International Policy Frameworks Research Articles

Greener through gender: What climate mainstreaming can learn from gender mainstreaming

AbstractAddressing the urgent global climate crisis demands a rapid and meaningful expansion of “climate mainstreaming,” which refers to the integration of climate objectives in all aspects of development programs and policies. However, progress remains slow and uneven due to bottlenecks in policy and institutional change. Considering the parallel struggle recorded over decades to mainstream gender across the same policy arenas, a key question emerges: what can climate mainstreaming learn from gender mainstreaming? To answer this question, we review 57 policy, strategy, and guidance documents of United Nations agencies, all of which integrate these themes into food security and broader development programming. Our analysis identifies gaps in climate mainstreaming efforts and derives lessons from gender mainstreaming to bridge these gaps. It underscores the importance of adapting programmatic mainstreaming strategies in response to evolving contexts, for example, by simultaneously considering both mainstreaming and targeted interventions. Additionally, it highlights the need to adopt organizational climate mainstreaming and establish mechanisms for accountability. Finally, it emphasizes the urgency of embracing a climate justice lens; in practice, this involves prioritizing populations at greater risk of climate change impacts and actively engaging diverse perspectives in decision‐making, particularly communities facing multiple forms of discrimination.This article is categorized under: Integrated Assessment of Climate Change > Assessing Climate Change in the Context of Other Issues Climate and Development > Sustainability and Human Well‐Being Policy and Governance > International Policy Framework

Factors supporting sovereign wealth fund adoption

ABSTRACT The adoption of sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) has been rising globally. While their benefits are recognized, they are underutilized, particularly among commodity exporters. This research adds to the nascent literature on factors, focusing on external support, institutional readiness, and domestic capability, that influence SWF adoption. We highlight the importance of international financial institutions, policy frameworks, and technical capability in supporting countries’ adoption of SWFs.

Bridging Global Policy-making and Local Intensive Developments in the Urban Voids of a Megacity: Insights from Bangkok

Megacities and rapidly urbanizing territories are contemporary issues which have now reached international attention and institutional recognition. Megacities and rapidly urbanizing territories in Southeast Asia especially are subject to both intensive and extensive patterns of growth that are reflected by the dynamics of densification in consolidated urban areas and loss of agricultural lands due to development in peri-urban areas. The New Urban Agenda and the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide an international shared understanding of policies and knowledge to tackle, among other issues, loss of agricultural land, general land use management, segregation and inequalities within megacities and rapidly urbanizing regions. However, oftentimes, this international level of policy-making loses its strength when the urban issues are scaled down to local applications. Influenced by the presence of local private interests and global economic forces, the local urban processes of intensive and extensive growth appear to be detached from the general international policy framework and affected by site-specific dynamics. This article examines the level of this separation in Bangkok, especially in regards to a specific kind of the aforementioned intensive growth at the metropolitan scale, the development of the urban voids - terrain vague. I discuss how this separation is more evident in those empty, underused, and abandoned areas where possible intensive developments could happen. Furthermore, I evaluate this separation by reflecting on how it can affect the upcoming future of the megacity of Bangkok.

Staff perception on including students with physical disabilities at a South African university.

International and local policy frameworks on disability promote inclusive higher education practices for students with disabilities (SWD). However, the actual application of these frameworks concerning students with physical disabilities (SWPD) in any School of Health Care Sciences (SHCS) is uncertain in South African universities. This study aimed to explore the perceptions of academic and admission staff on the inclusion of SWPD in SHCS at a South African university. The study was carried out at a University of Health Sciences in South Africa. A qualitative study in which respondents (n = 12) were interviewed in depth about their perceptions on the inclusion of SWPD in the SHCS. Thematic analysis was used in the data assessment. The results revealed three main themes: policy discourse, environmental effects on inclusion and SWPD enrolment. Respondents reported the lack of a disability inclusion policy and disability unit to support SWD in general. The respondents also noted that there were environmental challenges that could potentially affect the inclusion of SWPD in SHCS study programmes. Respondents also indicated that there was no SWPD enrolment as the university's current inclusion and/or quota system does not include SWD. The findings of the study showed a lack of disability inclusion policy, environmental challenges and lack of SWPD enrolment. Based on the study findings, it can be concluded that inclusion of SWPD at this university may be negatively influenced. The study findings contribute to the field of disability and the inclusion of SWPD in higher education institutions (HEIs).

