Conclusion

2019 ◽  
pp. 234-254
Author(s):  
Eve Z. Bratman

For many, the Xingu River basin continues to be a site where projections of big dreams for attaining wealth and opportunity simultaneously collide with cultural losses and landscape transformation. The conclusion of the book, Chapter 7, zooms back out to explore the sustainable development framework as it informs state–society relations and uneven manifestations in lived experiences of place. The conclusion also examines prospects for the transformative potential of sustainable development as a utopic vision and offers reflections on the possibilities for sustainable development discourse to become more deeply emancipatory through adopting a new metaphor, involving embroilment—as a means of better grasping the fundamental realities of the concept as it is practiced.

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (23) ◽  
pp. 6537
Author(s):  
Reginald Masocha

This paper investigates the role of normative environmental configuration forces on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) adopting sustainable development practices in South Africa. A research survey was performed, and data were gathered from SMEs utilizing owners and managers as respondents. Non-probability sampling at the hand of the convenience method was utilised and 220 respondents constituted the final sample. The analysis of data constituted factor analysis and hypotheses were tested through the structural equation modelling technique. The study hypothesised that normative forces have an impact on the participation of SMEs in the extents of sustainability practices, namely social, environmental and economic. The results led to the supporting of all the hypotheses postulated in the study. Thus, the major recommendation was to support the training, networking and professional affiliations of SMEs in sustainable development issues in order to ensure proliferation of sustainable development amongst these firms.


2018 ◽  
Vol 54 (7) ◽  
pp. 793-812 ◽  
Author(s):  
Iain Lindsey ◽  
Paul Darby

This article addresses the urgent need for critical analysis of the relationships between sport and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals enshrined in the United Nations’ global development framework, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Importantly, there has yet to be any substantial academic exploration of the implications of the position accorded to sport as ‘an important enabler’ of the aims of 2030 Agenda and its broad set of Sustainable Development Goals. In beginning to address this gap, we draw on the concept of policy coherence for two reasons. First, the designation of a specific Target for policy coherence in the 2030 Agenda is recognition of its centrality in working towards Sustainable Development Goals that are considered as ‘integrated and indivisible’. Second, the concept of policy coherence is centred on a dualism that enables holistic examination of both synergies through which the contribution of sport to the Sustainable Development Goals can be enhanced as well as incoherencies by which sport may detract from such outcomes. Our analysis progresses through three examples that respectively focus on: the common orientation of the Sport for Development and Peace ‘movement’ towards education-orientated objectives aligned with Sustainable Development Goal 4; potential synergies between sport participation policies and the Sustainable Development Goal 3 Target for reducing non-communicable diseases; and practices within professional football in relation to several migration-related Sustainable Development Goal Targets. These examples show the relevance of the Sustainable Development Goals across diverse sectors of the sport industry and illustrate complexities within and across countries that make pursuit of comprehensive policy coherence infeasible. Nevertheless, our analyses lead us to encourage both policy makers and researchers to continue to utilise the concept of policy coherence as a valuable lens to identify and consider factors that may enable and constrain various potential contributions of sport to a range of Sustainable Development Goals.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (12) ◽  
pp. 4979 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liang Zhao ◽  
Fanneng He ◽  
Caishan Zhao

