Environmental Science & Policy最新文献_第4页

Promoting sustainable food systems: An empirical analysis of local Food Hub governance models and structures in 12 African settings

IF 4.9 2区环境科学与生态学 Q1 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES

Environmental Science & Policy

Pub Date : 2025-02-01 DOI: 10.1016/j.envsci.2024.103983

Elisa Carloni , Claudia Giordano , Gianluca Nicola Di Fiore , Luca Mulazzani , Marco Setti , Luca Falasconi , Valentino Marini Govigli

African food systems are increasingly challenged by climate change, market instability, globalization, urbanization, and recent global crises. Such challenges, along with a mismatch between consumers’ preferences and production opportunities, are generating vulnerabilities in the local food systems and exacerbating food insecurity and environmental problems such as land degradation, water scarcity, and loss of biodiversity. In response to these challenges, this study investigates the concept of Food Hubs as a potential adaptive governance mechanism. By analyzing and comparing information collected from 12 Food Hubs across five African countries, the research aims to uncover how local actors design and implement Food Hubs alongside the governance structures and mechanisms they adopt. Our results show that the 12 Food Hubs hold the potential to respond effectively to contemporary food system challenges, promote resilience in food systems, and enable more sustainable use of environmental resources. In particular, we point to the role played by the context in which they operate, its impact on their organizational structures, public/private stakeholders’ involvement, and the array of formalization procedures, ranging from loosely binding agreements to the implementation of ad hoc institutions. This study contributes to an in-depth understanding of Food Hub development and governance, offering both empirical insights into their role in building sustainable and adaptive food systems in the African context and a theoretical contribution to the design, development, and implementation phase of Food Hubs (and similar organizations).

{"title":"Promoting sustainable food systems: An empirical analysis of local Food Hub governance models and structures in 12 African settings","authors":"Elisa Carloni , Claudia Giordano , Gianluca Nicola Di Fiore , Luca Mulazzani , Marco Setti , Luca Falasconi , Valentino Marini Govigli","doi":"10.1016/j.envsci.2024.103983","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.envsci.2024.103983","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>African food systems are increasingly challenged by climate change, market instability, globalization, urbanization, and recent global crises. Such challenges, along with a mismatch between consumers’ preferences and production opportunities, are generating vulnerabilities in the local food systems and exacerbating food insecurity and environmental problems such as land degradation, water scarcity, and loss of biodiversity. In response to these challenges, this study investigates the concept of Food Hubs as a potential adaptive governance mechanism. By analyzing and comparing information collected from 12 Food Hubs across five African countries, the research aims to uncover how local actors design and implement Food Hubs alongside the governance structures and mechanisms they adopt. Our results show that the 12 Food Hubs hold the potential to respond effectively to contemporary food system challenges, promote resilience in food systems, and enable more sustainable use of environmental resources. In particular, we point to the role played by the context in which they operate, its impact on their organizational structures, public/private stakeholders’ involvement, and the array of formalization procedures, ranging from loosely binding agreements to the implementation of ad hoc institutions. This study contributes to an in-depth understanding of Food Hub development and governance, offering both empirical insights into their role in building sustainable and adaptive food systems in the African context and a theoretical contribution to the design, development, and implementation phase of Food Hubs (and similar organizations).</div></div>","PeriodicalId":313,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Science & Policy","volume":"164 ","pages":"Article 103983"},"PeriodicalIF":4.9,"publicationDate":"2025-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143099392","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

Assessing to act: A water-energy-food-ecosystem (WEFE) nexus governance assessment for the Inkomati-Usuthu river basin in South Africa

