International Relations and the Environment

About this unit

Environmental problems such as ozone depletion, climate change and toxic waste cross national borders, so they can be solved only through cooperation between countries. This unit studies the science and diplomacy of the ozone layer and the Montreal Protocol, global warming and the climate agreements from the UNFCCC to the Paris Agreement, and the international conventions on persistent organic pollutants and hazardous waste. Case studies on Amazon deforestation and the African ivory trade show how global markets drive local destruction. The unit then turns to trade itself: free trade versus protectionism, transnational corporations, the GATT and WTO with TRIPS and TRIMS, intellectual property rights including geographical indications, and finally international aid and the difference between tied and untied aid.

How to prepare

Make a table in your notebook of conventions with their year, subject and key feature (Vienna, Montreal, Kigali, UNFCCC, Kyoto, Paris, Basel, Bamako, Stockholm, Rotterdam, CITES). Learn the Chapman reactions and the chlorine catalytic cycle. Memorise WTO principles and the protection terms of each type of IPR. Expect matching, chronology and statement-based questions.