Publisher Description

Despite all the talk of sustainability, there has not been enough action to halt or reverse the impacts of climate change. Decades after the Rio Earth Summit and despite the many policies and commitments to move toward sustainable development, there continues to be a serious implementation gap.

Implementing Sustainable Development focuses on the challenges of turning international commitments and policy promises into local action. Through global examples and cases, the authors examine not only the core principles, but also successful and failed efforts to address the social, environmental, and economic dimensions of sustainable development. They systematically guide readers through the technical, legal, economic, administrative, political, ethical, and cultural feasibility of putting sustainable development solutions in place. Based on broad research, Claudia María Vargas and Phillip J. Cooper offer a practical and useful approach to identifying and addressing policy implementation challenges—what works, what doesn't, and why.

Features of this thoroughly revised second edition include:
Dozens of case studies from the throughout the worldAn overview of the UN Sustainable Development GoalsAction-oriented solutions to the challenges of sustainable developmentCareful consideration of local and indigenous knowledgeKey issues of equity, equality, and the importance of community involvement

Table of Contents

Preface
Acknowledgments
Abbreviations and Acronyms
Chapter 1. The Foundations of Sustainable Development
What is Sustainable Development Really?
What Sustainable Development is Not
Sustainable Development in Public Policy: The Implementation Gap
Making Sense of it All: The Feasibility Framework as a Way to Understand and Advance Sustainable Development Implementation
So Why Has Sustainable Development Today Gone Beyond Necessary and Has Become Urgent?
Our Common Future: The Commission's Warnings Are Today's Critical Problems
Climate Change: Exhibit-A for the Necessity of Sustainable Development
Conclusion
Chapter 2. The Principles of Sustainable Development: Global Common Commitments
Key Concepts, Connections, and Distinctions: The Foundations of Sustainable Development Implementation
A Transformation in Development Policy
The Growing Significance of Environment
The Growing Role of Markets
Linking Social Development with Economic and Environmental Concerns
The International Dialog on Sustainable Development
From the Brundtland Commission to Rio to Copenhagen
The Copenhagen Social Summit—Re-emphasizing the Three Key Elements of Sustainable Development
Getting from Copenhagen to the Sustainable Development Goals 2030
The Sustainable Development Goals 2030 and the Paris Accords: Commitments to Evaluate Progress
The Challenge of Implementation Amidst a Turbulent Political Environment
Working with Both the Principles of Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals 2030
Sustainable Development Goals: A Necessary but Not Sufficient Approach
The Declared Principles of Sustainable Development: A Useful Framework for Implementation That Can Work Well with the Agenda 2030 goals
Declared Principles of Sustainable Development
The Change Principle
The Environmental Protection Principle
The Principle of Balance and Integration
The Principle of Human-Centered Development
A Right to Development, but with an Obligation of Mutual Respect
The Intergenerational and Intragenerational Equity Principle
The Equality Principle
The Decentralization Principle
The Partnership Principle
The Transparency and Accountability Principle
The Family Principle
The Livable Community Principle
The Education Principle
The Health and Wellness Principle
The Poverty Eradication Principle
The Culture Sensitivity Principle
The Scope, Scale, and Wealth Principle
The Market Principle
The Rule of Law Principle
The Principles and the Goals: Both Necessary, Neither is Sufficient Alone
Conclusion
Chapter 3. Questions of Technical Feasibility: Do We Know How to Do It?
Two Very Different Technical Feasibility Positions
The Namosi Copper Mine—The Effort to Use Mineral Resources for Development in Fiji
Civano, Tucson, Arizona: A Sustainable Community in a Desert Environment
The Context of Sustainable Development Choices
The State of Development
Ecosystem Characteristics
The Temporal Dimension
The Challenges of Finding Technical Responses
Understanding the Problem: Not Always as Easy as it May Seem
The Question of Appropriate Technologies
Sources of Appropriate Technical Solutions
Diffusion of Appropriate Technologies: From Knowledge to Action
What is Good Science in Support of Policy Action?
What Is Success? Problems of Assessment and Measurement in Sustainable Development
Conclusion
Chapter 4. Legal Feasibility: Building Infrastructure to Meet Mandates, from Supranational to Local
Legal Feasibility Challenges on Two Ends of the United States
Washington State Oil Tanker Regulation in the Puget Sound
Sustainable Development Challenges in Ambos Nogales
The Context and the Issues
Context Counts: Questions of Diversity, Conflict, and Convergence
Basic Issues in Legal Feasibility
The International Dimension
National Obligations
Subnational Issues: State (or Provincial) and Local Authority and Limits
Contracts, Agreements, and Other Governance Relationships: Intergovernmental and Cross Sector Relationships, Including Tribal Governments
