INTRODUCTORY NOTE
This is the second publication in a series of Studies published under
the auspices of the Mediterranean Programme for International Environ-
mental Law and Negotiation (MEPIELAN). The
MEPIELAN Studies in In-
ternational Environmental Law and Negotiation
serves the objectives of the
Programme by providing a forum for exploring ideas focused on a holistic
approach to international environmental governance, on understanding
the nature and potential of negotiation in the environmental context as a
means of improving environmental protection and, more generally, pro-
moting enhanced cooperation among negotiating partners in the interna-
tional sphere. MEPIELAN combines multiple interrelated agendas. It is
predicated on the view that protection of the environment is a common
or shared concern among countries that share a specific ecosystem, in this
case, the Mediterranean. The philosophy of MEPIELAN is that the proc-
ess of discussion about environmental concerns combined with a prag-
matic approach to, and practice with, the negotiation process will result
in enhanced cooperation and improved problem-solving capacity in both
environmental and other matters arising between countries in the region.
The experience of successful or creative negotiating in the environmental
context can also serve as a trust and relationship building process, which
can help to address other regional issues where there may be more diffi-
culty or opposed values.
The Programme is informed by the view that academic institutions,
such as MEPIELAN, can play a catalytic role in international negotiations.
They can do this through seminars and workshops, which create an in-
tellectual “space” or forum that provides opportunities for shared reflec-
tion and cooperation among negotiating parties to address areas of con-
flict or to examine potential strategies for more effective regime design.
It is through the improvement of negotiation skills and substantive com-
petence, based on a solid interdisciplinary theoretical standpoint where
law and language, politics and science meet and intermingle dynamically,
that there will be improved capacity to achieve better outcomes to resolve
complex problems. From a strategic perspective, MEPIELAN is envisaged
