scholarly journals Macropolitics of Micronesia: Toward a Critical Theory of Regional Environmental Governance

2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 9-27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca L. Gruby

This article examines regional environmental governance (REG) through the lens of human geography theory on scale. Drawing on a case study of the Micronesia Challenge, a regional conservation commitment among five Pacific islands, I advance a critical theory of REG as a scaling process and tool of politics through which regions are (re)made and mobilized in support of diverse agendas. Results highlight understudied dimensions of REG, including: motivations for scaling environmental governance to regions; the co-production of regional and global environmental governance; the mutable expression of regionality within REG; and the ways in which REG is leveraged for resource mobilization, global visibility and influence, and conservation. The potential for REG to empower subaltern groups while advancing conservation is promising, and an important area for future research. The overall contribution of this article is a more complex, politicized understanding of REG that complicates a scholarly search for its inherent characteristics.

Author(s):  
Melanie Zurba ◽  
Anastasia Papadopoulos

AbstractGlobal environmental governance (GEG) forums, such as those convened through the United Nations, result in the development of monumental guiding frameworks such as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) Conference of Parties (COPs) Aichi and post-2020 targets. The ratification of policy frameworks by member and/or signatory states can result in major shifts in environmental policy and decision-making and has major implications for Indigenous communities. In this article, we present systematic review of the peer-reviewed literature on Indigenous participation in GEG forums, and focus on the specific questions: (1) what GEG forums include Indigenous participation and (2) how do Indigenous peoples participate in GEG forums, including how their perspectives and knowledges are framed and/or included/excluded within governance discussions, decisions, and negotiations. We provide a bibliometric analysis of the articles and derive seven inductively determined themes from our review: (1) Critical governance forums and decisions; (2) inclusion and exclusion of Indigenous voices and knowledge in GEG forums; (3) capacity barriers; (4) knowledge hierarchies: inclusion, integration, and bridging; (5) representation and grouping of Indigenous peoples in GEG; (6) need for networks among and between Indigenous peoples and other governance actors; and (7) Indigenous peoples influence on GEG decisions and processes. Our findings can be used to improve GEG forums by contributing to the development strategies that address the barriers and inequities to meaningful and beneficial Indigenous participation and can contribute to future research that is focused on understanding the experiences of Indigenous peoples within GEG forums.


2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 180
Author(s):  
Verdinand Robertua

Forest fires in 2015 in Indonesia has destructed severely Indonesian peat and forest. Peat Restoration Agency was established to restore degraded peat and protect the remaining intact peat. The problem is that Indonesia has complex political administration and isolated peatland. Meanwhile there is significant wave of states retreat from global environmental governance. This research would like assess the performance of global environmental governance using the case study of Peat Restoration Agency. This research is a qualitative study with the emphasis of conceptual and theoretical development. Environmental Studies of English School and global environmental governance are the theoretical and conceptual focus respectively. Primary data is collected through semi-structured interview with head of Peat Restoration Agency, environmental activists in WWF Indonesia, WALHI and Greenpeace Indonesia. There are two key finding in this research. Firstly, the absence of immutability thesis is essential for expanding pluralism in Environmental Studies of English School (ESES). Secondly, deconstruction and reconstruction of global environmental governance has implication toward the reconstruction of environmental diplomacy. Keywords: Peat Restoration Agency, Environmental Studies of English School, environmental diplomacy, Global Environmental Governance, peatland Abstrak Kebakaran hutan yang terjadi pada tahun 2015 telah menghancurkan lahan gambut yang sangat luas. Merespons kerusakan tersebut, Badan Restorasi Gambut dibentuk dengan tujuan memulihkan lahan gambut yang rusak dan melindungi lahan gambut yang utuh. Inisiatif ini menghadapi masalah dimana Indonesia memiliki sistem pemerintahan yang kompleks dan lahan gambut yang sulit diakses dari pusat pemerintahan. Tata kelola lingkungan global juga menghadapi masalah dimana negara anggotanya memilih untuk bersikap pasif. Penelitian ini mengevaluasi kinerja dari tata kelola lingkungan global melalui studi kasus Badan Restorasi Gambut. Penelitian ini adalah penelitian kualitatif dengan tujuan penelitian yaitu pengembangan konsep tata kelola lingkungan global dan teori Environmental Studies of English School. Data primer diperoleh melalui serangkaian wawancara dengan kepala Badan Restorasi Gambut, aktivis lingkungan WWF Indonesia, WALHI dan Greenpeace Indonesia Terdapat dua kesimpulan yang diperoleh penelitian ini. Pertama, penghapusan immutability thesis merupakan bagian dari pengembangan pluralisme dalam Environmental Studies of English School. Kedua, dekonstruksi dan rekonstruksi tata kelola lingkungan global berimplikasi terhadap rekonstruksi diplomasi lingkungan. Kata kunci: Badan Restorasi Gambut, Environmental Studies of English School, diplomasi lingkungan, tata kelola lingkungan global, lahan gambut    


2003 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 103-119 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charlotte Bretherton

Environmental governance may be distinguished from environmental management by the implication that, in the former, some form of participatory process is involved. Here, the focus is upon the potential for women's movements and networks to influence the principles and practices of global environmental governance (GEG). It is contended that, in principle, women are uniquely placed to oppose the dominant norms informing GEG; and that women's participation would, in consequence, be crucial to the achievement of equitable and environmentally sound forms of governance. In practice, however, a number of factors combine to create divisions between women, and hence to impede transnational mobilization by women around environmental issues. This article examines these issues.


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