Accelerated human-induced extinction crisis in the world's freshwater mammals

Human activities have significantly impacted natural habitats and wildlife worldwide, particularly emphasizing repercussions for freshwater habitats and associated species. These negative impacts on freshwater fish are well known, but for mammal species that regularly use and dependend on freshwater systems, there is an incomplete understanding. Here, we assessed the status of freshwater and semi-aquatic mammal species inhabiting and dependent on freshwater ecosystems (hereafter referred to as freshwater mammals) and evaluated the impact of human activities on species richness both globally and by biogeographical regions. We used structural equation modeling and simultaneous autoregressive models to assess the direct and indirect effects of seven anthropogenic-related variables on overall freshwater mammal richness. Specifically, we examined the effects of anthropogenic disturbance on the richness of threatened and non-threatened species, as well as species with decreasing and stable/increasing populations. Forty-three percent of all freshwater mammal species are classified as globally threatened by the IUCN Red List, with 50% experiencing population declines. Furthermore, 48% are affected by domestic or international trade, while 75% face threats from geographically expanding human activities. Aridity, pesticide pollution, human footprint, and croplands had the strongest negative effects on freshwater mammal richness. In contrast, the coverage of freshwater habitats (FWs), Indigenous Peoples' lands (IPLs), and protected areas (PAs) helped to sustain freshwater mammal species globally, with an even stronger positive effect at individual biogeographical regions. We conclude that FWs, IPLs, and PAs play a critical role in the conservation of freshwater mammal species, helping safeguard these species from extinction, however, freshwater ecosystems are seldom the focal point of conservation management strategies. The ongoing adverse anthropogenic impacts on these natural habitats present a potentially catastrophic and irreversible threat to global freshwater environments and the species, including humans, reliant upon them. We strongly advocate for the implementation of more robust national and international policy frameworks that endorse alternative and sustainable livelihoods. Such frameworks can play a crucial role in alleviating anthropogenic pressures, thereby aiding in the mitigation of the extinction risk faced by these vital ecosystems and the world's freshwater mammal species.

New Generation Sustainable Technologies for Soilless Vegetable Production

This review article conducts an in-depth analysis of the role of next-generation technologies in soilless vegetable production, highlighting their groundbreaking potential to revolutionize yield, efficiency, and sustainability. These technologies, such as AI-driven monitoring systems and precision farming methods, offer unparalleled accuracy in monitoring critical variables such as nutrient concentrations and pH levels. However, the paper also addresses the multifaceted challenges that hinder the widespread adoption of these technologies. The high initial investment costs pose a significant barrier, particularly for small- and medium-scale farmers, thereby risking the creation of a technological divide in the industry. Additionally, the technical complexity of these systems demands specialized expertise, potentially exacerbating knowledge gaps among farmers. Other considerations are scrutinized, including data privacy concerns and potential job displacement due to automation. Regulatory challenges, such as international trade regulations and policy frameworks, are discussed, as they may need revision to accommodate these new technologies. The paper concludes by emphasizing that while these sustainable technologies offer transformative benefits, their potential for broad adoption is constrained by a complex interplay of financial, technical, regulatory, and social factors.

Nuclear security measures: A review of selected emerging technologies and strategies

This review article delves into the ever-evolving landscape of nuclear security, presenting an overview of emerging technologies and strategies that have the potential to enhance the safeguarding of nuclear materials, facilities, and information. With the global security environment continuously evolving, staying ahead of potential threats to nuclear assets is paramount. This article explores a wide range of cutting-edge advancements that could revolutionize nuclear security efforts, offering a balanced assessment of their benefits, and challenges. To facilitate an organized presentation and analysis, the extracted articles were categorized into distinct sections based on the identified key topics. These categories included "advanced surveillance and monitoring systems," "cybersecurity and digital protection," "non-destructive evaluation techniques," "physical security enhancements," "nuclear material characterization nuclear forensics," and "international collaboration and policy frameworks." Each section was dedicated to exploring the advancements, challenges, and implications specific to the respective technology or strategy. By offering this synthesis, the article aims to serve as a strategic resource for policymakers, security professionals, and researchers, underlining the pivotal role of technology in safeguarding against nuclear threats in an interconnected world.