IF 4.9 2区环境科学与生态学 Q1 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES

Environmental Science & Policy

Pub Date : 2025-02-01 DOI: 10.1016/j.envsci.2025.103986

Eva Sievers , Ingrid Canovas , Daniella Kristensen , Frank Hüesker

Water, energy, food, and ecosystems (WEFE) are inherently interlinked, forming a complex system (nexus) that is shaped by natural and anthropogenic factors. The nexus concept was introduced as a holistic approach to resource governance. Yet, many studies remain rather technical and governance and policy-related questions often unanswered. This paper presents a WEFE nexus governance assessment for the Inkomati-Usuthu river basin in South Africa. The assessment is based on interviews and workshops with stakeholders from the four WEFE sectors and local, regional and national levels. Using the WEFE nexus governance assessment tool NXGAT, we evaluated the current governance system along five governance dimensions (actors and networks, levels and scales, problem perspectives and goal ambitions, strategies and instruments, and responsibilities and resources) and five governance quality criteria (comprehensiveness, coherence, flexibility, intensity of action, and fit). Our results show that the current governance system of the Inkomati-Usuthu river basin is moderately restrictive towards WEFE nexus governance, in particular due to the poor performance of the governance quality criteria comprehensiveness, coherence, and intensity of action. We give practical recommendations for nexus-oriented actions that can be implemented as key steps towards WEFE nexus governance. Subsequently, we reflect on our methods and discuss limitations of our study. We conclude that a WEFE nexus governance assessment based on stakeholder experiences and knowledge provides valuable insights and contributes to broader efforts to enable more contextualised assessments.

{"title":"Assessing to act: A water-energy-food-ecosystem (WEFE) nexus governance assessment for the Inkomati-Usuthu river basin in South Africa","authors":"Eva Sievers , Ingrid Canovas , Daniella Kristensen , Frank Hüesker","doi":"10.1016/j.envsci.2025.103986","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.envsci.2025.103986","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Water, energy, food, and ecosystems (WEFE) are inherently interlinked, forming a complex system (nexus) that is shaped by natural and anthropogenic factors. The nexus concept was introduced as a holistic approach to resource governance. Yet, many studies remain rather technical and governance and policy-related questions often unanswered. This paper presents a WEFE nexus governance assessment for the Inkomati-Usuthu river basin in South Africa. The assessment is based on interviews and workshops with stakeholders from the four WEFE sectors and local, regional and national levels. Using the WEFE nexus governance assessment tool NXGAT, we evaluated the current governance system along five governance dimensions (<em>actors and networks, levels and scales, problem perspectives and goal ambitions, strategies and instruments, and responsibilities and resources</em>) and five governance quality criteria (<em>comprehensiveness, coherence, flexibility, intensity of action, and fit</em>). Our results show that the current governance system of the Inkomati-Usuthu river basin is <em>moderately restrictive</em> towards WEFE nexus governance, in particular due to the poor performance of the governance quality criteria <em>comprehensiveness, coherence</em>, and <em>intensity of action</em>. We give practical recommendations for nexus-oriented actions that can be implemented as key steps towards WEFE nexus governance. Subsequently, we reflect on our methods and discuss limitations of our study. We conclude that a WEFE nexus governance assessment based on stakeholder experiences and knowledge provides valuable insights and contributes to broader efforts to enable more contextualised assessments.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":313,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Science & Policy","volume":"164 ","pages":"Article 103986"},"PeriodicalIF":4.9,"publicationDate":"2025-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143099465","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

From environmental policy consensus to socio-environmental policy controversy: Discursive network dynamics of the Ghentian Low Emission Zone

IF 4.9 2区环境科学与生态学 Q1 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES

Environmental Science & Policy

Pub Date : 2025-02-01 DOI: 10.1016/j.envsci.2025.104013

Kimberley Vandenhole

Contemporary socio-ecological conditions are giving rise to a wide range of environmental policy controversies. One of them is the implementation of Low Emission Zones (LEZs) in a number of European cities. As a controversial policy measure against air pollution, LEZs can be understood as discursive struggles where polarisation and conflict arise from the different discourses that actors adopt towards it. In the city of Ghent (Belgium), the implementation of a LEZ initially constituted an apparent policy consensus before developing into a policy controversy. This article explores how the Ghentian LEZ developed into a policy controversy using a discourse network analysis in two phases: first, the discursive structure of the controversy is dissected in order to identify the different discourses and coalitions; second, the argumentative structure of the discourses is dissected in order to uncover the types of arguments used and how they contributed to intensify the controversy. Drawing on the Ghentian case, this article discusses air pollution policy in light of post-politicisation processes and explores implications for the study of environmental discourses, just urban mobility and environmental policy before concluding.