Conclusion
Chapter 5. Fiscal Feasibility: Resources to Get from Paper to Action
Financial Challenges and Creativity in Sustainable Development: Lockland, Ohio and the Great Green Wall of Africa
Lockland, Ohio: Finding the Green for Brownfields Redevelopment
Memorandum of Agreement
Project Partners and Programs
Remediation of Property
Property Ownership
Redevelopment of the Site
Tax Base Enhancement
Making Real A Sustainable Development Dream on a Colossal Scale: The Great Green Wall of Africa
One Size Does Not Fit All: Context and Fiscal Feasibility
Financing Sustainable Development: Thinking Seriously About Resources for Sustainable Development Implementation
Where Will the Money Come From? Sources and Types of Support
The Local Level: No Time to Wait for the World!
Market Dynamics and Fiscal Support
International Financial Support
The Parameters of Foreign Direct Investment
Various types of Support from Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs)
The Tools and Their Strengths and Challenges
Tax Funded Efforts, Local NGOs, and Even Contributions
Intergovernmental Agreements and other Forms of Collaboration
Loans and Grants at the Local, National, and ODA at the International Level
NGO Support and the Surprises that Can Come with It
FDI at the International Level, the Role of Business, and the Marketplace in Local or National Sustainable Development Work
Budgeting for Sustainable Development: The Expenditure Side of the Ledger
First, Recall that Sustainable Development Often Requires "Assembled Budgets"
Second, Issues of Priority and Process
Third, Special Funds, Fees, and Taxes and Problems for Sustainable Development Rather than Strong Foundations for Implementation
Incentives and Subsidies: Dangers but also Needs
Fourth, Looking Beyond the Short-Term to a Sustainable Development Perspective
Microfinance: Sustainable Finance for the Poor
Special Challenges for Indigenous Communities
Conclusion
Chapter 6. Administrative Feasibility: Good Intentions, Intelligence, and Money Are Not Enough
Water Crises in Walkerton, Ontario Canada and Flint, Michigan
Walkerton, Ontario: Deaths from a Total System Failure
Singapore: The Botanical Gardens and Beyond
The Botanical Gardens of Singapore and Administrative Discretion
Embracing the Concept of a Biophilic City through Strong Governance with a Commitment to Implementation
The Context and Administrative Action
Administrative Feasibility in Larger Cities as Compared to Rural Areas is Different
Administrative Action in Rural Communities Changed by New Residential and Work Patterns
Administrative Complexities in Small Island States
Administrative Action in A Time of Pervasive Anti-Government Politics and Ideology
Modern Governance and the Need to Redevelop the State and Its Institutions
Where to Put the Work of Sustainable Development Administration
Where to Place Sustainable Development Divisions: Four Models
Governance in Sustainable Development: Intergovernmental Relations and the Coordination Challenge
Coordination Challenges: Pulling the Disparate Pieces Together
Key Factors Shaping the Coordination Challenge in Sustainable Development Implementation
Network Management: The Creation and Operation of Virtual Organizations
Major Differences in Network Management in Private, Public, and Nonprofit Organizations
What is a Network Anyway?
Network Management in Implementing Sustainable Development
Parallel Systems Management: A Response to Contemporary Realities
Conclusion
Chapter 7. Political Feasibility: The Will to Act and the Power to Get It Done
Curitiba, Brazil: A Sustainable Development Leader Under Unlikely Circumstances
A Dynamic, Growing, Integrated Approach to Social Development
A Dynamic Approach to Protect the Environment that Integrates Social Development
Economic development Never Stands Alone but Looks to Inclusion and other Social Development Issues
Political Will at Work: Persistent, Pervasive, and Forward Looking
Always Looking Towards a Sustainable Future for Curitibanos
Water Collection and Conservation: Multiple Efforts
A Prompt, Integrated, and Innovative Responses to the Global Pandemic, COVID-19
Political Feasibility in Challenging Times: "PlanClima" to Mitigate Climate Change
Innovation Incubators: The Vale do Pinhão Urban Ecosystem
Lessons on Political Feasibility from Curitiba: "Co-Responsibility"
Vancouver, Washington: Another Improbable Success Story in a Very Different Context
Context Counts: "All Politics is Local" and "Two Weeks is a Political Generation"
The Temporal Dimension of Political Feasibility
A Focus on the Community and Local Context to Enhance Political Feasibility
The Politics of Sustainable Development
Maintaining a Focus on Integrating All Three Elements of Sustainable Development
Maximizing the Potential of Policy Communities
Avoiding the Silos Problem in Sustainable Development Implementation
Political Feasibility in Implementation: Different Challenges from Policy Design and Adoption
Political Will and Political Stability: Critical Core Features of Political Feasibility
Political Will: Action, Ongoing Effort, and the Readiness to Make Difficult Choices
Political Stability: Not a Lack of Debate or Political Competition but a Solid Foundation for Action
Sustainable Development Politics and Intergovernmental Relations
Intergovernmental Relations in the International Context
