The initiative for a ‘Global Pact for the Environment’ has over the course of the last year evolved into a global discourse. The United Nations (UN) General Assembly, the UN Secretary‐General, UN Environment Programme, UN member States and a vast variety of nongovernmental organizations and academics are considering the need for and possible content of a Pact. It appears that to gather necessary political support, a Pact needs to add value to already existing international environmental law. This article offers input into the debate as to whether and how a Global Pact could achieve this. It argues that a Global Pact needs not be limited to a legally binding treaty instrument that codifies environmental principles. Rather, it could be and do many things and should be guided by what is needed to increase the effectiveness of environmental protection. In a plurality of ways, a Pact could address challenges in the implementation of multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs), help overcome coordination deficits between MEAs and between MEAs and other international treaties, or bring together actors from the public and private sector. It could provide a common vision for global environmental action and/or a framework for bringing the different pieces, for instance sectoral and spatial agreements, together. Moreover, it could advance the development of international environmental law into areas that thus far have not been covered. The article gives a brief history of the initiative for the Global Pact, placing it against the nature and structure of international environmental law. It analyses the proposals made so far as to the possible scope, nature and content of such instrument, and provides suggestions for how it could contribute to the increased effectiveness, scope or scale of international environmental law.

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《全球环境公约》如何为国际环境法增值

在过去的一年中，“全球环境公约”的倡议已发展成为全球性的话题。联合国大会，联合国秘书长，联合国环境规划署，联合国会员国以及各种各样的非政府组织和学者正在考虑《公约》的必要性和可能的​​内容。看来，为了获得必要的政治支持，《公约》需要增加价值遵守现有的国际环境法 本文为全球契约是否以及如何实现这一目标提供了辩论的投入。它认为，《全球公约》不必局限于将环境原则编纂为具有法律约束力的条约文书。相反，它可以而且可以做很多事情，应该以提高环境保护效力所需的指导为指导。《公约》可以通过多种方式应对多边环境协定（MEAs）实施中的挑战，帮助克服多边环境协定之间以及多边环境协定与其他国际条约之间的协调缺陷，或将公共和私营部门的参与者聚集在一起。它可以为全球环境行动和/或提出各种不同框架提供框架，例如部门和空间协议。此外，它可以将国际环境法的发展推进到迄今为止尚未涉及的领域。本文简要介绍了《全球契约》倡议的历史，将其与国际环境法的性质和结构背道而驰。它分析了有关该文书可能的范围，性质和内容的建议，并就如何为提高国际环境法的效力，范围或规模做出贡献提供了建议。使其与国际环境法的性质和结构背道而驰。它分析了有关该文书可能的范围，性质和内容的建议，并就如何为提高国际环境法的效力，范围或规模做出贡献提供了建议。使其与国际环境法的性质和结构背道而驰。它分析了有关该文书可能的范围，性质和内容的建议，并就如何为提高国际环境法的效力，范围或规模做出贡献提供了建议。