The International Legacy of the United States Endangered Species Act of 1973

Abstract

December 2023 will mark the 50th anniversary of the passage of the 1973 Endangered Species Act of the United States. This landmark Act by the US Congress was made possible through strong bipartisan political cooperation on environment protection, capping off a string of progressive legislative victories that would set the tone for US environmental policy at local, state, and federal government levels for decades. Beyond its domestic significance, the 1973 Endangered Species Act had a clear and recognizable impact on global environmentalism by influencing and inspiring endangered species legislation in other nations as well as the 1992 Convention on Biological Diversity. At the time of its passage, the US Endangered Species Act (ESA) was far and away the most comprehensive piece of legislation ever enacted to halt and reverse rising rates of species extinction and biodiversity loss. Other nations emulated the ESA in past and present endangered species laws and regulations, even as late as 2019, leading to the eventual emergence of a set of global standard practices for species and habitat protections that endure to this day, practices with clear American roots. This study explores the degree to which the past and present endangered species laws of other English-speaking jurisdictions borrowed from or mimicked the US Endangered Species Act in purpose, style, form, and function. Further analysis is undertaken to reveal the extent to which Japan’s own endangered species protection statute is likely influenced by the US ESA. The ESA’s influence on global environmental norms and wildlife protection practices is first explored through the lens of international relations theory, in particular the ‘constructivist’ school of thought that helps explain recognized patterns in global environmental cooperation. The study demonstrates how the 1973 Endangered Species Act essentially became a template for other national and provincial governments to model and even mimic when these governments were designing and enacting their own endangered species management protection programs. Historically, the ESA’s passage and its emulation by other polities are indicative of the degree to which the United States has impacted and continues to greatly impact and influence global wildlife law and policy.