Global governance in forestry: a cross-national analysis

On the one hand, researchers argue that global governance in forestry is fragmented and ineffective. On the other hand, some argue that global forestry governance is key to reducing forest loss related to climate change issues. Using ordinary least squares (OLS) regression for a sample of 155 nations, this research tests the association between one type of global governance, the number of ratifications of environmental treaties that include obligations to reduce forest loss for each nation, and forest loss from 2001 to 2014. As a whole, it appears that despite a lack of unification of multilateral environmental treaties that address forest loss and the absence of a global forestry convention, multilateral forestry treaties are effective at reducing forest loss. While there are several important programs and initiatives from global forestry governance treaties impact forest loss, the effect is relatively small compared to other factors.