Environmental Governance Development Research Articles

Study on Ecological Protection and Restoration : from the Perspective of a New Public Governance Model

With the increasingly serious environmental pollution, the sustainable development of human society has become the focus in China and even the world, which makes the theoretical research on environmental governance become particularly important. According to the change process of environmental governance theories, a theory can solve or explain some problems in reality, but with the development and change of economy and society, the theory needs to be innovated and integrated continuously to achieve good environmental governance and continuous improvement. This paper firstly sorts out the historical context and evolution logic of environmental governance theories in China and abroad, and scientifically divides and reviews the development of the theories. Secondly, this paper researches on China’s first batch of ecological protection and restoration pilot projects of MRFFLG in Ganzhou city through various kinds of sources of data collection ,such as semi-structured interviews, field visits and second-hand data collection. It is found that environmental governance changes from operational applied governance to exploring a new paradigm of multi-subjects governance. Moreover, the environmental governance theory is integrated and innovated from several dimensions, such as governance objectives, policies and methods. This paper also puts forward the multiple approaches of environmental governance, and analyzes and solves problems with the multiple logic of environmental governance, and sums up the experience and lessons of environmental governance practice. Finally, this paper looks forward to the theoretical development of environmental governance, which has far-reaching significance for how to construct the environmental governance model with Chinese characteristics and effectively promote the sustainable development of the environment.

UNGA as the Anchor: Global Environmental Conferencing

It has been nearly 50 years since the pioneering first global UN Conference on Human Environment was organized in Stockholm in 1972. After that, several global conferences took place over the last decades. Some of them have been praised for their contribution to shaping international environmental institutions and international treaties; others have passed almost unnoticed by the wider public. Yet, these global environmental conferences have cumulatively provided the foundations for the development of international environmental policies and the progressive development of law. In the light of ongoing environmental degradation in the ‘Anthropocene,’ the further development of environmental governance seems more important than ever. Hence, this chapter seeks to examine how this future pathway would look like as regards the technique of global environmental conferences have hitherto shaped the existing structures of international environmental governance. It surmises that the UNGA could be described as an anchor that merely maintains the status quo of international environmental law and policy.

Transboundary Environmental Governance across the World's Largest Border ed. by Stephen Brooks and Andrea Olive

Reviewed by: Transboundary Environmental Governance across the World's Largest Border ed. by Stephen Brooks and Andrea Olive Paul Todhunter Transboundary Environmental Governance across the World's Largest Border. Edited by Stephen Brooks and Andrea Olive. Winnipeg: University of Manitoba Press, 2018. vii + 248 pp. Map, tables, contributors, index. C$39.95 paper. Transboundary environmental governance concerns management of resources where "manmade boundaries . . . have been inserted against nature's will." The book provides a significant contribution to a growing literature on transboundary governance along the Canada–United States border. This international border, the world's longest border, contains 20% of the available global fresh surface water, shares numerous and diverse habitats, possesses rich and varied natural resources, and is populated by peoples with close economic ties, parallel histories, and common cultural roots. Important differences also exist, however, that lead to divergence and conflict in transboundary governance. The aim of the editors is "to help us better understand the issues, processes, and challenges that characterize transboundary environmental governance between Canada and the United States." They asked volume contributors to describe the state of existing relationships, governance structures, and processes of transboundary governance, to assess the adequacy of these structures with respect to environmental impacts, and to evaluate opportunities for reform, improved outcomes, and successful accommodation of emerging environmental concerns. The editors have splendidly met these aims. I was most impressed by the coherence of the entire volume, and how each individual chapter made a significant contribution to the whole. Each contributor focused on the editors' aims, provided an entry of similar length and depth, presented interesting case histories, and addressed common themes. Contributors had access to drafts of other chapters, and often referenced points made in other parts of the book. The volume has none of the disjointedness that can characterize edited multi-author volumes. Most chapters share a common structure, with a summary introduction, a historical perspective on the development of environmental governance, a development of those initial structures to accommodate the increasing complexity of environmental and human affairs, and selected case histories. The volume is organized along a geographical gradient cross-cut by major resource types. The editors first provide a lengthy preface that summarizes each contribution. The first chapter reviews the International Joint Commission that grew out of the Boundary Waters Treaty of 1909 and formed the basis of early Canada–United States transboundary governance, but is now overshadowed by multilayered regional agreements of varied types. The next three chapters examine the Great Lakes Basin, each focusing on a different environmental issue: water quantity, water storage, and river navigation; fisheries management; and water quality and pollution. The fifth chapter, on the Prairie Region, will be of greatest interest to this journal's readers. A historical prioritization of economic development led to full allocation of water rights in a region of scarce and unreliable water resources, but now faces challenges from new voices advocating for environmental conservation and sustainability. The St. Mary, Milk, and Souris river basins are the focus of the chapter, a decision for which rational support is given. The omission of the Red River of the North Basin is disappointing, however, given its unique properties and regional importance. A chapter on the Pacific West and two chapters on energy governance follow that are also highly relevant to the Great Plains. Here, in a unique twist, Canada has been the driver for resource development, and the US has been more resistant in its approach to resource development. The final chapter summarizes lessons learned, and looks forward to new challenges posed by invasive species, climate change, and development of the Arctic. Numerous themes emerge from the individual chapters. Multilayered governance has developed with a sharing of power between national, subnational, regional, and local levels of administration. New actors now bring their voices to the governance table, including environmentalists, nongovernmental organizations, and Indigenous, First Nation, and tribal peoples. The early dominance of economic development interests has broadened to consider environmental quality, habitat conservation, and sustainability perspectives. Common-pool resources require different governance structures and approaches depending upon the symmetry or asymmetry of regional benefits and costs of resource development. Transboundary governance has grown in complexity, often leading to institutional...

