As the process of globalization continues and power imbalances between decision-making institutions become increasingly apparent, the need for a critical assessment of the way in which we manage our interaction with the natural environment becomes ever more urgent. Good governance was identified at the World Summit on Sustainable Development as a critical factor for ensuring successful sustainable development. This book builds on the briefing papers that were presented at the Summit, taking further the discussions of the WEHAB agenda (Water, Energy, Health, Agriculture and food, and Biodiversity - the five international priority sectors highlighted by UN Secretary General Kofi Annan). This is a unique offering on the role and reform of global institutions and processes, raising issues that have previously been neglected in international discussions.

This publication presents five governmental experiments aimed at promoting sustainable development in Canada, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.

This book is an original study of the challenge of implementing sustainable development in Western democracies. It highlights the obstacles which sustainable development presents for strategic governance and critically examines how these problems can best be overcome in a variety of different political contexts.

Sustainable development stirs up debate about the capacities of political steering and governance. The complexity of the task expounds limits of steering in three dimensions: goals, knowledge, and power: Sustainability goals are subject to changing and controversial risk perceptions, values and interests. Moreover, knowledge of the coupled dynamics of society, technology and nature is limited. Finally, the power to shape structural change in society and technology is distributed across a multitude of actors and societal subsystems. Steering attempts therefore have to cope with conflict and ambivalence, with uncertainty, and with a lack of central control; and they have to face the necessity of coordinating different actor groups and social networks. This volume explores steering strategies and governance arrangements for sustainable development with a view to these problem dimensions. The contributions by authors from various disciplines approach these challenges from different conceptual angles, ranging from positivist, managerial up to post-modern, constructivist perspectives. By combining theoretical reflections with insights from empirical research in European and American contexts, the volume maps out conditions and identifies approaches which both reflect the limits of steering and reveal options for constructively taking up the task of sustainable development in science and practice.

Deliberative Governance for Sustainable Development argues that governance has become the core problem of sustainable development and identifies deliberative democracy and governance as a path forward for Western societies. In this book the author puts forward three messages. Firstly, while sustainable development theoretically is a common good of all people, it is in practice constantly associated with a multitude of smaller and larger conflicts. These conflicts arise repeatedly because, in practice, the benefits, costs and risks of sustainable development are unequally distributed and therefore form a massive barrier to sustainable development. As a result, sustainable development depends on the ability of the social and political institutions of societies to accommodate these conflicts. Second, within the framework of their established institutional structures, Western societies do not have the sufficient tools for conflict resolution that are adequate to the conditions of modern diversified societies and the complex challenges of sustainable development. They need to implement institutional reforms that switch institutional structures towards deliberation. Third, by switching to deliberation, Western societies can reach the high level of governance that enables them to achieve environmentally sustainable development that will bring them significant economic and social benefits and, as a result, may reach far beyond their borders. This volume offers a novel, transdisciplinary approach to sustainable development and governance in Western societies. It will be of great interest to students and scholars of sociology, economics, politics, environmental studies and philosophy, as well as professionals and policymakers working in the area of sustainable development.

The chapters in this volume are based on the papers that were presented at a seminar in March 1994 organized under the auspices of the newly established ILA Committee on Legal Aspects of Sustainable Development. The seminar focused on the legal principles and international practice of sustainable development and good governance as one of its constitutive elements. The book is divided into four parts: Evolution of Concepts, Participatory Development, Development Cooperation and Human Rights, and Sensible Economic and Social Policies. They reflect the holistic concept of sustainable development advanced by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature sustainable development. This concept implies that maintaining a quality of life for many generations is socially desirable, economically viable and ecologically sustainable. The volume highlights the principle of sustainable development as a major topic in international law embodied in the international instruments agreed upon at the UN Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro (1992). The introductory chapter discusses the interlinking of development and good governance, including human rights, democracy, and sensible economic and social policies as presented in the 1994 UN Agenda for development. The management of the economy, society and environment towards sustainability will be one of the most momentous discussions of our times. According to one author sustainable development is incompatible with continuous growth of the economy, while good governance appears to be incompatible with the achievement, within a reasonable time scale, of a non-growth society. Other provocative opinions make this volume a highly challenging source for any scholar interested in the subject.

This book provides a detailed overview of governance for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Adopting a unique integrative approach, it examines the fragmentation of governance that is a critical barrier to achieving the SDGs. The main question addressed is: What are the crucial elements and the organizing logic of an integrative framework that is suitable for analysing governance for the SDGs and for implementing the transitions that we need towards a more sustainable world? This transdisciplinary book first proposes a combination of innovative governance theories that can improve the analysis and practice of sustainability governance. Secondly, it explores the interests of core actors in a number of case examples. And thirdly, it offers recommendations for improving the study and practice of sustainability governance. The findings presented form the basis for a new approach to governance towards objectives such as the SDGs: Integrative Sustainability Governance (ISG). The ensuing ISG framework includes indicator frames within the pillars of power, knowledge and norms. The book concludes that the transformation of crisis into sustainability transitions requires a deeper consideration of risk management that strengthens resilience; systems deliberation that complements democracy; and behavioral insights that elevate human awareness and collaboration. This handbook is a comprehensive and valuable companion for students, experts and practitioners with an interest in the SDGs.

This book analyses the evolution of the sustainability discourse in the European Union, exploring the conditions necessary for sustainable development to move from a conceptual model into a model for action for strategic decision makers at all levels of governance. This book questions the extent to which the discourse on sustainability has become embedded into governance structures in Europe. It focuses on the importance of the nature of the language of the political discourse on sustainability and how ideas are communicated amongst the actors and stakeholders in the policy making process, as well as assessing the conceptual, political, institutional and operational barriers apparent across the European geographic region. Drawing case studies from numerous policy areas including climate change, EU emissions trading scheme, renewable energy, nuclear energy, the European integrated energy market, transport mobility, and environmental protection, expert contributors unveil a narrowing of the discourse on sustainability that has taken place in Europe. However, a considerable discontinuity remains between the economic and environmental objectives of sustainable development, and the authors argue that it is essential that conditions for a dynamic discourse, open to multiple participants, are developed. Sustainable Development and Governance in Europe will be of strong interest to students and scholars of comparative politics, governance, sustainable development and environmental politics and studies.

Many events that have marked the last few years – from the Arab Spring revolutions to the different collapses in the financial markets in the western world and the Euro Debt Crisis in Europe – all share the common issue of “Governance”. The various different types of media, especially social media, have contributed to the rapid spread of awareness of governance issues, and have enabled unprecedented numbers of people to manifest their fury about the lack of governance in the management of not only firm and markets, but also whole countries and regions. Governance crises were previously known mainly in the corporate world, where scandals such as Enron and News International have captured the attention of the media and have been a major subject of discussion. Such crises have recently been transferred to entire nations, where citizens have the right to make things change for the best and have the last say. People are currently concerned with the establishment of accountability mechanisms that were previously absent, as well as with real governance reforms that will lead to democracy. This book focuses upon governance and on the importance of accountability, and how it varies from one environment to another. Also of concern here is the effective practice of governance in the shadow of the turmoil and unrest, taking into consideration the specificities of each and every culture. In adopting such a focus, a number of theoretical perspectives are explored, along with issues associated with various environments in order to develop an understanding of the relationship between governance and sustainable development. The book will appeal to academic researchers in the areas of governance, sustainable development and corporate social responsibility, as well as those interested in strategic management more generally. It will be of interest to research students, as well as more experienced academics, worldwide, and may also serve as a secondary text for courses in these areas.