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Contents:

1 - Introduction; 2 - Current themes and key issues; 3 - Agreements on environment and development; 4 - Intergovernmental organisations; 5 - Non-governmental organisations.

Review:

This is the 11th book in the series: we are told it's the last one due to a drop in core funding. Since this text occupies a unique position, such a loss is to be regretted.

As in previous years, the book is divided into 3 main sections. The introduction gives a brief overview of the text leading us on to the first of the three main areas. The section, 'current themes and key issues' is a series of 6 essays each of which offers a critical overview of one aspect of the environment/development debate. The first essay looks at the way in which the governance agreements brokered by the World Summit on Sustainable Development have helped the developing nations. The original idea was to even the debate between the more powerful groups and those with less. The argument presented here is that although there are a large number of agreements, they have been dominated by transnational NGOs whose agenda is more towards new solutions than fixing old problems. It's a useful paper especially because it highlights that the problems are not always from the TNCs. The second essay looks at the protection of the Baltic Sea - an area both ecologically fragile and politically diverse. Here, transnational groups are encouraged (rather than in the previous case) because they have helped foster co-operation stem too much nationalistic thinking. After these two essays, one is left thinking that each case is an individual with no two alike! Essay three brings in the FAO and their work in the area of plant genetic resources. Arguing that we need diverse agricultural resources, the essay notes that we might be on the right lines but that it still needs political will and funding. The EU is a key body in Europe but the ECE (Economic Commission for Europe) run by the UN also has its place. The essay here is a critique of the ECE policies put in place to promote transboundary water resources. The general response appears to be most favourable with the conclusion that the policy has made a considerable difference. Still with the EU, essay five looks not at its internal environment but its external one i.e. the place of the EU in international agreements and international environmental diplomacy. Given the nature of the EU bureaucracy, the reader will not be surprised to read that their efforts work sometimes (and sometimes frustrate!). Finally, there is an examination of the Third World Network. This has become a critic of current global governance but the study here suggests that its lack of alternatives have led to it being open to criticisms. These essays are brief but cogent examples. The next stage is the majority of the book and the area for which it's rightly famous. A large number of organisations and agreements are described. Firstly, there's a section looking at international agreements. These agreements are divided into 10 groups e.g. nuclear safety, marine living resources, atmosphere etc. There are numerous agreements: one highlights the focus taken. The UN framework on climate change is one of the larger cases reported. In a format repeated elsewhere, we get to see the objectives, scope, time and place of adoption, participation, instruments, organisational details and rules, monitoring and decision-making. In short, we get a few pages packed with the essentials about this area of work. A useful table tells us which nations have signed what. Similar detail is given for the other 47 agreements. The next section comprises two areas: intergovernmental organisations (23 cases) and non-governmental organisations (32 cases). Here, reports tend to be shorter with an overview of the area of responsibility, finance and contact details. Another set of tables tells us who operates where.

The value of this text is that it provides a wealth of data in a small space. The Internet might provide rapid, current information but it doesn't tell you which organisations work alongside. It's this ability to see across a range of areas and organisations that makes the text so valuable. The proliferation of organisations is astounding: we need a guide to find out what's really important. Since this is the last issue make sure a copy gets onto the library shelves: its a fair bet that nothing coming anywhere close will be produced in the next few years.