Climate Policy Constraints and NGO Entrepreneurship: The Story of Norway's Leadership in REDD&amp;#43; Financing

Hermansen, Erlend Andre T.; Kasa, Sjur

doi:10.2139/ssrn.2622775

Cited by 33 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…According to this alternative understanding, competing actors and groups seek to influence the policy form, development, and implementation process in accordance with their own material and ideological interests (Hajer 1995;Fischer 2003;Dryzek 2013;Kern & Rogge 2018). These actors may be self-interested politicians (Béland and Waddan 2012), policy Following REDD+ in Guyana 8 entrepreneurs (Hermansen & Kasa 2014;Hermansen 2015;Jodoin 2017), or corporate actors seeking to further (or protect) their own interests (Jordan & O'Riordan 2000;Howlett et al 2012). The policy process is thus reconceived as a one dominated by influential (and often transnational) actors, who struggle to impose their interpretation of reality (or policy 'discourse') on the debate, hoping to eventually see their interpretation become hegemonic (Betsill 2006;Jodoin 2017).…”

Section: Redd+ and The Politics Of Environmental Policymentioning

confidence: 99%

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Following REDD+: Elite agendas, political temporalities, and the politics of environmental policy failure in Guyana

Hook

2019

Environment and Planning E: Nature and Space

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This article follows the journey of Guyana’s Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) programme, from its promising emergence in 2009 as an ambitious, Norway-funded scheme worth US$250m to its near-abandonment by all actors ten years later. It is based on primary fieldwork conducted in Guyana in 2016 and 2017 and a deep review of the theoretical and empirical literature on REDD+ policy processes and the Norway–Guyana agreement. The article shows how, contrary to the mainstream understanding of environmental policy as a disinterested search for a rational, scientific solution, decisions governing REDD+ policy in Guyana were rather shaped throughout by the political objectives and calculations of a small number of opportunistic elite actors. It further shows how even the modest incarnation of REDD+ in Guyana (which ended up resembling more of a results-based aid programme than a Payment for Ecosystem Services scheme) was continually affected by political factors beyond the control of policy managers. These included fluctuations in the world gold price that led to an increase in mining activity and deforestation, the departure of a key international investor which caused the collapse of the flagship REDD+-funded Amaila Falls hydropower project, and legislative gridlock in Guyana generated by a hung Parliament. While not suggesting that REDD+ (or similar Payment for Ecosystem Services schemes) can never work, the article nonetheless illustrates the ways in which political objectives and unforeseen events can overwhelm substantive policy efforts towards fighting climate change. The findings also illustrate the dangers of prioritizing short-term ‘success stories’ over longer-term and more consultative environmental policy processes.

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Section: Redd+ and The Politics Of Environmental Policymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In the end, personal agendas and preferences appear to have prevailed. Bade (2012), Egede-Nissen (2014), and Hermansen and Kasa (2014)…”

Section: Why Did Norway Choose Guyana?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Following REDD+: Elite agendas, political temporalities, and the politics of environmental policy failure in Guyana

Hook

2019

Environment and Planning E: Nature and Space

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“…Generally, this Ministry is less concerned with the official development assistance (ODA) budget, as spending usually takes place abroad (Hermansen and Kasa 2014). The initiative would incur no extra costs, since the funding came from a projected and planned increase in ODA spending.…”

Section: Rainforest: a Good Fit With Norwegian Climate Policymentioning

confidence: 99%

"I Will Write a Letter and Change the World". The Knowledge Base Kick-Starting Norway’s Rainforest Initiative

Hermansen

2016

NJSTS

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In September 2007 two Norwegian NGOs wrote a letter to leading Licensing:All content in NJSTS is published under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. This means that anyone is free to share (copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format) or adapt (remix, transform, and build upon the material) the material as they like, provided they follow two provisions: a) attribution -give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. b) share alike -any remixing, transformation or building upon the material must itself be published under the same license as the original.

