Protecting the environment is a key issue for Russia, with its vast wilderness areas and its economy’s reliance on extractive industries, which have the potential to cause massive pollution. This book explores how policymaking works in Russia, focusing on the important field of environmental policy. It argues that, contrary to the prevailing view that the presidency dominates the policy process, with Putin making all major decisions or at least being the arbiter between conflicting parties, policy is in fact made a range of competing interests including the bureaucracy and influential industry and industrial association lobbyists, with relatively little intervention from Putin. The book shows how, although Russia does not have a strong civil society, environmentalist views are represented through the institutionalized bureaucracy. The book concludes that policy decision making in Russia is quite dispersed and not overcentralized.

ÔA fresh and up-to-date discussion of RussiaÕs manifold environmental crises, using the results of an elite survey and a framework based on the civil society literature. I believe this is the best treatment of its subject that is presently available, and given RussiaÕs enormous territorial extent, it is a study that has important implications for everyone who has any concern for the future of Planet Earth.Õ Ð Stephen White, University of Glasgow, UK In recent years, international, inter-governmental entities have acknowledged the importance of civil society for engaging stakeholders in environmental change, especially at the local community level, and in promoting democracy. In Russia, efforts by NGOs to promote reform since the fall of the Soviet Union have been aimed at achieving both objectives. This fascinating and highly illuminating book explores the political, legal, and attitudinal barriers to environmental reform in Russia since 1991. The authors, renowned experts in the field, explore efforts to develop a mature civil society in Russia, and analyse the policy views of environmental groups, the media, and the scientific community. Three important case studies underpin the study: suspended plans to build an oil pipeline near Lake Baikal; management of Cold War-generated radioactive waste at Chelyabinsk; and public reaction to the introduction of genetically modified foods. The conclusion is that although civil society groups face obstacles in the form of apathy, state-imposed constraints on their activities, and agency reluctance to confer on decisions, there are some successes in reversing decisions due in part to NGO pressures yielding reform. This path-breaking book will be of enormous interest to scholars, researchers and students focusing on comparative environmental policy and politics, contemporary public policy in Russia, and international politics.

Why care about the environment? Is the earth's climate really changing for the worse? What are CFCs exactly? And who or what is the WTO? What are the causes of environmental problems? Who are the main actors, and what are the main ideas and issues in international environmental politics? Which countries have the best/worst environmental record and policies? The International Encyclopedia of Environmental Politics is the essential reference source to enable all those with an interest in the politics of the environment - particularly students and academics working within political science - to answer these questions, and to explore many other related topics in international environmental politics. It will be welcomed as an essential teaching resource and a trusty companion to independent study. Written by a team of international experts, the Encyclopedia is vital for fact-checking, provides authoritative initial orientation to a particular topic or issue and will serve as a solid starting point for wider explanation. With over 300 fully cross-referenced entries, many of which are followed with suggestions for further reading, the Encyclopedia includes: * Country and regional entries, with country entries giving a concise overview of the history, main actors, issues and policies related to its environmental politics * Normative and ethical dimensions of environmental politics, from animal rights, social and global justice to deep ecology * Environmental movements, organizations, struggles and actors from local to international levels * Issues in international environmental politics such as global warming, biodiversity, trade and the environment * Prominent individuals (historical and current) who have inspired or been actively involved in international environmental politics - such as Mahatma Gandhi, Petra Kelly, Vandana Shiva and Aldo Leopold * Central topics and issues in environmental politics - such as global warming, globalization, wildlife preservation, eco-taxes, energy production and consumption, sustainable development and the World Trade Organisation

'The Oxford Handbook of Comparative Environmental Politics' explores some of the most important environmental issues through the lens of comparative politics, including energy, climate change, food, health, urbanization, waste, and sustainability. The chapters delve into more traditional forms of comparative environmental politics (CEP) - the political economy of natural resources and the role of corporations and supply chains - while also showcasing new trends in CEP scholarship, particularly the comparative study of environmental injustice and intersectional inequities.