{"title":"From environmental policy consensus to socio-environmental policy controversy: Discursive network dynamics of the Ghentian Low Emission Zone","authors":"Kimberley Vandenhole","doi":"10.1016/j.envsci.2025.104013","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.envsci.2025.104013","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Contemporary socio-ecological conditions are giving rise to a wide range of environmental policy controversies. One of them is the implementation of Low Emission Zones (LEZs) in a number of European cities. As a controversial policy measure against air pollution, LEZs can be understood as discursive struggles where polarisation and conflict arise from the different discourses that actors adopt towards it. In the city of Ghent (Belgium), the implementation of a LEZ initially constituted an apparent policy consensus before developing into a policy controversy. This article explores how the Ghentian LEZ developed into a policy controversy using a discourse network analysis in two phases: first, the discursive structure of the controversy is dissected in order to identify the different discourses and coalitions; second, the argumentative structure of the discourses is dissected in order to uncover the types of arguments used and how they contributed to intensify the controversy. Drawing on the Ghentian case, this article discusses air pollution policy in light of post-politicisation processes and explores implications for the study of environmental discourses, just urban mobility and environmental policy before concluding.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":313,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Science & Policy","volume":"164 ","pages":"Article 104013"},"PeriodicalIF":4.9,"publicationDate":"2025-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143099467","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

Institutional dependencies shape adaptation pathways for local service providers: A study of US water utilities responding to climatic stressors

IF 4.9 2区环境科学与生态学 Q1 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES

Environmental Science & Policy

Pub Date : 2025-02-01 DOI: 10.1016/j.envsci.2024.103982

Alexandra Smialek , Tamee R. Albrecht , Anita Milman

Local governments around the world face mounting pressures that affect their provision of public services. To prepare for and respond to stressors and shocks, local service providers can choose from among a wide variety of actions. The adaptive actions they choose will influence which risks are addressed, when, and how. Selection of adaptive actions can also have long-term implications if the actions affect future options for adaptation. This research investigates the influence of institutions on selection of adaptive actions by local public service providers as they seek to respond to climatic stressors. Drawing on insights from focus groups with local drinking water utilities across the USA, the research identifies five institutional dependencies that affect the selection of adaptive actions and examines the pathways through which those institutional dependencies influence decision-making. These pathways are then combined to present a conceptual model of factors shaping selection of adaptive actions. Findings indicate that the polycentric institutional environment in which local service providers are embedded limits control over adaptation decisions, can constrain the set of feasible actions, and can add substantial transaction costs. As a result, selection of adaptive actions includes consideration of the effect of institutional dependencies on the feasibility and ease of implementation.

{"title":"Institutional dependencies shape adaptation pathways for local service providers: A study of US water utilities responding to climatic stressors","authors":"Alexandra Smialek , Tamee R. Albrecht , Anita Milman","doi":"10.1016/j.envsci.2024.103982","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.envsci.2024.103982","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Local governments around the world face mounting pressures that affect their provision of public services. To prepare for and respond to stressors and shocks, local service providers can choose from among a wide variety of actions. The adaptive actions they choose will influence which risks are addressed, when, and how. Selection of adaptive actions can also have long-term implications if the actions affect future options for adaptation. This research investigates the influence of institutions on selection of adaptive actions by local public service providers as they seek to respond to climatic stressors. Drawing on insights from focus groups with local drinking water utilities across the USA, the research identifies five institutional dependencies that affect the selection of adaptive actions and examines the pathways through which those institutional dependencies influence decision-making. These pathways are then combined to present a conceptual model of factors shaping selection of adaptive actions. Findings indicate that the polycentric institutional environment in which local service providers are embedded limits control over adaptation decisions, can constrain the set of feasible actions, and can add substantial transaction costs. As a result, selection of adaptive actions includes consideration of the effect of institutional dependencies on the feasibility and ease of implementation.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":313,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Science & Policy","volume":"164 ","pages":"Article 103982"},"PeriodicalIF":4.9,"publicationDate":"2025-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143099364","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

Political embedding of climate assemblies. How effective strategies for policy impact depend on context