International Legal and Policy Framework Related to Climate Change: A Systematic Review

International Legal and Policy Framework Related to Climate Change: A Systematic Review

OP19 Exploring The Environment/Capacity Of South African Citizen Actors To Contribute To Health Technology Assessment Processes, Policy Development And Institutionalization

IntroductionSeveral overarching health policy reform processes are currently underway in South Africa (SA), providing an opportunity to establish health technology assessment (HTA) and value-based assessment (VBA) frameworks that foster patient and citizen involvement (PCI). A mapping of the capacity, knowledge, and skill of SA PCI advocacy actors and understanding of the ‘middle-ground’ and influencing relationships that influence advocacy strategies for PCI in HTA, will allow us to determine the needs of PCI actors to entrench PCI principles in the emerging institutionalization of HTA in SA.MethodsAn analysis of national and international legislative and policy frameworks indicates current gaps and opportunities for PCI institutionalization in HTA in SA. A survey was conducted to determine SA patient and citizen advocacy actors’ capacity, knowledge, and skill across multiple disease areas. An analysis of decision maker’s opinions and positions about PCI in HTA and VBA policy, and their potential influence on the PCI process was undertaken.ResultsThe legislation and policy review indicate that engagement initiatives are positioned at the ‘involvement’ or ‘consultation’ stages of the engagement continuum, rather than higher-level engagement. Five percent of patient advocacy groups (PAGs) interviewed have formalized PCI HTA advocacy strategies. Few PAGs indicated employing processes to actively monitor the HTA and PCI-related activities of decision-makers.The majority of PAGs stated that collaborative efforts within larger networks would generate more success, if they engaged in PCI in HTA advocacy. Over eighty percent of civil society stakeholders face capacity constraints, such as lack of knowledge of the legislative framework and theory of HTA, funding and manpower to engage in PCI. The majority of HTA processes undertaken by funders in SA do not actively include PAGs or formalized PCI.ConclusionsExisting legislative and policy frameworks do not include PCI capacity-building strategies. This is impacted by the lack of coordination amongst patient and consumer groups, the willingness of existing HTA structures to formalize PCI, and the resources of the country’s PCI advocate actors to influence existing HTA processes.

The paradoxical (post-)politics of scale: exploring authoritarian state environmental policymaking in Brunei

ABSTRACT This article argues how the politics of scale is paradoxically used by the Bruneian state in environmental policymaking to legitimate its internal authoritarian regime. The literatures on post-politics, green authoritarianism and green as ‘spectacle’ are used in conjunction with personal observation findings on forestry protection and climate change policymaking processes, and triangulation with global environmental performance indices, to explore this paradox. The Bruneian state must justify a strong environmental policy implementation rhetoric, whilst simultaneously having to maintain its domestic authoritarian functioning that relies on fossil fuel extraction and exportation. It does this by engaging in a ‘consensual’ neoliberal post-politics that uses supra-national and international environmental policy frameworks and settings that are liberal democratic and polycentric in nature, through a ‘post-politics of scale’. This article contributes to the wider territory, politics and governance literature by illustrating how internal enviro-political tensions are remedied, inculcated across, and discursively influenced by, wider geographical spaces and politics beyond individual states, regardless of their political regime type.

The effect of clean energy investment on CO2 emissions: Insights from a Spatial Durbin Model

We estimate the direct and indirect effects of clean energy investment on carbon emissions using a Spatial Durbin Model fitted to a panel of 72 countries from 2000 to 2018. We find that a 1 percent increase in domestic clean energy investment reduces domestic carbon emissions by approximately 0.05 percent on average, controlling for country characteristics. However, this benefit is offset by a carbon leakage effect, whereby a 1 percent increase in clean energy investment among neighboring countries leads to about a 0.28 percent increase in domestic carbon emissions. This is suggestive of the outsourcing of pollution from one country to another and indicates that ad hoc policies to promote clean energy investment may be ineffective in achieving global emissions abatement. We conclude that a coordinated international policy framework is required to prevent jurisdiction-shopping by polluters.

