The unclear and ambiguous division of responsibility between the EU and the member-states regarding the negotiation and the implementation of international environmental agreements call into question the Union's leadership role at international level. Taking into account the labyrinthine, fragmented and constantly evolving international context of environmental protection, the timely access to accurate and credible information remains a challenge for experts and public officials involved in the decision-making process at national level. Compliance with the obligations deriving from international environmental agreements require often the adoption of horizontal measures and the cooperation of different national bodies, which, however, are unable to comprehend this complex and unclear institutional framework.

EnvCOPs platform, funded by the Department of Political Science and Public Administration (National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Greece), was launched on March 2017. It is the first e-platform, which accumulates and codifies the main information regulated by international environmental agreements, paying special attention to the participation of the EU and the follow-up process i.e. the important decisions taken by the Conferences of the Parties (COPs).

It constitutes a useful tool for researchers, academics and students who investigate the development of the international framework for environmental protection as well as the role of the EU and the implementation of international environmental agreements at European level. It is an open-accessed platform (www.envcops.eu), which is available in two languages (English and Greek).

EnvCOPs platform is a user-friendly platform, which offers scientifically documented, systematically up to date, detailed and specified information that will ease the monitoring of the international environmental agreements as well as their prompt and proper implementation at national level. The content of the e-platform will be updated systematically. 

Research Team: Emmanuella Doussis, Lydia Avrami, George Dikaios. Undergraduate and postgraduate students who participated in the internship programme of the Institute also contributed to the project.

For the deliverables, please contact us at info-eeep@pspa.uoa.gr

UNESCO Chair on Climate Diplomacy

Monitoring of international and European environmental practice continues, under the auspices of the UNESCO Chair in Climate Diplomacy, by members of the Institute's Research Team working in these fields. Research findings result to scientific and other publications (books, articles in peer-reviewed journals, policy articles, newspaper articles, etc.), more information on which can be found here (section: Publications) and on the personal pages of the Team here.