Taking stock of Climate Change Acts in Europe: living policy processes or symbolic gestures?

Nash, Sarah Louise; Steurer, Reinhard

doi:10.1080/14693062.2019.1623164

Cited by 36 publications

(27 citation statements)

References 21 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Countries take different approaches to govern action against climate change: Some put their climate objectives and governance structures in law, while others use existing powers or act through decisions by the executive branch of government. The normative case for a legislative framework rests on the assertion that action against climate change needs a strong legal and democratic basis (Averchenkova et al, 2017;Nash & Steurer, 2019). Scholars are looking for a stable, long-term and integrated approach to climate governance, rooted in law, with parliament as the natural place to address any socio-political conflicts (Fisher, 2017;Fisher et al, 2009;Hulme, 2009;Scotford & Minas, 2019).…”

Section: Related Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

“…One of the roles of a framework law is to facilitate policy integration and introduce climate change concerns to other policy areas (Nash & Steurer, 2019). Action on climate change requires interventions on many fronts.…”

Section: Policy Integrationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Specifically, we are interested in whether the Act has influenced the level of cross-party political consensus, the framing of policy debates and policy integration across government. These outcomes have been noted as important to climate governance by for example Carter (2014), Gillard (2016) and Nash and Steurer (2019).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…Many of these features have since been emulated in other climate change frameworks, including those of Finland (Climate Change Act 2015), France (Energy and Climate Law 2019), Germany (Climate Protection Law 2019), Ireland (Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act 2015), Mexico (General Law on Climate Change 2012), New Zealand (Climate Change Response (Zero Carbon) Amendment Bill 2019), and Sweden (Climate Act 2017) (Averchenkova & Guzman Luna, 2018;Nash & Steurer, 2019;Torney, 2017Torney, , 2019.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Jordan et al, 2018;Ostrom, 2010;Roelfsema et al, 2018), including on how framework legislation is expected to shape political process (e.g. Fisher, 2017;Fisher et al, 2009;Hulme, 2009;Nash & Steurer, 2019;Scotford & Minas, 2019). Indeed, much of this latter work is inspired by the CCA itself.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

The impact of strategic climate legislation: evidence from expert interviews on the UK Climate Change Act

2020

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This paper assesses the importance of a strategic legal framework for action against climate change, using the UK Climate Change Act as an example. Passed in 2008, the Climate Change Act is one of the earliest and most prominent examples of framework legislation on climate change. It contains several innovative features that have since been replicated in other framework laws. We use stakeholder interviews to assess the strengths of the Act and whether it has succeeded in creating an integrated, informed and forward-looking policy process. Respondents felt that the Act had established a firm long-term framework with a clear direction of travel. However, they differed on whether the Act provided sufficient policy certainty and protection against political backsliding. Most respondents felt that the Act had changed the institutional context and the processes through which climate change is addressed. As a result, interviewees believe that the Act has helped UK climate policy to become better informed, more forward looking and better guided by statutory routines. Key policy insights. A strong legal framework with statutory targets, processes and institutions can be an important tool for effective climate change governance.. A broad-based framework law can make action on climate change more predictable, more structured and more evidence-based.. The UK Climate Change Act is a model for such framework legislation, with important institutional features that have already been emulated in other framework laws.. The main such features are statutory short-term and long-term emissions targets, a new independent advisory body (the Committee on Climate Change), clear accountability and an iterative approach to adaptation planning.

show abstract

Section: Related Literaturementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Policy Integrationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

The impact of strategic climate legislation: evidence from expert interviews on the UK Climate Change Act

2020

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Climate Change Policy

Bailey¹

2022

International Encyclopedia of Geography

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Climate change is one of the greatest challenges facing humanity in the twenty‐first century and has become the subject of intensive political and policy attention. A range of debates and contributions made by geographical research to understanding and shaping climate change policy is examined. The examination begins with a discussion of debates on the definitions, geographical properties, and goals of mitigation, adaptation, and loss and damages policies. An investigation into developments in climate change policy at the international, national, and local levels over the past 30 years follows, with an exploration into the concept of transnational climate governance and the emergence of multiactor and polycentric approaches to climate policy. A discussion on the role of carbon markets in climate change policy follows, examining their practical performance and conceptual debates on the use of market‐based approaches to promote effective and equitable mitigation of, and adaptation to the effects of, climate change. Finally, avenues for future research by geographers and other social scientists are identified, where particular emphasis is placed on the implications of the climate justice and climate emergency agendas for climate change policy.

show abstract

Media coverage, attention cycles and the governance of plastics pollution

Bailey

2022

Env Pol Gov

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Fluctuations in media and public attention create major challenges for the governance of environmental problems but detailed investigations of how issue‐attention cycles affect environmental governance processes remain limited. This article addresses this gap using a literature analysis to examine the effects of issue‐attention cycles on policy responses to plastics pollution. It explores trends and features of media coverage of plastics, their influence on public pressure for action, linkages between shifts in attention and measures to govern plastics at the international, national, sub‐national and corporate levels, and options to utilise issue‐attention cycles to support greater action on plastics. The review indicates that heightened media coverage has encouraged greater public engagement with plastics overall but that elements of media reporting raise questions about the coherence and longevity of public pressure for change. Links between attention peaks and increased policy activity also remain unclear, though some policy‐makers have used peaks to inject momentum into policy processes and initiate longer‐term reforms that buffer policy against declining interest. Alongside these techniques, new framings emphasising the economic, social and health impacts of plastics may assist in extending concern and pressure for action. The article concludes by arguing the need to deepen understandings of the properties of attention cycles for different environmental problems and their implications for governance efforts.

show abstract

Taking stock of Climate Change Acts in Europe: living policy processes or symbolic gestures?

Cited by 36 publications

References 21 publications

The impact of strategic climate legislation: evidence from expert interviews on the UK Climate Change Act

The impact of strategic climate legislation: evidence from expert interviews on the UK Climate Change Act

Climate Change Policy

Media coverage, attention cycles and the governance of plastics pollution

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About