Understanding Disenfranchisement: Civil Society and Developing Countries' Influence and Participation in Global Governance for Sustainable Development

2004 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 65-84 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dana R. Fisher ◽  
Jessica F. Green
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
Global Governance ◽  
Policy Making ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Global Policy ◽  
Social Actors ◽  
Full Participation

This paper explores the ways in which civil society actors and developing countries are limited in their engagement in global governance for sustainable development. Beginning with the relevant literature about how these social actors face obstacles to full participation, we present the notion of what we call “disenfranchisement” to describe the condition of being marginalized within the global policy-making arena. We put forward a conceptual framework that outlines what we identify as the three dimensions of disenfranchisement. By dis-aggregating the notion of disenfranchisement into its constituent dimensions, we outline potential operationalizations of these dimensions. Through the dimensions, the framework explicitly describes the mechanics of disenfranchisement, outlining the reasons that these actors become disenfranchised. We conclude by presenting the ways in which this framework can be applied in future empirical research, which will be critical to understanding the challenges to meaningful inclusion of stakeholders in global governance for sustainable development.

scholarly journals Stop accounting myopia: – think globally: a polemic

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 87-99 ◽  
Author(s):  
Trevor Hopper
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Environmental Accounting ◽  
Social Implications ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Global Institutions ◽  
Development Goals

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to cover issues raised in the author’s plenary address to the Journal of Accounting and Organizational Network Conference held in Melbourne in November 2017. This called for accountants, whether professionals in practice or in academia, to broaden their vision of accounting and accountability beyond the financial accountability of organisations, and serving corporate and capital market interests, to consider how it can help achieve sustainable development goals.Design/methodology/approachThe discussion is based on personal experience, cognate literature and policies of major global institutions.FindingsWhilst the need for financial reporting will remain, there is a pressing need for reporting to measure, monitor and make accountable organisations’ obligations to help achieve sustainable development goals established by global institutions such as the United Nations. Areas of importance discussed are accounting for human rights, mitigation of climate change, securing decent work, increasing accountability – especially civil society democratic participation – and a greater and more equal partnership with stakeholders and developing countries to address their needs.Research limitations/implicationsThe paper is a personal polemic intended to provoke reflection and reform amongst accountants.Practical implicationsThe paper outlines the areas where accounting could and has addressed human rights and sustainability issues.Social implicationsThe social implications are vast, for they extend to major issues concerning the preserving the planet, its species, humankind and enhanced democratic processes for civil society and developing countries.Originality/valueThe paper reinforces the need for policy reforms advocated by social and environmental accounting researchers.

The Sustainable Development of Persons With Disabilities in Developing Countries Through Open and Distance Education

2018 ◽  
pp. 119-152
Author(s):  
Sanjay Kant Prasad
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Inclusive Education ◽  
Education System ◽  
Persons With Disabilities ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Economic Progress ◽  
Full Participation ◽  
Open And Distance Learning ◽  
Mainstream Society

The United Nations Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities has provided a strong impetus to the full and effective involvement of persons with disabilities in society and development with equal access to opportunities to contribute to an equal footing with others in social and economic progress. . However, developing nations are yet to achieve the goal of full participation and equalization of opportunities for sustainable development of persons with disabilities. The special education system or inclusive education being a part of education system, needs to examine the feasibility of open and distance learning to provide opportunity to maximum number of persons with disabilities irrespective of their physical, sensory and psychological diversity, to make them a part of mainstream society. The Guidelines on Open and Distance developed for Persons with Disabilities, published by UNESCO will also be very effective in general and developing countries in particular.

Small-Scale Decentralized Renewable Energy Systems for the Remote Communities of the Developing Countries

2005 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mazharul Islam ◽  
A. K. M. Sadrul Islam ◽  
M. Ruhul Amin
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Energy Systems ◽  
Environmental Benefits ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Energy Services ◽  
Renewable Energy Systems ◽  
The World