IF 4.9 2区环境科学与生态学 Q1 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES

Environmental Science & Policy

Pub Date : 2025-02-01 DOI: 10.1016/j.envsci.2025.103993

Janosch Pfeffer, Jens Newig

Scholars and practitioners discuss how to increase the policy impact of climate assemblies (CAs) noting that their proposals tend to be more ambitious than government policy. CAs comprise groups of randomly selected citizens (minipublics) who deliberate on climate policy issues. We argue for greater focus on how political actors strategically use CAs and suggest welcoming some of this strategic use. We propose that CAs, and minipublics more generally, need political embedding. That means, minipublic designers should first consider how political actors will likely interact with a process given their interests and political context, and subsequently make deliberate use of strategies to foster objectives like policy impact. Using a thought experiment, we then demonstrate that the effectiveness of such political embedding strategies to promote CAs’ policy impact depends on political context. Our analysis shows that the impacts of mass publicity, commissioning actors, inclusion of perspectives, and strategic framings vary with the constellation of interests of climate political actors. This exercise challenges sweeping statements about optimal CA and minipublic design, contributing to more realistic theorizing. Considering political embeddedness will help democratic reformers assess potential models for minipublic institutionalization more accurately.

{"title":"Political embedding of climate assemblies. How effective strategies for policy impact depend on context","authors":"Janosch Pfeffer, Jens Newig","doi":"10.1016/j.envsci.2025.103993","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.envsci.2025.103993","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Scholars and practitioners discuss how to increase the policy impact of climate assemblies (CAs) noting that their proposals tend to be more ambitious than government policy. CAs comprise groups of randomly selected citizens (minipublics) who deliberate on climate policy issues. We argue for greater focus on how political actors strategically use CAs and suggest welcoming some of this strategic use. We propose that CAs, and minipublics more generally, need <em>political embedding</em>. That means, minipublic designers should first consider how political actors will likely interact with a process given their interests and political context, and subsequently make deliberate use of strategies to foster objectives like policy impact. Using a thought experiment, we then demonstrate that the effectiveness of such political embedding strategies to promote CAs’ policy impact depends on political context. Our analysis shows that the impacts of mass publicity, commissioning actors, inclusion of perspectives, and strategic framings vary with the constellation of interests of climate political actors. This exercise challenges sweeping statements about optimal CA and minipublic design, contributing to more realistic theorizing. Considering political embeddedness will help democratic reformers assess potential models for minipublic institutionalization more accurately.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":313,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Science & Policy","volume":"164 ","pages":"Article 103993"},"PeriodicalIF":4.9,"publicationDate":"2025-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143099365","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

A scoping review of Indigenous Cultural Mapping of coastal, island, and marine environments

IF 4.9 2区环境科学与生态学 Q1 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES

Environmental Science & Policy

Pub Date : 2025-02-01 DOI: 10.1016/j.envsci.2025.103991

Redbird Ferguson , Karen E. Joyce , Christian Reepmeyer , Rachel Groom , Kellie Pollard

Indigenous Cultural Mapping (ICM) has the capacity to contribute to sustainably managing Sea Country. While there is a growing community of practice using ICM of marine, island, and coastal areas to incorporate Indigenous knowledge and cultural values into sustainability and conservation efforts, the literature is widely dispersed, and the method is not clearly defined or described. This scoping review evaluates the breadth and depth of practice undertaking ICM in island, coastal, and marine areas as captured within the English language scientific and grey literature. The objectives of this review were: 1) to determine the extent to which ICM is used a tool to manage Sea Country; 2) to evaluate the methods used throughout the process of ICM; and 3) to assess the studies against Arnstein’s (1969) ladder of participation. We used the Population Concept Context framework, searched Scopus, Web of Science, and Informit databases and Google Scholar, and identified studies that mapped Indigenous culture and/or cultural values in Sea Country. We included 54 studies that used ICM methods and were focused on Sea Country. These studies contribute to a growing body of work that demonstrates the value Indigenous knowledge adds to the sustainability of Sea Country now and into the future. High-level power-sharing and partnership throughout the research process is critically important. However, a lack of consistent standards of practice perpetuates research practices that exclude Indigenous communities from the research cycle. This limits the ability of ICM to improve sustainable practices that conserve and protect Sea Country.

