Eu response to an international fragmented regime complex : a multimethod analysis of the EU in the international forest regime
(2021)
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- Authors
- Supervisors
- Delreux, Tom
- Abstract
- The thesis explains the response of the European Union (EU) to the international fragmented forest regime complex. The international forest regime is fragmented. The forest issue is addressed by a multitude of institutions, each one of them tackling forests from its own perspective. For example, the United Nations Convention on Climate Change addresses forests for their carbon absorption capacity, while the International Tropical Timber Organization focuses on the trade of tropical timber. No overall guiding principle nor treaty makes the forest regime a consistent whole. This context generates uncertainties but also opportunities for individual actors – such as the EU – to engage in external action. Within the EU, the forest issue is scattered between levels (national and EU) and sectors (environment, climate, trade, agriculture etc.). In turn, the EU can address international forest politics from a multitude of perspectives, generating even more uncertainties and opportunities. The thesis theorises and explains why the EU activates political loci to engage in international forest politics. The study relies on a set theoretic multimethod to explain nine cases (nine occurrences of EU response in the international forest regime). The cases are investigated in three steps. First, process tracing analysis leads to case specific findings. Second, the case specific findings are compared through Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA), do draw general conclusions. Third, the commutativity of the explaining factors are tested through sequence analysis. The multimethod analysis of the cases allows to draw conclusions on (1) EU forest policy integration, (2) the impact of fragmentation on EU’s response, and (3) the impact of individual actors’ response on regime fragmentation. The study also develops a comprehensive understanding of international forest politics.
- Affiliations
Citations
Pirlot, P. (2021). Eu response to an international fragmented regime complex : a multimethod analysis of the EU in the international forest regime. https://hdl.handle.net/2078.5/109928