Is environmental sustainability a case of failure of policy implementation?
Abstract
Aim: The study’s goals were to ascertain the causes of policy implementation failure, the results of that failure on sustainability, and the solutions available for bringing that sustainability.
Method: Methodologically, this study employed a quantitative systematic literature review in accordance with the procedures described by Pickering and Byrne.
Findings: The systematic review of the literature confirms that issues with communication, politics, and economics are to blame for environmental policies failing to produce the desired results. These results also show how much of a growing concern the failure of environmental policies is.
Implications/Novel Contribution: According to the findings, a lack of incentives to adopt environmental policies, poor communication of goals to key stakeholders, and a conflict between the roles of environmental policies and objectives focused on economic development are the main causes of the inability to achieve environmental sustainability. Because of this, policymakers must gain knowledge from these failures if they hope to lead the world to sustainable development.
References
Aldy, J. E., Hrubovcak, J., & Vasavada, U. (1998). The role of technology in sustaining agriculture and the environment. Ecological Economics, 26(1), 81-96. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/s0921-8009(97)00068-2
Althaus, C., Bridgman, P., & Davis, G. (2007). The Australian policy handbook. New South Wales, Austraila: Allen & Unwin Sydney.
Asara, V., Otero, I., Demaria, F., & Corbera, E. (2015). Socially sustainable degrowth as a social-ecological transformation: Repoliticizing sustainability. Sustainability Science, 10(3), 375-384. doi:https://doi.org/10.1007/s11625-015-0321-9
Beeson, M. (2010). The coming of environmental authoritarianism. Environmental Politics, 19(2), 276-294. doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/09644010903576918
Cuyugan, A. B. S., Agus, G. E., Dasig Jr., D. D., Nidea, M. A., Claricia, E. E., Taduyo, M. A. B., & Camacho, E. J. (2017). In aid of community policy and framework development: A sustainable integrated community advancement program. Journal of Advanced Research in Social Sciences and Humanities, 2(2), 87-95. doi:https://doi.org/10.26500/jarssh-02-2017-0202
Dutta, S. K., Lawson, R. A., & Marcinko, D. J. (2013). Alignment of performance measurement to sustainability objectives: A variance-based framework. Journal of Accounting and Public Policy, 32(6), 456-474. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaccpubpol.2013.08.008
Edenhofer, O. (2015). Climate change 2014: Mitigation of climate change. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
Enu, D., & Ugwu, U. (2011). Human security and sustainable peace building in Nigeria: The Niger delta perspective. Journal of Sustainable Development, 4, 254-259.doi:https://doi.org/10.5539/jsd.v4n1p254
Environment Programme . (2012). Global environmental outlook 5 report (Techincal report). Environment Programme, Nairobi, Kenya.
Escobar, A. (2015). Degrowth, postdevelopment, and transitions: A preliminary conversation. Sustainability Science, 10(3), 451-462. doi:https://doi.org/10.1007/s11625-015-0297-5
Fukuda, S., Murakami, M., Noda, K., & Oki, T. (2016). How achieving the millennium development goals increases subjective well-being in developing nations. Sustainability, 8(2-10), 189-192. doi:https://doi.org/10.3390/su8020189
García, G. M., Pollard, J., & Rodríguez, R. D. (2003). The planning and practice of coastal zone management in Southern Spain. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 11(2-3), 204-223. doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/09669580308667203
Gomez, B. E., & Naredo, J. M. (2015). In search of lost time: The rise and fall of limits to growth in international sustainability policy. Sustainability Science, 10(3), 385-395. doi:https://doi.org/10.1007/s11625-015-0308-6
Hilden, M. (2014). Evaluation, assessment, and policy innovation: Exploring the links in relation to emissions trading. Environmental Politics, 23(5), 839-859. doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/09644016.2014.924199
Hou, Y., & Xu, J. (2012). Socialism and ecological crises: A view from China. Journal of Sustainable Development, 5(4), 126-130. doi:https://doi.org/10.5539/jsd.v5n4p126
Howes, M., et al. (2013). Politics and the environment: Risk and the role of government and industry. London, UK: Routledge.