{"title":"A scoping review of Indigenous Cultural Mapping of coastal, island, and marine environments","authors":"Redbird Ferguson , Karen E. Joyce , Christian Reepmeyer , Rachel Groom , Kellie Pollard","doi":"10.1016/j.envsci.2025.103991","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.envsci.2025.103991","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Indigenous Cultural Mapping (ICM) has the capacity to contribute to sustainably managing Sea Country. While there is a growing community of practice using ICM of marine, island, and coastal areas to incorporate Indigenous knowledge and cultural values into sustainability and conservation efforts, the literature is widely dispersed, and the method is not clearly defined or described. This scoping review evaluates the breadth and depth of practice undertaking ICM in island, coastal, and marine areas as captured within the English language scientific and grey literature. The objectives of this review were: 1) to determine the extent to which ICM is used a tool to manage Sea Country; 2) to evaluate the methods used throughout the process of ICM; and 3) to assess the studies against Arnstein’s (1969) ladder of participation. We used the Population Concept Context framework, searched Scopus, Web of Science, and Informit databases and Google Scholar, and identified studies that mapped Indigenous culture and/or cultural values in Sea Country. We included 54 studies that used ICM methods and were focused on Sea Country. These studies contribute to a growing body of work that demonstrates the value Indigenous knowledge adds to the sustainability of Sea Country now and into the future. High-level power-sharing and partnership throughout the research process is critically important. However, a lack of consistent standards of practice perpetuates research practices that exclude Indigenous communities from the research cycle. This limits the ability of ICM to improve sustainable practices that conserve and protect Sea Country.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":313,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Science & Policy","volume":"164 ","pages":"Article 103991"},"PeriodicalIF":4.9,"publicationDate":"2025-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143099389","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

Women in development minerals: Artisanal and small-scale mining, governance, and the SDGs

IF 4.9 2区环境科学与生态学 Q1 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES

Environmental Science & Policy

Pub Date : 2025-02-01 DOI: 10.1016/j.envsci.2024.103980

Abigail Efua Hilson

The world is confronted with numerous global challenges, including rising inflation, wars, energy crisis, cybersecurity threats, supply chain disruptions, and pandemics. Central to these challenges is the issue of climate change, which threatens social, environmental, and economic stability, potentially leading to an unprecedented global catastrophe if left unchecked. In developing economies, these problems are further exacerbated by poverty, poor-quality institutions, and unemployment rates. Recent global efforts to combat climate change and other environmental damages include the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Despite their strengths, one of the major weaknesses of the SDGs is the conflictual nature of SDG 1 (No Poverty) and the environmental SDGs (SDG 12, 14, 15 and 17). This paper aims to demonstrate that for small-scale miners in sub-Saharan Africa, these conflicting SDGs coupled with fragile socio-political environments, exacerbate the issue. Using a qualitative lens and Zambia and Ghana as case studies, the paper first argues that the ‘informal spaces,’ in which these artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) operators function are a result of their socio-political context. Within such contexts, survival transcends all else and the environment unwittingly suffers due to poor policies and inadequate health and safety education. Secondly, drawing on multistakeholder platform collaborative governance theory, the paper underscores the need for formalisation and argues that a collaborative governance approach, modelled on existing Community Based Natural Resources Management (CBNRM) schemes, is crucial for achieving the goals of reconciling conflicts between the environmental, social and economic SDGs.

{"title":"Women in development minerals: Artisanal and small-scale mining, governance, and the SDGs","authors":"Abigail Efua Hilson","doi":"10.1016/j.envsci.2024.103980","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.envsci.2024.103980","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The world is confronted with numerous global challenges, including rising inflation, wars, energy crisis, cybersecurity threats, supply chain disruptions, and pandemics. Central to these challenges is the issue of climate change, which threatens social, environmental, and economic stability, potentially leading to an unprecedented global catastrophe if left unchecked. In developing economies, these problems are further exacerbated by poverty, poor-quality institutions, and unemployment rates. Recent global efforts to combat climate change and other environmental damages include the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Despite their strengths, one of the major weaknesses of the SDGs is the conflictual nature of SDG 1 (No Poverty) and the environmental SDGs (SDG 12, 14, 15 and 17). This paper aims to demonstrate that for small-scale miners in sub-Saharan Africa, these conflicting SDGs coupled with fragile socio-political environments, exacerbate the issue. Using a qualitative lens and Zambia and Ghana as case studies, the paper first argues that the ‘informal spaces,’ in which these artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) operators function are a result of their socio-political context. Within such contexts, survival transcends all else and the environment unwittingly suffers due to poor policies and inadequate health and safety education. Secondly, drawing on multistakeholder platform collaborative governance theory, the paper underscores the need for formalisation and argues that a collaborative governance approach, modelled on existing Community Based Natural Resources Management (CBNRM) schemes, is crucial for achieving the goals of reconciling conflicts between the environmental, social and economic SDGs.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":313,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Science & Policy","volume":"164 ","pages":"Article 103980"},"PeriodicalIF":4.9,"publicationDate":"2025-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143099475","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

