETS part of the package facilitated acceptan... more ... Side payments to the new EU Member States in the ETS part of the package facilitated acceptance of the emission targets proposed by the Commission. 17 Page 19. ... In the next chapter, Tom Howes focuses on the EU's new Renewable Energy Directive. ...
… Agreements: Politics, Law and …, 2001
This paper reviews the role of internal European Union (EU) policies and measures in implementing... more This paper reviews the role of internal European Union (EU) policies and measures in implementing the target for greenhouse gas mitigation in the Kyoto Protocol. It starts with a discussion of the EU Burden Sharing Agreement, which distributes the target between Member States. This leads to a review of the appropriate level of implementation of policies, i.e. at the EU level or Member State level. There is a role for the flexible mechanisms of the Protocol, particularly emission permit trading, in complementing Member State policies at the EU level. The implementation is to be done against the background of three major factors which may have an important bearing on the policies:
Science (New York, N.Y.), Jan 16, 2012
Science assessments indicate that human activities are moving several of Earth’s sub-systems outs... more Science assessments indicate that human activities are moving several of Earth’s sub-systems outside the range of natural variability typical for the previous 500,000 years. Human societies must now change course and steer away from critical tipping points in the Earth system that might lead to rapid and irreversible change. This requires fundamental reorientation and restructuring of national and international institutions toward more effective Earth system governance and planetary stewardship. We propose building blocks of such a new institutional framework, based on a comprehensive assessment by the Earth System Governance Project, a 10-year social science–based research program under the auspices of the International Human Dimensions Programme on Global Environmental Change.
Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, 2012
The current institutional framework for sustainable development is by far not strong enough to br... more The current institutional framework for sustainable development is by far not strong enough to bring about the swift transformative progress that is needed. This article contends that incrementalism—the main approach since the 1972 Stockholm Conference—will not suffice to bring about societal change at the level and speed needed to mitigate and adapt to earth system transformation. Instead, the article argues
The importance of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in international environmental co-operati... more The importance of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in international environmental co-operation has increased tremendously over the last decades. Accordingly, the participation of non-governmental actors has become a prominent subject for research, resulting in a dynamically growing body of literature on the subject, especially in the legal and social sciences. However, limited effort has been spent at systematically analysing the relationship between the legal basis and the practical influence of NGOs in different areas of international environmental co-operation (broadly understood). Against this backdrop, this study first laid a conceptual basis by reviewing existing definitions of NGOs and developing an own working definition, elaborating the functions NGOs perform in international environmental policy-making and examining various criteria that can serve to distinguish different types of NGOs (I). It then analysed in more detail the legal basis and the practice of NGO participation in Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs), economic institutions, and other relevant international institutions and identified constraints of the role of NGOs. Part of this analysis was also an appraisal of the question to what extent NGO participation in international institutions can be considered legitimate against the background of the state of development of related principles of international law (II). Finally, the study identified and discussed a number of options for enhancing the role of NGOs in international environmental co-operation (III). The full study also contains detailed case studies on the role of NGOs in two environmental treaty systems (climate change and trade in endangered species) and two economic institutions (International Organisation for Standardization, ISO; and the World Bank). A total of close to 40 representatives of governments and different NGO constituencies as well as secretariat staff were interviewed in undertaking these case studies. 17.
This article compares the degree to which the European Union (EU) managed to play a leadership ro... more This article compares the degree to which the European Union (EU) managed to play a leadership role at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Copenhagen negotiations in December 2009 and the Cancun negotiations in December 2010. Our notion of leadership is composed of (a) direction (i.e. the degree to which an actor pushes towards a recognized collective purpose), and (b) goal-attainment (which is explained by three factors: coherence, the opportunity structure, and politicisation). The outcomes of the Copenhagen negotiations have been rather disappointing for the EU in terms of its substantial ambitions and leadership expectations. At Cancun, the Union had a firmer hold on the outcomes, but its goals have also been less ambitious compared to the Copenhagen negotiations.
JCMS Journal of Common Market Studies
This article examines why the European Union (EU) is recognized as a relevant actor in some inter... more This article examines why the European Union (EU) is recognized as a relevant actor in some international institutions, but not in others. Drawing on theories of international institutions and corporate action, it develops a theoretical approach toward EU actorness that demonstrates under which conditions third parties gain an interest in recognizing this actor as a relevant party to international institutions and how the EU can become an actor in its own right. The EU is expected to be recognized as a relevant actor in an international institution if it has acquired action capability in the relevant governance area, while formal status plays an inferior role. This hypothesis is subsequently assessed for six international institutions that vary regarding the degree of EU action capability and the EU's formal status, including the WTO and IMF, FAO and WHO as well as two international environmental regimes. Empirical results confirm the fruitfulness of the theoretical approach.
Principal Findings, Applications, and Research Frontiers, 2008
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Papers by Sebastian Oberthür
What are the Implications for EU
Climate and Energy Policy?
Views from Member States
Sebastian Oberthür
Benjamin Görlach
Istvan Bart
Krzysztof Księżopolski
Pedro Barata
Martin Nesbit
October 2016
What are the Implications for EU
Climate and Energy Policy?
Views from Member States
Sebastian Oberthür
Benjamin Görlach
Istvan Bart
Krzysztof Księżopolski
Pedro Barata
Martin Nesbit
October 2016