Reconsidering approaches for facilitating non-state actors’ participation in Global Plastics Treaty regime

Abstract

The current approach to non-State actors’ participation in international environmental law is limited. This article, therefore, argues for a reconsideration of non-State actors’ participation to create more opportunities to facilitate easy access to meaningful participation in the drafting, negotiation, and subsequent implementation of the proposed global plastic treaty. The article explains how environmental democracy could be at the heart of the negotiation and implementation of the proposed plastic treaty by creating more avenues for participation among relevant non-State actors thereby contributing to accountability efforts. The article proposes that the proposed plastic treaty could be the first multilateral environmental agreement to operationalise Principle 10 of the Rio Declaration which lays down the pillars of environmental democracy (i.e., access to information; access to participation in decision-making processes on environmental issues; and access to justice in environmental matters). This could contribute to strengthening the global plastic treaty, especially when regulating major industry players.