Time for “environmentarian corridors”? Investigating the concept of safe passage to protect the environment during armed conflict

AbstractActors engaging in a diverse set of environmental protection activities are experiencing serious difficulties executing their mandates during armed conflict, leading to environmental harm that could otherwise have been mitigated. This article examines to what extent the international legal and policy framework can ensure the protection of environmental protection actors during armed conflict. It is argued that environmental protection actors can be seen either as part of civil defence organizations or as humanitarian relief actors, and are therefore covered by special protections under international humanitarian law. However, two main challenges remain: (1) despite these existing provisions, environmental protection actors may still face access and safety issues during armed conflict, and (2) within this framework, environmental protection activities must be linked to civilian needs and cannot be conducted based on ecocentric motivations. To overcome these challenges, the article introduces the concept of “environmentarian corridors”. Environmentarian corridors would allow for the unimpeded movement of environmental protection workers and resources through contested territory and into emergency areas to protect the environment. They would also serve to increase awareness about obligations to protect the environment and would help to ensure the safety of environmental protection actors during armed conflict, as the role and mandate of these actors is explicitly accepted by stakeholders. Additionally, environmentarian corridors offer potential for conducting environmental protection activities on ecocentric grounds. The article concludes by advocating for stakeholders to employ the provisions and concepts articulated herein as a means to further promote and strengthen initiatives aimed at protecting the environment during armed conflict.

Human-modified landscapes driving the global primate extinction crisis.

The world's primates have been severely impacted in diverse and profound ways by anthropogenic pressures. Here, we evaluate the impact of various infrastructures and human-modified landscapes on spatial patterns of primate species richness, at both global and regional scales. We overlaid the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) range maps of 520 primate species and applied a global 100 km2 grid. We used structural equation modeling and simultaneous autoregressive models to evaluate direct and indirect effects of six human-altered landscapes variables (i.e., human footprint [HFP], croplands [CROP], road density [ROAD], pasture lands [PAST], protected areas [PAs], and Indigenous Peoples' lands [IPLs]) on global primate species richness, threatened and non-threatened species, as well as on species with decreasing and non-decreasing populations. Two-thirds of all primate species are classified as threatened (i.e., Critically Endangered, Endangered, and Vulnerable), with ~86% experiencing population declines, and ~84% impacted by domestic or international trade. We found that the expansion of PAST, HFP, CROP, and road infrastructure had the most direct negative effects on primate richness. In contrast, forested habitat within IPLs and PAs was positively associated in safeguarding primate species diversity globally, with an even stronger effect at the regional level. Our results show that IPLs and PAs play a critical role in primate species conservation, helping to prevent their extinction; in contrast, HFP growth and expansion has a dramatically negative effect on primate species worldwide. Our findings support predictions that the continued negative impact of anthropogenic pressures on natural habitats may lead to a significant decline in global primate species richness, and likely, species extirpations. We advocate for stronger national and international policy frameworks promoting alternative/sustainable livelihoods and reducing persistent anthropogenic pressures to help mitigate the extinction risk of the world's primate species.

Systematic Review of Potential Statutory and Policy Frameworks for Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Enforcement in Ethiopia: International and Local Experience

Purpose: This article aims to identify the existence of local and international legal and policy frameworks that can be used to commence structured CSR practice and establish comprehensive legal and policy frameworks in Ethiopia and the rest of the developing countries. The penultimate purpose of this study is also to ascribe the legal and policy frameworks that support Internal and/or External CSR. These all are the major foci of the contribution of this research article. Design/methodology/approach: National and international legal and policy documents related to CSR were reviewed. The study adopts a qualitative approach through a systematic review and meta-analysis was used to meet its research objectives.Findings: The findings depict that various legal and policy documents can contribute as a foundation for the laws, policies, and guidelines of CSR that will be established in Ethiopia, thus it helps to ensure the effective implementation of CSR. However, most of the legal and policy resources are emphasised on ICSR than ECSR. Moreover, the finding supports the existence of a significant gap in CSR orientations between developed and developing nations.Practical Implications: This study provides insight into the legal and policymakers that endeavor to bridge the gaps through establishing comprehensive law and policy frameworks. This wills results in corporate businesses to consider CSR compulsory and that promotes societal well-being.Originality: The study has unique features compared to prior research. The researchers were focused on the CSR operational activities in certain industries. Therefore, this study focuses on exploring the legal and policy infrastructure that can be profound in establishing independent, institutionalised, and consistent CSR in Ethiopia.