About 2 billion people of the world, mostly in rural areas of the developing countries, do not have access to grid-based electricity. The most critical factor affecting their livelihoods is access to clean, affordable and reliable energy services for household and productive uses. Under this backdrop, renewable and readily available energy from the nature can be incorporated in several proven renewable energy technology (RET) systems and can play a significant role in meeting crucial energy needs in these remote far flung areas. RETs are ideal as distributed energy source and they can be incorporated in packages of energy services and thus offer unique opportunities to provide improved lighting, health care, drinking water, education, communication, and irrigation. Energy is also vital for most of the income-generating activities, both at the household or commercial levels. Access to energy is strongly connected to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which set targets for poverty reduction, improved health, and gender equality as well as environmental sustainability. Environmentally benign renewable energy systems can contribute significantly in the above-mentioned unserved or underserved areas in the developing countries to achieve both local and global environmental benefits. This is important in the context of sustainable development in: (i) poverty alleviation, (ii) education, (iii) gender equity and empowerment, (iv) health including other benefits like improved information access through Information and Communication Technology (ICT) centers, (v) better security, and (vi) increase in social or recreational opportunities. It is evident that proliferation of renewable energy resources through implementing their applications for meeting energy demand will promote all the three dimensions namely, social, economic and environmental of sustainable development in the developing countries. Several small scale enabling RET systems have been suggested in this paper in the light of above-mentioned issues of energy sustainability and they can significantly contribute to the improvement of the livelihood of the remote impoverished rural communities of the developing countries. With the current state of technology development, several RET systems (such as wind, solar photovoltaics, solar thermal, biomass and microhydro) have become successful in different parts of the world. In this paper, an exhaustive literature survey has been conducted and several successful and financially viable small-scale RET systems were analyzed. These systems have relevance to the economies of the developing countries that can be utilized for electrification of domestic houses, micro enterprises, health clinics, educational establishments and rural development centers.

scholarly journals Stop accounting myopia: – think globally: a polemic

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Trevor Hopper
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Environmental Accounting ◽  
Social Implications ◽  
Decent Work ◽  
Global Institutions ◽  
Development Goals

© 2018, Emerald Publishing Limited. Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to cover issues raised in the author’s plenary address to the Journal of Accounting and Organizational Network Conference held in Melbourne in November 2017. This called for accountants, whether professionals in practice or in academia, to broaden their vision of accounting and accountability beyond the financial accountability of organisations, and serving corporate and capital market interests, to consider how it can help achieve sustainable development goals. Design/methodology/approach: The discussion is based on personal experience, cognate literature and policies of major global institutions. Findings: Whilst the need for financial reporting will remain, there is a pressing need for reporting to measure, monitor and make accountable organisations’ obligations to help achieve sustainable development goals established by global institutions such as the United Nations. Areas of importance discussed are accounting for human rights, mitigation of climate change, securing decent work, increasing accountability – especially civil society democratic participation – and a greater and more equal partnership with stakeholders and developing countries to address their needs. Research limitations/implications: The paper is a personal polemic intended to provoke reflection and reform amongst accountants. Practical implications: The paper outlines the areas where accounting could and has addressed human rights and sustainability issues. Social implications: The social implications are vast, for they extend to major issues concerning the preserving the planet, its species, humankind and enhanced democratic processes for civil society and developing countries. Originality/value: The paper reinforces the need for policy reforms advocated by social and environmental accounting researchers.

scholarly journals The European Union’s external Policy on climate change adaptation: from conditionality-driven action to sustainable development

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Beatriz Pérez de las Heras
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Climate Change Adaptation ◽  
Development Cooperation ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Policy Coherence ◽  
Adaptation Measures ◽  
Eu Policies ◽  
International Climate

T he European Union (EU) has been promoting climate change adaptation measures in developing countries for the last 15 years. EU support is channeled through a number of external policies, but the development cooperation policy is particularly significant. Support has traditionally been conditional upon recipient countries’ adopting a National Adaptation Plan (NAP). This conditionality-based action has not only helped to promote NAPs in developing countries but also enabled these countries to participate in international climate governance. Yet this approach by itself, combined with certain inconsistencies, has failed to achieve sustainable development, one of the overarching goals of all EU policies. On the basis of this experience, the emphasis of the EU’s external climate policy is currently shifting towards a broader approach that takes into account the three dimensions (economic, social and environmental) of sustainable development. This more comprehensive approach and corresponding tools are more in line with the EU’s legal commitment to ensure Policy Coherence for Development.

