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Legal Institutions and Ecological Economics: Their Common Contribution for Achieving a Sustainable Development

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  • Mauerhofer, Volker

Abstract

This paper aims firstly to provide a conceptual overview on the two main objectives that should be addressed when modifying international environmental law and subordinated law in a more sustainable direction in the sense of Ecological Economics. This first aim is addressed based on ongoing research on ‘3-D Sustainability’, a concept providing decision-making support for priority setting between environmental, social and economic dimensions within sustainable development. The two main objectives identified within this aim are to stay by means of international environmental law within the ecologically sustainable scale and to legally define flexible trade-off mechanisms, which better deal with conflicts of interests among the three sustainability dimensions. Secondly, the paper strives to identify ways to further strengthen the application of the existing international law in this respect. Thus, several innovative mechanisms within international law are identified that overcome current implementation and enforcement deadlocks, without necessarily changing the existing law, in order to serve a sustainable development in the sense of Ecological Economics.

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  • Mauerhofer, Volker, 2019. "Legal Institutions and Ecological Economics: Their Common Contribution for Achieving a Sustainable Development," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 156(C), pages 350-359.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecolec:v:156:y:2019:i:c:p:350-359
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2018.09.023
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