In September 2015, a new informational tool was launched that promises to help improve transparency and consistency among multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs). The Law and Environment Ontology (LEO) Portal is a priority for the Multilateral Environmental Agreements Information and Knowledge Management (IKM) Initiative, as it fills a need for a “controlled vocabulary” to facilitate searching, locating and retrieving MEA information.

Beyond this important service, the Portal’s provision of key information on environmental governance also supports MEA implementation, as well as progress towards the many development goals to which MEAs are intrinsically linked. This policy update considers how the information provided by the LEO Portal can improve transparency, build capacity in the area of multilateral environmental governance, and further the broad implementation of MEAs as well as other global goals and agendas.

The LEO portal contains a vast amount of information, drawing from the information tools Ecolex, Faolex and InforMEA. Together, these canvas more than 105,000 national laws, 2000 cases, almost 5,000 national reports, 500 action plans and more than 2000 global, regional and bilateral environmental conventions and 10,000 decisions of their governing bodies. The database is easily searchable by country, region, or environmental issue, providing a wealth of information in one convenient place.

LEO Portal information is particularly valuable given increasing complexity within multilateral environmental governance and the interconnectivity of MEAs with other areas of global governance, such green economy and disaster risk management. Growing fragmentation across some areas of multilateral environmental governance has created a demand for a common database of terminology, and of relevant agreements. For example, forests are included in the soft law of the UN Forum on Forests, the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), just to name a few. Both the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer and the UNFCCC discuss ways to help countries reduce emissions of hydrofluorocarbons. The Portal can assist stakeholders in determining which forum is the most appropriate place for action on an issue, given the unique principles and provisions of every convention.

Beyond substantive overlap, there are many common terms and concepts used across MEAs, but sometimes with different meanings. The concept of compliance, for example, could imply a punitive measure for parties found to be in non-compliance in one convention, while in another convention, such as foreseen in the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, compliance invokes a facilitative mechanism to help parties back into compliance.

The LEO Portal provides an overview of the concepts, definitions and synonyms in relevant conventions, and highlights the links between different MEAs. This information eases efforts to navigate fragmented and sometimes overlapping governance systems. Delegates and other stakeholders can learn and assess the substantive differences among the approaches taken by various conventions and identify the many rules and provisions that MEAs employ to address global problems. Potentially, this information could also help create meaningful action across platforms.

Information provided by the LEO Portal can also inform and support sustainable development, especially given the important role global environmental governance is likely to play in achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Enhanced understanding of the rules and provisions of the various environmental agreements, the goals of which often link to the SDGs, can help governments and non-state actors find the best ways to leverage MEA implementation in support of the SDGs. With greater information at hand, it will be easier to find ways to use existing institutions to help achieve this broad development agenda.

The LEO Portal also supports progress towards environment and development goals by building trust and understanding of national efforts. The Portal includes a searchable database of national and regional laws on a wide variety of issues. Multilateral environmental governance requires countries to trust that all are committed to progress and upholding their obligations. The Portal facilitates this confidence through its provision of a single, searchable portal of national legislation. This tool also provides a mechanism for comparing legislation across countries and for sharing lessons learned. The availability of such data not only supports implementation and cooperation across regions, but is often the very type of information requested when MEAs meet to discuss progress and ways to overcome challenges.

Given the complexities of environmental governance, the provision of a common vocabulary, concepts, definitions and a database of national legislation, facilitates the creation of coherent policy and more effective MEA implementation. The wealth of information provided by the Leo Portal helps countries to navigate overlapping and often convoluted MEAs, as well as build the trust and capacity needed to deepen their collaboration and their progress. The Portal’s endowment of key information opens the door for greater and more effective stakeholder participation in environmental governance and helps countries advance both conservation and development.

Visit the Law and Environment Ontology (LEO) Portal at: http://leo.informea.org/