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“…This study has discussed some evidence of how civil society entities and coalitions have influenced the REDD+ agenda in Brazil through, but not limited to, scientific research, lobbying, and interest-group advocacy.At the international level, with positive results for Brazil, the NGOs Rainforest Foundation Norway, and Friends of the Earth Norway influenced Norway's International Climate and Forest Initiative (NICFI) strategy in 2007 by convincing a broad majority in the Norwegian parliament to make large-scale investment in REDD+ as it is a cost-effective mechanism for mitigation. These two NGOs took advantage of the political pressure from powerful emission-intensive business lobbies in Norway in 2007(Hermansen & Kasa, 2014).At the national level, important NGOs such as IPAM, ISA, and IDESAM have significantly contributed to the development of the REDD+ agenda in Brazil through scientific research, policy papers, participation in discussion forums, and occupying positions in national agencies. ISA has been contributing to the development and enhancement of the Amazon Fund since its conception.…”

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confidence: 99%

“…This was the case of a successful joint effort between Brazilian and international NGOs that advocate in favor of the Brazilian Amazon. According to a civil society participant, RFN and Friends of the Earth Norway lobbied the Norwegian Parliament by using the Pact to convince them to invest in Brazil Hermansen and Kasa (2014). further explained this case:The Rainforest Foundation Norway and Friends of the Earth Norway exploited the window of opportunity that emerged from the tension between high domestic abatement costs and increasing domestic climate policy demands by proposing a large-scale Norwegian rainforest effort.…”

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confidence: 99%

Experimentalist governance in climate finance: the case of REDD+ in Brazil

2019

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I am also grateful to FAPESP (Processes 2014/11950-2 and 2014/21877-0) and CAPES (Pró-Adm Project) for granting the scholarships and for the financial support to carry out this study. These scholarships allowed me to devote myself full-time to this research and academic activities at FEA/USP. Thank you to my parents, Dirce and Leonardo, for teaching me the value of hard work, honesty, and for always supporting me in everything that was possible, despite the difficulties.I am very proud of everything they have done for me. Thank you for all your encouragement! And last but by no means least, thank you to Daniel, the father of my two little boys and my life partner, who was the most enthusiastic person during my PhD journey. He has always believed in my ability, often more than myself, and always gave me full support and encouragement. He was also a major contributor to this study by several times reviewing my research model, making suggestions, reading and editing. Thank you! ABSTRACT Pinsky, V. C. (2017). Experimentalist governance in climate finance: the case of REDD+ in Brazil (PhD thesis). Faculdade de Economia, Administração e Contabilidade. Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo.Climate change is a daunting problem that results in actions-interactions from a number of actors in complex global systems, which require multi-level governance and a myriad of national policies. Academics and policy makers alike have been grappling with how to devise effective strategies on the international coordination of climate change policies. It is challenging because climate change problems involve actors with different positions, interests and motivation to cooperate due to the risks involved, the uncertainty and the high costs of adaptation and mitigation. Deforestation is the second largest source of GHG emissions. Success in this area can have a large impact on mitigation. This study focuses on the case of REDD+, a large scale governance experiment in climate finance and a promising costeffective mitigation mechanism to motivate developing countries to implement policy approaches to reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation. REDD+ is considered a breakthrough mechanism in international cooperation under the UNFCCC regime as it was designed to be performance-based. Brazil is the world's largest recipient and has the most important REDD+ experiment -the Amazon Fund. The lack of developed theory in this domain led to the use of grounded theory methodology to understand the REDD+ governance process in Brazil. The 'REDD+ Governance Theoretical Framework' emerged from the data. It is a substantive theory formed by seven major categories (Governance, Strategy, Financing, Implementation, Participation of stakeholders, Joint action and Collective learning) that are related to each other and explain the phenomenon. This study suggests that the lack of institutional arrangements to stimulate collective learning and incorporate lessons learned from the ground experience has been a major constraint on improving its g...

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Climate Policy Constraints and NGO Entrepreneurship: The Story of Norway's Leadership in REDD+ Financing

Cited by 33 publications

References 18 publications

Following REDD+: Elite agendas, political temporalities, and the politics of environmental policy failure in Guyana

Following REDD+: Elite agendas, political temporalities, and the politics of environmental policy failure in Guyana

"I Will Write a Letter and Change the World". The Knowledge Base Kick-Starting Norway’s Rainforest Initiative

Experimentalist governance in climate finance: the case of REDD+ in Brazil

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