Hsieh, K., Yi, & Li, C. N. (2018). Research on the evaluation indexes of walking friendly environment in healthy communities from the perspective of mass transit oriented development âA ¸S Taipei MRT as an example. ˘International Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences, 4(1), 1-14. doi:https://doi.org/10.20469/ ijhss.4.10001-1
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. (2014). (ipcc). (2014)climate change 2014: Impacts, adaptation, and vulnerability; working group ii contribution to the fifth assessment report of the intergovernmental panel on climate change. Retrieved from https://bit.ly/QqzGyA (accessed on 13 July, 2017)
Jabbour, J., Keita-Ouane, F., Hunsberger, C., Sánchez-Rodríguez, R., Gilruth, P., Patel, N., . . . Schwarzer, S. (2012). Internationally agreed environmental goals: A critical evaluation of progress. Environmental Development, 3(6), 5-24. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envdev.2012.05.002
Jankovic Šoja, S., Anoki ´ c, A., Bucalo Jeli ´ c, D., & Maleti ´ c, R. (2016). Ranking EU countries according to their ´ level of success in achieving the objectives of the sustainable development strategy. Sustainability, 8(4), 306-315. doi:https://doi.org/10.3390/su8040306
Kamieniecki, S., & Kraft, M. (2013). The oxford handbook of US environmental policy. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
Kanakoudis, V. (2015). Three alternative ways to allocate the cost of the CF produced in a water supply and distribution system. Desalination and Water Treatment, 54(8), 2212-2222. doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/19443994.2014.934117
Kanakoudis, V., & Karatzas, G. (2017). Efficient and sustainable water systems management toward worth living development. Retrieved from https://bit.ly/2XJdsvf (accessed 12 July, 2017)
Kanakoudis, V., & Papadopoulou, A. (2014). Allocating the cost of the carbon footprint produced along a supply chain, among the stakeholders involved. Journal of Water and Climate Change, 5(4), 556-568. doi:https://doi.org/10.2166/wcc.2014.101
Kanakoudis, V., Tsitsifli, S., & Papadopoulou, A. (2012). Integrating the carbon and water footprintsâA˘ Z costs in ´ the water framework directive 2000/60/ec full water cost recovery concept: Basic principles towards their reliable calculation and socially just allocation. Water, 4(1), 45-62. doi:https://doi.org/10.3390/w4010045
Lynagh, F. M., & Urich, P. B. (2002). A critical review of buffer zone theory and practice: A Philippine case study. Society & Natural Resources, 15(2), 129-145. doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/089419202753403319
McGuire, C. J., & Perivier, H. (2011). The nonexistence of sustainability in international maritime shipping: Issues for consideration. Journal of Sustainable Development, 4(5), 72âA ¸S78. ˘
Organizatio, W. H. (2016). Global urban ambient air pollution database. Retrieved from https://bit.ly/1fOGBx0 (accessed on 15 July, 2018)
Paker, H., Adaman, F., Kadirbeyoglu, Z., & Özkaynak, B. (2013). Environmental organisations in Turkey: ˘Engaging the state and capital. Environmental Politics, 22(5), 760-778. doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/09644016.2013.825138
Parto, S. (2003). Sustainability and the local scale: Squaring the peg? International Journal of Sustainable Development, 7(1), 76-90. doi:https://doi.org/10.1504/ijsd.2004.004980
Pastakia, A. (2002). Assessing ecopreneurship in the context of a developing country. Greener Management International, 5(38), 98-103. doi:https://doi.org/10.9774/gleaf.3062.2002.su.00010
Patton, C., & Sarwicki, D. (1993). Basic methods of policy analysis and planning. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Pelletier, N. (2010). Of laws and limits: An ecological economic perspective on redressing the failure of contemporary global environmental governance. Global Environmental Change, 20(2), 220-228. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2009.12.006
Pickering, C., & Byrne, J. (2014). The benefits of publishing systematic quantitative literature reviews for phdcandidates and other early-career researchers. Higher Education Research & Development, 33(3), 534-548. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2009.12.006
Quesenberry, L. (2000). Ecotourism: A hyperbolic sustainable development technique. Dickinson Journal Environmental Law Policy, 9(33), 473-483. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2009.12.006
Raj, D. S. (1999). Environment management in Nepal: Unmanaging the manageable. Ecological Economics, 28(1), 31-40.
Rerkklang, P. (2018). Sustainability development consciousness and behavior of thais: The effects on quality of life and happiness. Journal of Advances in Humanities and Social Sciences, 4(1), 51-59. doi:https://doi.org/10.20474/jahss-4.1.5
Rex, O. O., Yetunde, O., Grace, E. C., & Pearl, O. A. (2017). Sustainable urbanization: Investigating problems encountered in uncontrolled urban growth in Nyanya - A suburb of Abuja, Nigeria. International Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences, 3(1), 13-19. doi:ttps://doi.org/10.20469/ijhss.3.20003-1
Rogers, R. A., & Wilkinson, C. J. (2000). Policies of extinction: The life and death of Canada’s endangered species legislation. Policy Studies Journal, 28(1), 190-205. doi:https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1541-0072.2000.tb02023.x
Seyfang, G. (2005). Shopping for sustainability: Can sustainable consumption promote ecological citizenship? Environmental Politics, 14(2), 290-306. doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/09644010500055209
Soloviy, I. P., & Cubbage, F. W. (2007). Forest policy in aroused society: Ukrainian post-orange revolution challenges. Forest Policy and Economics, 10(1-2), 60-69. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.forpol.2007.05.003
Stocker, T. (2014). Climate change 2013: The physical science basis: Working group i contribution to the fifth assessment report of the intergovernmental panel on climate change. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
Teng, F., Quoquab, F., Hussin, N., & Mohammad, J. (2016). Re-defining sustainable development values and its facets based on developing country perspective. Journal of Advances in Humanities and Social Sciences, 1(2), 1-13. doi:https://doi.org/10.20474/jahss2.1.1
Tisdell, C. A. (1999). Coevolution: Agricultural practices and sustainability: Some major social and ecological issues. International Journal of Agricultural Resources, Governance and Ecology, 1(1), 1-16. doi:https://doi.org/10.1504/ijarge.2000.000005
United Nations. (2015). Sustainable development goals. Retrieved from https://bit.ly/2jHjQmD (accessed on 14 July, 2017)
United Nations Millennium Ecosystem Assessment. (2005). Ecosystems and human wellbeing: Synthesis (Technical report). United Nations, Washington DC, WA.
World Wide Fund for Nature. (2014). Living planet report 2014: Species and spaces, people and places (Techinal report). World Wide Fund for Nature, Gland, Switzerland.
Zalasiewicz, J., Williams, M., Steffen, W., & Crutzen, P. (2010). The new world of the anthropocene. New York, NY: ACS Publications.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.