Knowledge for change or more of the same? The role of policy knowledge systems in the Nationally Determined Contributions of Ghana, Kenya and South Africa

IF 4.9 2区环境科学与生态学 Q1 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES

Environmental Science & Policy

Pub Date : 2025-02-01 DOI: 10.1016/j.envsci.2025.104016

Michael Boulle , Britta Rennkamp, Emily Tyler, Mark New

The sum of the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) continue to be inadequate for achieving the global climate goals articulated in the Paris Agreement, despite their five-yearly updates. The role of knowledge in formulating and implementing NDCs is critical for identifying how individual Parties can improve their NDCs. This paper applies a policy knowledge systems perspective, to analyse the evolution of the knowledge systems responsible for formulating the 2015 intended NDCs (iNDCs) and the 2021 NDC Updates, in Ghana, Kenya and South Africa. The analysis showed in varying degrees that: i) improving design and access to NDC processes increased credibility, legitimacy and relevance of their outcomes; ii) knowledge bases for the Updates improved upon the knowledge bases of the iNDCs, thereby delivering more robust and ambitious targets, with local universities playing key roles; iii) local representation, transparency, inclusivity and communication were critical factors to strengthen the knowledge bases. Where a knowledge base was strong and well communicated, ideological differences could be bridged and consensus built, while less developed parts of a knowledge base were more contested; iv) inclusivity and transparency in the processes were critical to balance access and representation of actors; v) the NDC processes connected national and international climate processes, exerting pressure on one another. Finally, the evolution of the NDCs has demonstrated their impact as agenda-setting policy instruments but they have demonstrated less evidence of impact in terms of implementation. In sum, designing and conducting robust processes, developing strong knowledge systems, and inclusive actor participation, drove change towards stronger NDC formulation processes and outcomes. At the same time change was resisted, evident in the legacies and lock-ins of these processes.

{"title":"Knowledge for change or more of the same? The role of policy knowledge systems in the Nationally Determined Contributions of Ghana, Kenya and South Africa","authors":"Michael Boulle , Britta Rennkamp, Emily Tyler, Mark New","doi":"10.1016/j.envsci.2025.104016","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.envsci.2025.104016","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The sum of the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) continue to be inadequate for achieving the global climate goals articulated in the Paris Agreement, despite their five-yearly updates. The role of knowledge in formulating and implementing NDCs is critical for identifying how individual Parties can improve their NDCs. This paper applies a policy knowledge systems perspective, to analyse the evolution of the knowledge systems responsible for formulating the 2015 intended NDCs (iNDCs) and the 2021 NDC Updates, in Ghana, Kenya and South Africa. The analysis showed in varying degrees that: i) improving design and access to NDC processes increased credibility, legitimacy and relevance of their outcomes; ii) knowledge bases for the Updates improved upon the knowledge bases of the iNDCs, thereby delivering more robust and ambitious targets, with local universities playing key roles; iii) local representation, transparency, inclusivity and communication were critical factors to strengthen the knowledge bases. Where a knowledge base was strong and well communicated, ideological differences could be bridged and consensus built, while less developed parts of a knowledge base were more contested; iv) inclusivity and transparency in the processes were critical to balance access and representation of actors; v) the NDC processes connected national and international climate processes, exerting pressure on one another. Finally, the evolution of the NDCs has demonstrated their impact as agenda-setting policy instruments but they have demonstrated less evidence of impact in terms of implementation. In sum, designing and conducting robust processes, developing strong knowledge systems, and inclusive actor participation, drove change towards stronger NDC formulation processes and outcomes. At the same time change was resisted, evident in the legacies and lock-ins of these processes.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":313,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Science & Policy","volume":"164 ","pages":"Article 104016"},"PeriodicalIF":4.9,"publicationDate":"2025-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143099479","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

How to promote green energy transition in the age of geopolitical crises and international shocks: Evidence from the EU-27

IF 4.9 2区环境科学与生态学 Q1 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES

Environmental Science & Policy

Pub Date : 2025-02-01 DOI: 10.1016/j.envsci.2025.104007

Raffaele Boffardi , Carlotta D’Alessandro , Luisa De Simone , Katarzyna Szopik-Depczyńska

