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Since 2000, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises (the Guidelines) have required OECD Members to establish national contact points (NCPs) to promote the effective implementation of the Guidelines. The aim of this article is to examine the role of the NCPs in implementing the Guidelines, including how the influence of the NCPs may change the nature of the Guidelines from being purely voluntary to become more in the nature of binding requirements. The examination focuses on the NCPs in Denmark, Norway, and the United Kingdom. It concludes that the way in which the NCPs operate, including the extensive right to refer complaints to them, the broad scope of the recommendations in the Guidelines and especially the use of naming and shaming in cases of breaches of the Guidelines, has changed the original character of the Guidelines as a purely soft law instrument. Furthermore, it is shown that the use of very broad and vague terminology in the Guidelines makes it very difficult for enterprises to comply with them. This is further complicated by the fact that many of the terms, which specify when the NCPs have jurisdiction, are not clearly defined or explained. The three NCPs examined have implemented the Guidelines very differently. In particular the Danish NCP stands out. It has a jurisdiction which in many respects goes far beyond that envisioned in the Guidelines. This may put in question the legitimacy and effectiveness of the Danish NCP, but at the same time it can also be viewed as an interesting innovation which may provide useful lessons for other NCPs and their approaches to implementing the Guidelines.

Med udgangspunkt i en retlig analyse af forholdet mellem WTO og klimaregimet identificerer denne artikel en række af de retlige konflikter, der potentielt kan opstå mellem WTO- og klimaretten. Fokus er på WTO-systemets muligheder for at integrere klima som et lovligt hensyn, når fx EU gennemfører tiltag med henblik på at realisere sine forpligtelser i henhold til Klimakonventionen og de dertil knyttede aftaler, samt på de fremtidige muligheder for i regi af WTO at få gennemført multilaterale aftaler, der har til formål at bidrage til en realisering af de globale klimamålsætninger. Der præsenteres to modeller — præcedensmodellen og lovmodellen - der hver for sig og i samspil vil kunne bidrage til, at den internationale regulering af handel supplerer og støtter den globale klimaregulering.

This book is the fifth volume in the European Environmental Law Forum (EELF) Book Series. The EELF is a non-profit initiative established by environmental law scholars and practitioners from across Europe aiming to support intellectual exchange on the development and implementation of international, European and national environmental law in Europe. One of the activities of the EELF is the organisation of an annual conference. The fifth EELF Conference dedicated to 'Sustainable Management of Natural Resources - Legal Instruments and Approaches' was held in Copenhagen from the 30th of August to the 1st of September 2017 at the Faculty of Science, University of Copenhagen, in collaboration with the Department of Law, Aarhus University. This book is a collection of peer reviewed contributions addressing various legal aspects of sustainable management of natural resources. Natural resources are in this book understood in broad terms encompassing biodiversity, water, air and soil, as well as raw materials. Based on the contributions, it can be asserted that despite many efforts there is still a long way to go in order to achieve sustainable management of natural resources. Making ecosystem integrity ultimately the bottom-line for sustainable development requires not only dedication in the design and coherence of (environmental) legislation at international, EU and national level, but also a strong commitment to the implementation and enforcement of the legislation. Thus, it is necessary to carefully consider how different legal instruments and approaches may pave the way for the sustainable management of natural resources. Birgitte Egelund Olsen is Professor of Law at the Department of Law, School of Business and Social Sciences, Aarhus University. She is also Chairman of the Danish Environment and Food Board of Appeal. Birgitte is specialised in energy, climate and environmental law, but has also written widely on issues of EU and WTO law and policy. During the past decade, she has in particular focused on issues of renewable energy and community acceptance and engagement. Helle Tegner Anker is Professor of Law at the Department of Food and Resource Economics, Faculty of Science, University of Copenhagen. She specialises in environmental and planning law covering a broad range of topics, including access to justice, environmental impact assessment, land use planning, nature protection, water quality and renewable energy with a particular focus on wind energy. Helle is a member of the Advisory Board of European Environmental Law Forum (EELF)

"This comparison of EU and WTO approaches to common trade-liberalisation challenges brings together eighteen authors from Europe and America. Together they explore fundamental legal issues, such as the role of general principles of law, the role of the judiciary in the development of law, the effect of the principle of non-discrimination and the elimination of non-discriminatory barriers to trade. The contributions also examine the most recent developments in trade law across a full range of trade issues, including TBT and SPS, services, intellectual property, customs rules, safeguards, anti-dumping and government procurement. Adopting a comparative perspective throughout, this volume sheds light on today's trade law and suggests paths forward for each system through the perennial tensions between open, non-discriminatory trade and strongly held national values and objectives"--

The energy policy of the European Union (EU) aims to unify energy markets of the Member States and facilitate a safe and sustainable transition to renewable energy. The development of offshore wind energy (OWE) in the Baltic Sea Region (BSR), along with the construction of a meshed grid, can contribute significantly to renewable energy production and enhance interconnections between BSR countries. The BSR has great potential to become a major hub for wind energy production but faces significant barriers to integrating regional markets, including asynchronous power systems and energy isolation. The following report was developed within the scope of Baltic InteGrid (Integrated Baltic Offshore Wind Electricity Grid Development), an interdisciplinary Interreg research project bringing together experts from Member States present in the BSR to coordinate the implementation of these policy objectives. The goal of the Baltic InteGrid project is to track current regional, national, and European energy developments and propose recommendations to optimise regulatory frameworks. The report examines policy and regulatory frameworks relevant to the development of OWE and grid infrastructure in the BSR. It also identifies barriers to this development, which will be addressed in greater detail in future Baltic InteGrid research.