ABSTRACT
Chapter 5 returns explicitly to the argument I make throughout the book regarding the disjuncture between the exigencies of the current global economy and the environmental problems that the UN bodies are designed to address. In essence, given the imperatives for economic growth that are built into the functioning of the global economy, governments come to the table with highly conflicting mandates. The chapter provides examples of circumstances where CSOs and IPOs sought to bring a critique of capitalism into the debates and the ways in which ‘agenda items’ are not designed for this sort of discussion. As long as economic growth reigns supreme as both national and global primary goals, the debates about environmental degradation will merely act as a substitute for actual action to curb environmental harm. Many members of CSOs and IPOs recognise this disjuncture yet find few opportunities within the context of actual UN negotiations to voice or address this concern. I conclude that the very structure of UN deliberations, which fails to address the exigencies of the current global economy, precludes the possibility of genuinely addressing the ultimate root cause of environmental degradation.