The transition towards green energy systems has become a key goal for policymakers worldwide in an attempt to both reduce the environmental implications of energy generation and increase energy supply security. This objective is even more pressing in a global context characterised by the rapid succession of economic shocks, non-economic crises and geopolitical tensions. The present research aims to evaluate how international crises and geopolitical threats can influence renewable energy sector efficiency, which we measure in terms of consumption levels, in the 27 European Union Member States. We found that during the main international shocks occurring between 2000 and 2022, inefficiencies have been reduced, with a special case for the Covid-19 pandemic. Moreover, we identified a positive nexus between the exposure to geopolitical risk and the reduction of inefficiencies in RE consumption. Crises-specific evidence and policy implications are provided accordingly.

引用次数: 0

Transformative change from below? Linking biodiversity governance with the diversity of bottom-up action

IF 4.9 2区环境科学与生态学 Q1 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES

Environmental Science & Policy

Pub Date : 2025-02-01 DOI: 10.1016/j.envsci.2025.104000

Helena Valve , Dalia D'Amato , Aniek Hebinck , Anita Lazurko , Mara de Pater , Romana Jungwirth Březovská , Heli Saarikoski , Chrysi Laspidou , Hans Keune , Konstantinos Ziliaskopoulos , Zuzana Veronika Harmáčková

Individual actors and actor groups are vital catalysts of transformative change as they are able to initiate interventions that nurture and protect biodiversity. This paper analyses biodiversity-focused practices across the civil, market and public spheres to identify the modes of intervention that actors in Europe utilise when they seek to fight biodiversity loss as part of their every-day work or voluntary activism. Studying how actors locate and engage with biodiversity issues allowed us to develop a typology of intervention modes and to unravel interlinkages between biodiversity governance and bottom-up action in a new manner. The seven modes of intervention identified from the rich qualitative data demonstrate how bottom-up practices vary in terms of the tangible issues they seek to address. Practitioners and activists locate options for change in resource management practices, production and consumption systems, market conditions, and land-use, amongst others. The findings enact a Europe in which cohesion policies, land-use pressures and power lobbies controlling resource management generate resistance and spark innovation. The aspirations to affect policymaking and biodiversity governance vary from one mode to another. In some cases, governance is positioned as a target of bottom-up action. Governance can also be assigned an action-conditioning role or regarded as a critical part of the assemblage that can generate transformative change. The typology also grants visibility to potentially unrecognised modes and mediations along which transformative change is and might be further catalysed.

{"title":"Transformative change from below? Linking biodiversity governance with the diversity of bottom-up action","authors":"Helena Valve , Dalia D'Amato , Aniek Hebinck , Anita Lazurko , Mara de Pater , Romana Jungwirth Březovská , Heli Saarikoski , Chrysi Laspidou , Hans Keune , Konstantinos Ziliaskopoulos , Zuzana Veronika Harmáčková","doi":"10.1016/j.envsci.2025.104000","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.envsci.2025.104000","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Individual actors and actor groups are vital catalysts of transformative change as they are able to initiate interventions that nurture and protect biodiversity. This paper analyses biodiversity-focused practices across the civil, market and public spheres to identify the modes of intervention that actors in Europe utilise when they seek to fight biodiversity loss as part of their every-day work or voluntary activism. Studying how actors locate and engage with biodiversity issues allowed us to develop a typology of intervention modes and to unravel interlinkages between biodiversity governance and bottom-up action in a new manner. The seven modes of intervention identified from the rich qualitative data demonstrate how bottom-up practices vary in terms of the tangible issues they seek to address. Practitioners and activists locate options for change in resource management practices, production and consumption systems, market conditions, and land-use, amongst others. The findings enact a Europe in which cohesion policies, land-use pressures and power lobbies controlling resource management generate resistance and spark innovation. The aspirations to affect policymaking and biodiversity governance vary from one mode to another. In some cases, governance is positioned as a target of bottom-up action. Governance can also be assigned an action-conditioning role or regarded as a critical part of the assemblage that can generate transformative change. The typology also grants visibility to potentially unrecognised modes and mediations along which transformative change is and might be further catalysed.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":313,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Science & Policy","volume":"164 ","pages":"Article 104000"},"PeriodicalIF":4.9,"publicationDate":"2025-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143099367","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0