Under the current resilience development framework, which is mainly based on urban communities, it is difficult to meet the needs of the vulnerable populations in poor villages. This article aims to explore a specific and operable guidance framework suitable for the resilient development of Chinese poor villages after disasters from the perspective of social equity. The framework will help guide the sustainable development of poor villages after disasters and also provide a reference for the resilience of other similar vulnerable areas. When integrating climate change response and disaster risk management to explore sustainable development in poor villages, the essence is to explore the resilience development framework focused on the construction of resilient communities in poor villages. We take the recovery and reconstruction of poor villages after the Wenchuan earthquake in 2008 as an example. Through the analysis of the effects of post-disaster recovery and reconstruction, we found that although poor communities have made significant achievements since the earthquake, there are still many aspects that need to be improved, including social life systems, economic production systems, and natural ecosystems. Therefore, we comprehensively analyzed the characteristics of poor socio-economic conditions, the complex ecological environment, and the low cultural level of residents in poor villages. Furthermore, this study followed the principle of “Build back better” (BBB) and conducted an in-depth study of the framework for the resilience of poor villages. In terms of risk reduction, it is recommended to improve structural resilience from guarantee of preferential prices and selection of environmentally friendly materials, avoid risk and villagers’ participation in the formulation of general plans, and promote disaster prevention and mitigation capabilities from risk prediction and curriculum development. In terms of community recovery, it is suggested to promote community economics and victims’ livelihoods by promoting industrial transformation and sustainable livelihoods and promote social and psychological health development from social relations and psychological rehabilitation. In terms of efficient implementation, specific improvements include the improvement of public participation systems and the establishment of coordination offices and sound institutional mechanisms, the development of community standards and the introduction of financial support policies, the improvement of laws and regulations, and the improvement of monitoring and evaluation from dynamic monitoring and mass satisfaction surveys. It is important to guide the sustainable development of vulnerable communities by constructing a post-disaster resistant development framework based on BBB principles.


Water Policy ◽  
2009 ◽  
Vol 12 (6) ◽  
pp. 798-821 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bennett L. Bearden

In 1957, the four lower Mekong River states jointly organized the development of the basin and established a legal regime that has spanned five decades of cooperation. In 1995, Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand and Vietnam concluded the Agreement on the Cooperation for the Sustainable Development of the Mekong River Basin and formed the Mekong River Commission, which has been lauded as the most progressive of river institutions and a model for the world. At the core of the 1995 Mekong Agreement is the concept of sustainable development. Guided by this sustainable development paradigm, the Lower Mekong River Basin states attempt to balance the maintenance of water quantity with protection of water quality, and agree to cooperate and use the Mekong's water resources in a manner in which the river system's environmental conditions and ecological balance are conserved and maintained. However, development of the Mekong and its tributaries has rendered the efficacy of the Mekong legal regime to support holistic water resources management questionable. More than ten years of experience has shown that there are aspects of the 1995 Mekong Agreement that should be strengthened in order to secure the environmental, economic and social benefits that it promises.


2013 ◽  
Vol 361-363 ◽  
pp. 973-976 ◽  
Author(s):  
You Xi Yan ◽  
Xia Yan

The building of the Hongyashan Reservoir leads to the natural watercourse drying up in the downstream of Shiyang River Basin and the Rump lake disappearing. Lining Channels was used to conveying water to Qingtu Lake since the Key Management has been carried out in Shiyang River Basin.In spite of small regional environment improved, the river and the lake can not be connected with each other as the natural watercourse remain discarded.As a result the ecological restoration of Qingtu River can not work effectively.Starting from restoring the ecological function of rivers and lakes, the pattern of conveying water should be changed into supplementing water to Qingtu Lake with the natural watercourse of Shiyang River,connecting the lake and the river.Meanwhile the jointed scheduling mode of surface water and groundwater ensures the dynamic balance of ground water and the sustainable development of oasis.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Akhenaton-Andrew Jones

In the spirit of measuring what we care about, the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide guidelines to measure ``universal and equitable access to safe and affordable drinking water for all.'' In this work, I show where permanent or semi-permanent, autonomous or semi-autonomous technologies (objects, not processes) can measure and induce progress toward those goals and where they cannot. To do this, I apply the Institutional Analysis and Development Framework to each of the seven normative definitions from the SDGs as ``action arenas.'' For each normative definition, I examine if technologies exist or can be created to effect a positive outcome for consumers in that particular action arena using nine evaluative criteria. This analysis is applied to the United States as a case study considering its physical systems, regulations, and governance structures. This work, combined with efforts to translate the United States' systems and structures, can lead to multinational applicability. This paper examines how and when a water smart grid can and cannot be used effectively. I conclude that the material artifacts of a water smart grid can advance the SDG of safety and affordability. However, technology alone cannot assign people to jurisdictions, limiting its ability to advance goals of universal and equitable access.


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