Promoting Environmentally-Friendly Trade Policies - The Influence of Environmental NGOs

Abstract

A large proportion of the literature on transnational actors views non-governmental organizations (NGOs) as becoming an increasingly important player in international relations, particularly international environmental politics. However, the existing literature tends to emphasize the general activities that environmental NGOs are involved in without providing much insight on how these activities affect decision-makers and policy outcomes. I fill this gap in the literature by arguing that environmental NGOs influence a state to commit to environmentally-friendly trade policies by providing politicians and trade policymakers with technical information on environmental issues that shape their preferences such that they prioritize environmental goals and eventually commit to environmentally-friendly trade policies. My findings show that an increase in the number of environmental INGOs established in a country results in a rise in the number of environmentally-friendly trade agreements signed by the state.