As understanding of global environmental degradation and the
transboundary effects of pollution grew throughout the 1990s,
IGCC initiated a research program in international environmental policy to
respond to the need for greater scholarly and policy attention to these issues.
The IGCC research program on the environment generally falls into these main
categories:
Global environment issues such as biodiversity, ozone depletion, and protection
of rainforests. IGCC helped create a UC-systemwide program on global climate
change to bring objective scientific and technical expertise to the United
Nations climate change negotiations.
Transboundary environmental issues such as pollution control, water allocation,
control of straddling oil fields, wildlife conservation, and protection of shared resources such as fisheries.
Issues involving the interplay between environmental/health concerns and
trade agreements and the role of these concerns in determining international
lending practices.
Projects currently in development focus on coastal water quality management
in Southeast Asia, conservation of biological diversity through forest managment
in Malaysia, and illegal harvest and trade in tropical timber.
Past IGCC projects in International Environmental Policy
Climate Science and Policy
In 1998, IGCC initiated a state-wide research program on global climate change to bring objective scientific
and technical expertise to the United Nations climate change negotiations. The first phase of the project sent a delegation
of eminent climate change scientists to the fourth meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP-4) of the United Nations
Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) held in Buenos Aires, Argentina, November 2–13, 1998.
The UC Revelle Program on Climate Science and Policy (UCRP) was established
in January 2000 as a joint project between IGCC, the Scripps Institution
of Oceanography (SIO), and the School of International Relations
and Pacific Studies (IR/PS) at UC san Diego.
The UC Revelle Program (UCRP) was designed to improve communication and enhance
the impact of natural and social science on the issue of global climate change.
Water and Food Security in the Middle East
To complement its military focus, IGCC also researches ways to meet basic
economic needs of the Middle East and North Africa. In 1996, IGCC began the
project "Water and Food Security in the Middle East" to examine
how meeting fundamental resource requirements is crucial to the peace process. Building on this project, "Environmental Diplomacy in the Middle
East" (December
1998, Washington, D.C.) took stock of past, present, and possible future
approaches for resolving regional water and environmental problems.
Middle East Environmental Diplomacy
Expanding on IGCC's project on water and food security in the Middle East,
the conference "Environmental Diplomacy in the Middle East: Past Efforts,
Present Dilemmas and Future Options." was held in Washington, D.C.,
on 15 December 1998. The conference had three objectives: (1) to examine
past environmental diplomatic efforts in the Middle East, (2) to draw implications
for future regional and global environmental policy, and (3) to develop an
innovative research agenda to help guide future multilateral efforts in the
region.
In keeping with the structure of the Middle East Multilateral Working
Groups, the conference addressed both regional water issues and regional
environmental
issues. The conference was attended by experts from the U.S. government,
research institutions, academia, the environmental community, the Middle
East policy community, and public and private foundation representatives.
The conference was funded by the new congressionally-authorized Edmund
S. Muskie Foundation, established to honor the former Secretary of State's
commitment
to the preservation of the environment and global affairs.
In the early years of its environmental program, IGCC co-hosted, with the Jakarta, Indonesia-based Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a 1996 workshop on Economic Integration and the Environment in Southeast Asia. Researchers, government officials and representatives from international organizations participated in the gathering, timed to precede the December, 1996 World Trade Organization ministerial meeting. Case studies on topics including forestry, energy policy, marine pollution, obnoxious facilities, environmental impact assessment, economic valuation, and institutional and political responses to sustainable development were presented at the gathering.All participants saw a great need for increased regional and international cooperation on environmental policy issues.
Environmental Fellowship Opportunities
Since 1995, IGCC has awarded doctoral dissertation fellowships for work
that addresses topics such as transboundary environmental conflicts, regional
relations, global environmental policy, and regional approaches to global
environmental policy. Funded by the MacArthur and Hewlett foundations,
such support builds a community of scholars to work on key environment
issues over the long term. In 1999, with support from the California Sea
Grant College System, IGCC launched a new fellowship program on international
marine policy. Such programs also help researchers develop professional
relationships that last well beyond the fellowships.
From 1994–99, the IGCC graduate fellowship program benefited from a generous
$750,000 grant from the John D. & Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
The grant was dedicated solely to building teams of junior scholars to
address the issues of regional relations and international environmental
problems.
The Journal of Environment and Development
In 1992, IGCC helped establish The Journal of Environment and Development
to provide a forum to academics and policymakers for analysis of controversial
issues surrounding the concept of sustainable development. The journal
is student-edited and managed, both accomplishing an educational purpose
and stimulating the interchange of scholarly views. Now published jointly
by Sage Publications and the Graduate School of International Relations
and Pacific Studies (IR/PS) at UCSD, the journal is the only international
forum that combines discussion of environmental and developmental issues.
The journal publishes research and debate from the regional to international
level on a quarterly basis, and includes scholarship from disciplines as
diverse as political science, economics, law and public policy.
Building Regional Environmental Cooperation
From
1995–98, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation funded the
IGCC research program "Building Regional Environmental Cooperation," which
explored the potential role of regions as arenas for resolving environmental
conflict and improving the implementation of effective global environmental
policy.