International Development Law

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jing Gu
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
International Development ◽  
Rule Of Law ◽  
The State ◽  
Legal Institutions ◽  
Law And Development ◽  
Role Of The State

The field of law and development examines the role of law, legal institutions, and legal systems in economic, social, and political development. As a comparatively recent field emerging in the 1960s, law has become an increasingly important aspect of the issues and debates surrounding international development, particularly since the 1990s. Debate continues over the meaning of “development” and what constitutes international development law, as well as over theoretical approaches: the character, role, and impact of legal institutions and development actors; the structures and processes of development; and the principles and norms that are already or arguably ought to be in the system. International development law generates a range of practical challenges, including implementation and enforcement of a right to development; the role of state, and the role of an increasingly globalized civil society; the rule of law; environmental sustainability; land reform; poverty and aid; issues of gender in law and development; law-building in post-conflict situations; transparency and accountability for donors and recipients; and the relationship between human rights, social justice, and rule of law. The centrality of sustainable development, the complexities of globalization, the private sector, civil society, new technologies, and the rise of emerging powers—some as new “nontraditional” donors—further add to the necessity and importance of understanding law and the sustainability of development. Together, these factors of change and transformation provoke new thinking and debate within this field on the role of the state in development and how the international legal rules of the game should operate. From the perspectives of developing countries, primary issues of concern relate to development cooperation and pro-poor, inclusive growth; improved access to trade for small enterprises; development effectiveness; South-South dialogue; climate change; and low-carbon development. Environmental protection and sustainable development represent significant challenges for international law-making, while also offering innovative solutions to some of the systemic problems of the international legal order. One central thrust of contemporary analysis and practice in law and development is the search for better understanding of the relationships between social and cultural factors and international development law in promoting more multidisciplinary approaches. Another central theme is the role of the state in development. The state is not simply a formal legal institution, but has both internal structures of legal competence and external, international legal commitments. There is a pattern of litigation history between the compatibility of the two, with implications for development law. Extensive debate continues over what constitutes development, why and how developing countries should pursue it, and what the eventual goal ought to be. This debate is necessary in retaining the vitality and practical relevancy of law. Development constitutes a form of social and societal change, and the relevancy of law depends on its responsiveness to such change; as such, the role of law in development should be of significant, if not dominant, importance.

scholarly journals Stop accounting myopia: – think globally: a polemic

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Trevor Hopper
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Environmental Accounting ◽  
Social Implications ◽  
Decent Work ◽  
Global Institutions ◽  
Development Goals

© 2018, Emerald Publishing Limited. Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to cover issues raised in the author’s plenary address to the Journal of Accounting and Organizational Network Conference held in Melbourne in November 2017. This called for accountants, whether professionals in practice or in academia, to broaden their vision of accounting and accountability beyond the financial accountability of organisations, and serving corporate and capital market interests, to consider how it can help achieve sustainable development goals. Design/methodology/approach: The discussion is based on personal experience, cognate literature and policies of major global institutions. Findings: Whilst the need for financial reporting will remain, there is a pressing need for reporting to measure, monitor and make accountable organisations’ obligations to help achieve sustainable development goals established by global institutions such as the United Nations. Areas of importance discussed are accounting for human rights, mitigation of climate change, securing decent work, increasing accountability – especially civil society democratic participation – and a greater and more equal partnership with stakeholders and developing countries to address their needs. Research limitations/implications: The paper is a personal polemic intended to provoke reflection and reform amongst accountants. Practical implications: The paper outlines the areas where accounting could and has addressed human rights and sustainability issues. Social implications: The social implications are vast, for they extend to major issues concerning the preserving the planet, its species, humankind and enhanced democratic processes for civil society and developing countries. Originality/value: The paper reinforces the need for policy reforms advocated by social and environmental accounting researchers.

scholarly journals The European Union’s external Policy on climate change adaptation: from conditionality-driven action to sustainable development

10.17345/1581 ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Beatriz Pérez de las Heras
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Climate Change Adaptation ◽  
Development Cooperation ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Policy Coherence ◽  
Adaptation Measures ◽  
Eu Policies ◽  
International Climate

T he European Union (EU) has been promoting climate change adaptation measures in developing countries for the last 15 years. EU support is channeled through a number of external policies, but the development cooperation policy is particularly significant. Support has traditionally been conditional upon recipient countries’ adopting a National Adaptation Plan (NAP). This conditionality-based action has not only helped to promote NAPs in developing countries but also enabled these countries to participate in international climate governance. Yet this approach by itself, combined with certain inconsistencies, has failed to achieve sustainable development, one of the overarching goals of all EU policies. On the basis of this experience, the emphasis of the EU’s external climate policy is currently shifting towards a broader approach that takes into account the three dimensions (economic, social and environmental) of sustainable development. This more comprehensive approach and corresponding tools are more in line with the EU’s legal commitment to ensure Policy Coherence for Development.

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