The Legitimacy and Effectiveness of Global Environment

Abstract

Debates about sustainable development are increasingly dominated by questions of how to secure values such as participation, representation, accountability and legitimacy in global environmental governance. The participation of non-state actors, such as business and civil society, is regarded as critical for the effective implementation of sustainable development policies in the EU, UN and various multi-level governance arrangements. The trans-formation of political authority through the emergence of new forms of post-sovereign power (such as private governance and public-private partnerships), makes an assessment of the effectiveness and accountability of these networked governance structures important. How can democratic legitimacy, participation and accountability be secured without compromising effective environmental governance and well-functioning policies? The workshop includes papers on the creation of more effective and legitimate multi-governance arrangements in various policy domains.