The Profit-Environment Paradox: Analyzing the Impact of International Financial Institutions (IFIs) on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) through the Lens of Green Criminology

Global recognition of human impact on environmental challenges was recognized for the first time in the UN Stockholm Declaration 1972. Since then environment laws have received widespread acclamation and branched out in various disciplines including law and economics. Consequently the concept of green criminology emerged in the early 1990s, which focused on the underlying causes of crimes which cause ecological damage and public health-safety hazards. Among the partners of green crimes, business corporations’ direct contribution towards environmental hazards has been an area of study. However, there are other stakeholders that need to be taken into consideration while examining corporate environmental crimes such as Public International Organizations (PIOs). This paper will explore green criminology in the context of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), critically assessing how the policies and practices of International Financial Institutions (IFIs) specifically the influence environmental outcomes. The paper will examine whether these institutions, through their financing and policy structures, contribute to environmental degradation in CPEC, or whether their efforts align with sustainable development objectives, offering a broader perspective on the profit-environment paradox. The paper also evaluates the alignment of CPEC with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and questions IFI’s influence exacerbates environmental harm or facilitates a more sustainable model of development. By examining these dynamics, the paper highlights the role of international financial institutions in both perpetuating and potentially mitigating environmental crimes within large-scale development initiatives