La gobernanza ambiental: el estudio del capital social en las Áreas Naturales Protegidas

Si bien, el Decreto de Áreas Naturales Protegidas (anp) en la mayoría de los países de Centroamérica y el Caribe se ha dado en diferentes momentos históricos, esta figura jurídica ha surgido básicamente como un instrumento de conservación propuesta por la política de Estado; por tanto, las áreas se encuentran administradas por diversos organismos gubernamentales que a todas luces limitan la participación de otros actores sociales y el aprovechamiento sustentable de los recursos en estos territorios. Las anp en México no son la excepción, estas se encuentran bajo un esquema de gobernabilidad que se caracteriza porque el Estado se erige como el actor central, el cual se encarga de normar tanto el acceso como el aprovechamiento de esos ecosistemas que también son objeto de interés por parte de múltiples actores sociales. En este contexto, el objetivo es proponer algunas herramientas teórico-metodológicas para la comprensión de la estructura de las relaciones sociales en las anp mexicanas, lo cual, se supone, es fundamento para el diseño de intervenciones planificadas encaminadas al desarrollo de formas de gobernanza ambiental. Para ello, se retomó la perspectiva teórica del capital social (cs) con énfasis en el cs estructural, por su capacidad explicativa en relación con los vínculos de naturaleza horizontal y vertical, pero, sobre todo, es una herramienta que permite la comprensión de la gobernanza ambiental como un proceso socio-organizativo de carácter multiactoral.

The foundation and development of environmental governance in Singapore

Singapore is a study in consistency, and the impact of cultural context on the nation’s government and policy is profound. While the interaction of politics, administration, and Asian values has been discussed generally in the literature, the framework of environmental protection in the Singapore experience has not been fully examined in the light of the nation’s growth and Confucian values. This article considers Singapore’s cultural background, highlighting its Confucianist system, and reviews its environmental policy development in the light of what is essentially a national-level application of the ethical–philosophical system.

China and the environment: Domestic and transnational dynamics of a future hegemon

This article identifies the central themes that emerge from this issue regarding the development of environmental governance in China. In several respects China appears to be adopting a familiar Western model, including the emergence of more progressive environmental policies, expanding environmental capacities, a shift from regulation to governance and an increasing role for civil society. Yet China retains distinctive features, notably the central role of the state, the continuing restrictions on democratic accountability and, significantly, some innovative environmental initiatives. As China opens up to the world her position as a global superpower is creating an increasingly important new role in shaping global environmental politics.