Dear All,

On behalf of the Waseda University Doctoral Student Network (WUDSN), I would like to invite you to the following presentation and discussion:

"Quantitative Analysis of the Effectiveness of International Environmental Agreements"

Presenter: KIM Yoomi (PhD Student, Waseda University)

Date：　 Tuesday, May 31st, 2011
Time：　 12:30~14:00
Venue： Waseda University Building No.19, Room 309 (Access map:
http://www.waseda-giari.jp/eng/contact/index.html)
Presentation in English (No Interpreter) Admission Free / No Pre-Registration Required Organized by: Waseda University Doctoral Student Network (WUDSN)
Supported by: Global Institute for Asian Regional Integration (GIARI)

Abstract: The rapid increase in trans-boundary environmental problems has created a need for greater role of global cooperation among nations. Scholars'
interest in the effectiveness of international environment agreements (IEAs) has increased in line with the significant increase of IEAs since 1970s. IEAs are the one of the representative international institutional instruments for coping with global environmental degradation. Therefore, analyzing and evaluating the effectiveness of IEAs is needed for the further sustainable development. However, there are not yet sufficient studies using quantitative analysis and discussions about the practical effectiveness of IEAs are still controversial. Previous studies have primarily been case studies, due to diversity of characteristic of IEAs and difficulties of collecting data and evaluating the effectiveness of IEAs. However, in line with an increasing number of IEAs and building databases of IEAs, quantitative studies have been conducted utilizing various methodologies. Also, the majority of previous studies have been utilized the data from particular agreements, so they have a limited ability to grasp an overall characteristics of IEAs.
Moreover, results from previous studies are also open to dispute. While some scholars insist that their results show positive effects of IEAs on environmental performances, other studies have raised questions about the actual effectiveness of IEAs using empirical evidences. Therefore, there are strong needs to broaden research subjects and models to comprehend the practical effectiveness of IEAs more clearly in order to establish the shape of effective international environmental cooperation. This study attempts to answer the question: what kind of IEAs are effective on eliminating or reducing particular environmental problems? To answer this question, this presentation is organized as follows. The first section offers the review of previous studies which examine the effectiveness of IEAs through quantitative approaches.
In the second section, each IEA's effectiveness and factors influencing the effectiveness of IEAs are examined by doing empirical analysis. In terms of methodology, panel data which contains not only particular IEAs, but various IEAs are used for regression analysis. The last section presents concluding remarks including suggestions for the further sustainable development from the viewpoint of international environmental governance.

WUDSN strives to create a stimulating environment in which participants can engage in horizontal and vertical exchanges with professors, experienced researchers, young scholars, activists, government officials, and business leaders. As such, WUDSN seeks to provide opportunities for PhD candidates to present their work alongside other scholars within, as well as outside Waseda University.
For more information about WUDSN go to:
www.waseda-giari.jp/jpn/wudsn/index_e.html

Best regards

Takeshi ODAIRA (i071329@gmail.com)

Asia Fellow of Political Integration and Identity PhD Candidate of Conflict Resolution Global Institute for Asian Regional Integration Graduate School of Asia-Pacific Studies Waseda University Nishi-Waseda 1-21-1-508, Shinjuku City Tokyo (1690051) Japan Research Archive: odaira.blogspot.com