Carbon sequestration and climate change mitigation using macroalgae: a state of knowledge review.

The conservation, restoration, and improved management of terrestrial forests significantly contributes to mitigate climate change and its impacts, as well as providing numerous co-benefits. The pressing need to reduce emissions and increase carbon removal from the atmosphere is now also leading to the development of natural climate solutions in the ocean. Interest in the carbon sequestration potential of underwater macroalgal forests is growing rapidly among policy, conservation, and corporate sectors. Yet, our understanding of whether carbon sequestration from macroalgal forests can lead to tangible climate change mitigation remains severely limited, hampering their inclusion in international policy or carbon finance frameworks. Here, we examine the results of over 180 publications to synthesise evidence regarding macroalgal forest carbon sequestration potential. We show that research efforts on macroalgae carbon sequestration are heavily skewed towards particulate organic carbon (POC) pathways (77% of data publications), and that carbon fixation is the most studied flux (55%). Fluxes leading directly to carbon sequestration (e.g. carbon export or burial in marine sediments) remain poorly resolved, likely hindering regional or country-level assessments of carbon sequestration potential, which are only available from 17 of the 150 countries where macroalgal forests occur. To solve this issue, we present a framework to categorize coastlines according to their carbon sequestration potential. Finally, we review the multiple avenues through which this sequestration can translate into climate change mitigation capacity, which largely depends on whether management interventions can increase carbon removal above a natural baseline or avoid further carbon emissions. We find that conservation, restoration and afforestation interventions on macroalgal forests can potentially lead to carbon removal in the order of 10's of Tg C globally. Although this is lower than current estimates of natural sequestration value of all macroalgal habitats (61-268 Tg C year-1 ), it suggests that macroalgal forests could add to the total mitigation potential of coastal blue carbon ecosystems, and offer valuable mitigation opportunities in polar and temperate areas where blue carbon mitigation is currently low. Operationalizing that potential will necessitate the development of models that reliably estimate the proportion of production sequestered, improvements in macroalgae carbon fingerprinting techniques, and a rethinking of carbon accounting methodologies. The ocean provides major opportunities to mitigate and adapt to climate change, and the largest coastal vegetated habitat on Earth should not be ignored simply because it does not fit into existing frameworks.

Environmental Policy Frameworks for Ports: In Search of a Gold Standard

Abstract Ports play a vital role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and a broad range of other tranportation-related environmental impacts. This article examines the critical elements of an effective environmental policy frame-work for ports that could be considered a “gold standard.” An exploratory analysis is conducted by delving into the academic literature and analyzing existing international and regional policy frameworks for ports. Fifteen in-terviews with subject-matter experts were conducted to identify sustaina-bility initiatives of two case study ports: Rotterdam and Long Beach. The article extends a previously developed framework for ports developed by Christodoulou et al., which identifies the following spheres of influence: the ports themselves, the role of ports in supporting shipping and inland transportation, and the geographical area surrounding the port. The current study extends the framework from its initial focus on GHG emission reduc-tion-related initiatives to other environmental sustainability initiatives un-dertaken by ports. It is clear that a “gold standard” requires a proactive and participatory approach to sustainability initiatives for the power itself and effective processes for collaboration with the shipping sector, inland trans-portation, and the geographic area surrounding ports to enable the port to be a constructive partner in all its spheres of influence and for the frame-work to evolve over time to continue to improve on an ongoing basis.

Generating instability? The impact of the EU's hybrid migration governance in Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan

AbstractThis article analyses the migration agreements between the European Union (EU) and Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan. These international policy frameworks were negotiated in tandem with one another, and all were announced in 2016. Drawing on fieldwork conducted in the three countries, the article argues that they fuse humanitarian elements with a bloc‐based security logic in an ad‐hoc mix that lacks substantive legitimacy in the three states, rendering the frameworks unstable. The article introduces the idea of hybrid migration governance which we have developed inductively to conceptualise the empirical findings from our fieldwork, building on existing work on hybridity in the conflict and security studies literature and Nora Stel's conception of governance as the ability to shape the field of action of others. In our usage, hybrid migration governance refers to the efficacy of EU intervention in the institutional management of migration in the three case study countries (‘shaping the field of action’), the ‘frozen’ character of the societal relations formed through this process and their underlying lack of domestic legitimacy. In conclusion, we argue that hybrid migration governance poses problem for the EU's ‘Barcelona’ conception of human security, because rather than expanding the bloc's ‘zone of security’ to the international neighbourhood, these policies have generated downstream security‐risks.