IGR Within Nations
Political Culture as a Key Component in the Mix that Makes Up Intergovernmental Relations
Beyond Competition to Cooperation at the Local-Government Level
Leaving the Ego at the Door to Overcome Tensions
Growing Your Own Capacity and Keeping It by Sharing
Public Participation and Political Feasibility
Not One Kind of Involvement but a Spectrum of Participation
Why Does It Matter? Participation as an Active Element in Sustainable Development
Barriers to Participation: The Obvious and the Less Visible
Dangers and Cautions: Not Always as Obvious as Red Octagon or Yellow Triangle Signs
Foundations for Enhanced Participation: Challenge of Listening and Educating
The Politics of NGOs: Complex Relationships with Essential Partners
Mustering Collaboration Among the Overwhelming Numbers of NGOs
Competition between International and Local NGOs in Advancing Sustainable Development
Management Differences between Government Agencies and NGOs
The Complexity of Coalitions
Conclusion
Chapter 8. Ethical Feasibility: Values That Matter on the Ground
Michigan Center for the Environment and Children's Health
A Network of Centers to Address Children's Environmental Health
The Michigan Center for the Environment and Children's Health (MCECH) Targeting Asthma
Lok Jumbish, Jaipur, India: Education That Includes Girls Through Community Engagement
School Mapping: Engaging and Getting to Know the Community
An Empowering Teaching Approach through Iterative Teacher Training
Engaging Traditionally Disenfranchised Women in the LJ Movement
Serving Traditionally Excluded Groups
Nonformal Education to Accommodate Girls with Special Circumstances
Inclusion of Children with Disabilities
Reaching Out to Engage and Provide Accommodations for Children with Particular Challenges
Rajasthan's Equity Efforts in the 21st Century: Beyond Literacy to Meet Future Needs
Context Counts: Development Challenges in Very Different Settings
The Case of Detroit and Ethical Feasibility in a Large City
Special Challenges in Rural Areas Whether in Rajasthan, India or Walkerton, Ontario Canada
Sustainable Development Ethics and the Commission Commitments
Corruption and Perverse Incentives
Law and Ethics as Related but Different Issues
Corruption, Whatever Else It May Be Called Weighs Heaviest on the Poor
Exclusion and Discrimination: The Need to Move to Inclusion and More
The Ongoing Need to Address Discrimination Against Women
Poverty and Exclusion: Unseen and Too Often Out of Mind
Exclusion Also Means a Lack of a Voice in Key Decisions or Serious Consideration of Impacts by the Decisions of Others
Exclusion by Age: Issues of Children and the Elderly
Exclusion of Persons with Disabilities
Indigenous Peoples: Long Excluded, but Now Teaching the Rest of Us
Internalizing the Excluded: Areas of Inclusive Action
Promoting Food Security and Nutrition While Promoting Equity
Environmental and Climate Justice: More Than Simply Stopping Bad Development
Sustainable Development and Environmental Equity
Sustainable Development and Climate Justice
Climate Justice Challenges: Massive Flooding in Pakistan
Climate Justice and Children: Intergenerational Impacts of Unsustainable Behavior
Protecting Vulnerable Workers: Lessons from Climate Change and COVID-19
Politics and Problematic Policy Responses to Environmental Justice and Climate Justice
Negotiating Cultures and "Ethical Discontinuities"
Conclusion
Chapter 9. Cultural Feasibility: One Size Does Not Fit All
Chimney Rock, California: A Case of Culture as Casualty of Development
Ganados del Valle, New Mexico: Culture as an Asset
Enterprises Spun Off from Ganados del Valle
Ganados del Valle in More Recent Times
Context Counts, But Too Often We Do Not Recognize It
Culture as an Asset for Sustainable Development
Tribal Co-Management Agreements with Federal and State Governments: Active Engagement with Indigenous Culture as an Asset in Contemporary Policy Action
Chief Seattle Club: Culture as an Asset in Serving Native-American/Alaska Natives
Integrating Indigenous Food Systems with Modern Knowledge for Erga Omnes, to Benefit All
Culture as Casualty: Adverse Impacts from Unsustainable Development
Culture under Pressure: The Case of Fiji
Stress, Loss, and Cultural Collisions
Indigenous Cultural Regeneration and Survival
The Makah Tribe: Cultural Revival and Regeneration Challenged
Challenges in Culturally Sensitive Sustainable Development Implementation
Organizational Culture: The Other Kind of Culture
Taking Cultural Feasibility Seriously: Diébédo Francis Kéré, Burkina Faso, and a Legacy of Ancient Knowledge
Conclusion
Chapter 10. Ideas That Matter and Actions That Matter Even More
The Principles of Sustainable Development: Serious Commitments to Guide Action
The Feasibility Framework in Action
The Urgency of Implementing Sustainable Development to Address the Climate Crisis
Lessons Along the Way
Context Counts, So Why Do We So Often Forget that Reality?
Nimble, Multi-functional, Infrastructure and Institutions
Effective Intergovernmental and Cross-Sectoral Collaboration at the Core: So Obvious, but So Often Neglected
Genuine Community Engagement: From Trust to Collaborative Action
The Ubiquitous Role of Education
Indigenous Knowledge as a Guide to Protecting the Global Commons
The Centrality of Integrating all Three Pillars of Sustainable Development
Index
About the Authors

