Towards a Conceptual Framework for The Study of Shifts in Modes of Environmental Governance – Experiences From The Netherlands

TLDR

In the last decade, scholars have noted a shift from government to governance in environmental policy, yet a clear framework to differentiate modes and understand their transitions remains lacking. The paper proposes a conceptual framework for environmental governance modes and demonstrates its utility in the Netherlands’ urban and sustainable production sectors. The framework is applied to Dutch urban and sustainable production policies, and the authors outline literature‑ and practice‑based explanations for governance shifts. Applying the framework reveals that shifts in environmental governance vary in character and intensity, that governance modes build on each other rather than replace them, and suggests avenues for future research. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.

Abstract

ABSTRACT In the last decade, many authors have observed shifts from government to governance in the environmental policy domain. However, a clear conceptual framework to differentiate between modes of environmental governance is lacking and our understanding of when, how and why environmental governance changes from one mode to another is limited. In this paper we propose such a framework and we illustrate its usefulness by applying it to two environmental policy sectors in the Netherlands: urban environmental policy and policy regarding sustainable production and consumption. We show how the application of our framework leads to detailed, replicable and comparable claims about character and intensity of shifts in environmental governance. From this analysis, we conclude that character and intensity of shifts in environmental governance vary significantly. Furthermore, we show that modes of governance build on rather than completely replace one another. Finally, we point to a number of possible explanations for shifts in environmental governance, recognized in literature and in practice. We conclude with some suggestions for further research. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.