An attempt to develop a policy framework for the global sustainability of freshwater resources in the virtual water trade

International trade in agricultural products transfers significant virtual water flow between countries. However, it must be clarified whether countries or trade agreements take virtual water in products and goods that are traded into account. Despite unprecedented worldwide attention paid to water status, there is currently no framework for virtual water usage that may serve as the basis for global virtual water administration. The primary objective of this study is to address this research gap. This study attempted to develop an international policy framework in which political actors, governments, and private companies create shared responsibility agreements regarding water as the most fundamental natural resource for sustainable use. In this study, we performed a global assessment of the virtual water trade (VWT) of wheat from 2002 to 2021. Although previous research has hypothesized that will use the world's freshwater resources sustainably by transferring virtual water from water-abundant to water-deficient countries, However, based on the developed policy framework, we discovered that there is no positive correlation between the water abundance of virtual water exporting countries and the global sustainability of freshwater resources. A total of 68.3 % of the global VWT for wheat is unsustainable. Water-abundant countries, such as the United States, Australia, and the Russian Federation, are responsible for the greatest unsustainability in the VWT of wheat. Our results could contribute to developing decision-making tools for the global sustainability of freshwater resources used in VWT.

Supporting adults to become numerate citizens: a study of adult numeracy provision in Ireland

This paper revisits and reanalyses data from a study carried out in the further education and training sector in the Republic of Ireland to investigate (1) how adults access and participate in numeracy courses and (2) how adult numeracy provision might support active citizenship. We analysed 45 interviews with adult education providers, adult numeracy tutors, and adult learners to identify themes that connect adult numeracy with a human rights conception of citizenship as access to and participation in economic, social, and community life. This analysis found that the most common barriers to accessing adult numeracy courses arose from dispositional factors relating to fear, anxiety and lack of confidence with mathematics, largely due to negative experiences in formal schooling. To overcome these barriers, adults’ participation in numeracy courses was encouraged by integrating numeracy learning activities into real world contexts in a non-threatening learning environment. The interview analysis also illustrated ways in which adult numeracy education supported active citizenship in the economic, social, and community spheres, by (i) enhancing financial literacy and preparing adults for employment; (ii) fostering individual empowerment, family learning and social inclusion; and (iii) enabling civic engagement. Policies for promoting adult education typically aim to develop active citizenship, but without specifying how this is to be achieved. Our study is valuable because it illuminates potential connections between citizenship and numeracy as a dimension of adult education that is separate from literacy. The findings lead to recommendations for translating national and international policy frameworks into research-informed adult education programs.

Learning and community building in support of collective action: Toward a new climate of communication at the COP

AbstractThe international UN Climate Change conferences known as “Conferences of the Parties (COPs)” have an enormous convening power and are attended annually by tens of thousands of actors working on climate change topics from a wide range of perspectives. In the COP spaces outside of the formal negotiations, the communication culture is dominated by “side events,” a format that relies heavily on conventional presentations and panels that can be informative, but is generally not conducive to mutual engagement, reflection, or dialogue. There is an urgent need for new dialogue formats that can better foster learning and community‐building and thereby harness the enormous latent potential for climate action represented by the diverse stakeholders that gather at the COP. Against this backdrop, and drawing on our experience with the development and implementation of the Co‐Creative Reflection and Dialogue Spaces at COP25, COP26, and COP27, we make recommendations for further developing the communication culture of the COPs. At the level of individual sessions, we provide recommendations for designing participatory dialogues that can better support reflection, interconnection, and action orientation. In addition, we offer guidance for scaling up these practices, for instance through networks and communities of practice to support a shift of the overall communication culture of the COPs. Our recommendations focus on interactions and exchanges that unfold outside of the formal negotiation sessions, with a view toward enabling and accelerating transformative action by non‐state actors.This article is categorized under: Perceptions, Behavior, and Communication of Climate Change > Communication Policy and Governance > International Policy Framework