Review

A thoughtful and comprehensive text on perhaps the most important global subject of the 21st century, Implementing Sustainable Development is a welcome addition to the sustainability conversation. The scope of the authors' approach offers a practical and accessible avenue for readers to consider the challenges—and possibilities—of achieving sustainable development. -- Jeffrey Brewer, University of Cincinnati
In Implementing Sustainable Development, Vargas and Cooper provide a rare glimpse at real-life case examples from around the world that elucidate the complexities and the global-to-local interconnectedness of creating a more sustainable planet. This book expertly examines the history of sustainable development by linking the scales of impact from the international level at the UN to local cities around the world through field work with key stakeholders. Significantly, Vargas and Cooper give a voice to the voiceless and marginalized, hence demonstrating the need for all to be engaged in creating a more sustainable world. Weaving sustainable development through various disciplines from policy, finance, and international relations, the authors underline collaboration and interdisciplinarity as key drivers of sustainable development. This book is as useful in a classroom as it would be for a workshop among decision makers in the public and private realms. It is a hopeful, empirically-rich portrayal of a more balanced approach toward a sustainable future. -- Pamela Martin, Coastal Carolina University

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Implementing Sustainable Development focuses on the challenges of turning international commitments and policy promises into local action. Through global examples and cases, it examines the many dimensions of sustainable development, along with practical strategies for identifying and addressing obstacles to policy implementation.

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