Starting from the stance that environmental policy has progressed from rhetoric to substance in Latin America, the editors’ proceed through a series of papers to show why, what difference it makes, and how it compares to other parts of the world. In doing so, the book touches on domestic and international factors including political institutions, international development institutions, nongovernmental organizations, and transboundary cooperation. Latin American Environmental Policy in International Perspective is one in a series of books that take a look at Latin America in Global Perspective. Previous titles have addressed politics, gender, regional integration, institutional design, and civil/military relations.

Russian Politics Today: Stability and Fragility provides an accessible and nuanced introduction to contemporary Russian politics at a time of increasing uncertainty. Using the theme of stability versus fragility as its overarching framework, this innovative textbook explores the forces that shape Russia's politics, economy, and society. The volume provides up-to-date coverage of core themes – Russia's strong presidency, its weak party system, the role of civil society, and its dependence on oil and gas revenues – alongside path-breaking chapters on the politics of race, class, gender, sexuality, and the environment. An international and diverse team of experts presents the most comprehensive available account of the evolution of Russian politics in the post-Soviet era, providing the tools for interpreting the past and the present while also offering a template for understanding future developments.

This report is a socioeconomic and political analysis of environmental sustainability in terms of the present state of the environment, what we can do to reverse the negative trends, and what the current and potential barriers are. First, it offers a background of the issue through a historical perspective. How we got here has a lot to do with how previous generations behaved towards the environment. Similarly, how we behave will determine the kind of environment future generations will have to contend with. It looks at the dynamics likely to impact the balance of nature. Also, because understanding what is biodiversity and why is it important are essential in order to grasp the concept of sustainability, this report looks at the types of ecosystems that form the biosphere and brings an answer to this important question, “Is the Maximum sustainable yield (MSY) concept a fallacy?” Moreover, the importance of cities is a key factor in environmental sustainability. So, the report shows the pros and cons of cities in both the preservation of the environment and the conservation of its biodiversity. The social, economic, and political analyses use the latest data and views from experts, scientists, and scholars alike and also the views of the common people. The result is that all three levels have positives and negatives and so, none of them should be individually prioritized over the other two. To tackle this dilemma, the report offers an alternative: an inclusive, pluralistic, and global approach which aims at motivating all stakeholders – from rich and poor countries – and people from all walks of life to work together towards a common goal and common interests. Such an approach, says the report should be bottom-up instead of top-down, that is, the needs of local populations, especially those closer to biodiversity, must come first before those of large corporations. However, while in the present and short terms, this approach may be successful, in the long term or a distant future, there are reasons to be skeptical for the environment is constantly changing and generations are different from one another. And that is very important because what constitutes the cornerstone of environmental sustainability is this: the present use of natural resources should not be harmful to future generations. Therefore, the report looks into the future. While acknowledging that, in terms of environmental sustainability, predicting the future is a daunting task – because it is better to think that the future is now – the report shows how we can prepare a soft landing for our great grand-children by laying the groundwork for them. We can accomplish this last task because we still have time.

Designed for use in courses on contemporary Russia, this volume explores Russia's policy dilemmas in three realms: international security, socio-political, and socio-economic. In each of these categories, Russia faces daunting problems, none of which is likely to be resolved quickly or easily. Yet, over the longer term, the extent to which policymakers are successful in dealing with these challenges will go far in determining Russia's future place in the world, how Russians will live, and what kind of country Russia becomes. Each expertly authored chapter outlines the nature of one major issue; traces it evolution and policy developments under the Yeltsin and Putin presidencies; and evaluates the effectiveness and prospects of efforts to come to grips with the challenge.

Bringing together case studies from Canada, the Nordic countries and Russia, this book is the first to provide a comparative examination of the current transformations in the forest industry regimes and the challenges they make for the communities dependent on this industry. Questioning how globalization has influenced forest regimes, the book focuses on individual forest companies and argues that they are the main motors of the industry's internationalization, often without taking due consideration of the complex interrelations between society, the environment and forest trade. During the current phase of globalization, the sphere of material production within the forest industry has increasingly been modified by more speculative signals from the market. Both the growing role of investor interests, as well as the broader societal demands for 'greening' the production chain, have forced managers to be more sensitive to the performance profile and image of their companies. In conclusion, the book highlights instances of processes working towards homogenization and diversity, and suggests that while Anglo-American management practice is increasingly important across the northern forest regions, it is also meeting with resistance due to historical and political conditions.