Environmental constitutionalism and international cooperation in the Amazon

A comparative law study

Abstract

Taking into consideration the recent process of development of environmental constitutionalism in South America, the aim of this article is to analyze the protection of the environment in the current constitutions of the Amazonian countries, seeking to identify whether they establish a common language regarding the environmental protection that fosters international cooperation in the Amazon. The hypothesis state that 1) the constitutional protection of the environment follows the line of epistemological opening of environmental constitutionalism, incorporating innovations in each new constitution; and, 2) establishing legal elements for the furthering of international cooperation in the Amazon on an international scale. This is a study of comparative constitutional law, grounded on a functional-structural perspective, in dialogue with international constitutional law and political science. As a result, the hypotheses are partially confirmed, considering that if, on the one hand, 1) the constitutional protection of the environment followed an epistemological opening line in environmental constitutionalism, incorporating innovations in each enacted constitutional text; on the other hand, 2) its recognition did not improve the deepening of international cooperation in the Amazon.