This book examines policy-making in one of the most significant areasof activity in the Canadian economy -- natural resources and theenvironment. It discusses the evolution of resource policies from theearly era of exploitation to the present era of resource andenvironmental management. Using an integrated political economy andpolicy perspective, the book provides an analytic framework from whichthe foundation of ideological perspectives, administrative structures,and substantive issues are explored. The integration of social scienceperspectives and the combination of theoretical and empirical work makethis innovative book one of the most comprehensive analyses of Canadiannatural resource and environmental policy to date.
"This expanded and updated edition of Canadian Natural Resource and Environmental Policy examines policy making in one of the most significant areas of activity in the Canadian economy - natural resources and the environment. It discusses the evolution of resource policies from the early era of exploitation to the present era of resource and environmental management, including the Kyoto Protocol. Using an integrated political economy and policy perspective, the book provides an analytic framework through which ideological perspectives, administrative structures, and substantive issues are explored." --Résumé de l'éditeur.
This book provides an analytic framework from which the foundation of ideological perspectives, administrative structures, and substantive issues are explored. Departing from traditional approaches that emphasize a single discipline or perspective, it offers an interdisciplinary framework with which to think through ecological, political, economic, and social issues. It also provides a multi-stage analysis of policy making from agenda setting through the evaluation process. The integration of social science perspectives and the combination of theoretical and empirical work make this innovative book one of the most comprehensive analyses of Canadian natural resource and environmental policy to date.
This thoughtful collection exposes the gap between rhetoric and performance in Canada's response to environmental challenges. Canadians, despite their national penchant for environmental discussion, have fallen behind their G-8 peers in both domestic commitments and international actions. In a cogent examination of the issue, eight authors demonstrate how Canada's configuration of political and economic institutions has limited effective environmental policy. Canadian environmental institutions, the authors argue, have produced an integrity gap: the sustainability rhetoric adopted by policymakers fails to achieve concrete results. In an analysis that penetrates several policy domains and combines various disciplinary, sectoral, and geographic perspectives, the authors demonstrate how Canada fell from leader to laggard within the international environmental community. Placing the study of Canadian environmental policy within a sound theoretical framework for the first time, this book makes a significant contribution to existing policy scholarship. It will find an enthusiastic audience among political scientists, neo-institutional theorists, policy analysts, and students at both unde
As Thomas Sterner points out, the economic 'toolkit' for dealing with environmental problems has become formidable. It includes taxes, charges, permits, deposit-refund systems, labeling, and other information disclosure mechanisms. Though not all these devices are widely used, empirical application has started within some sectors, and we are beginning to see the first systematic efforts at an advanced policy design that takes due account of market-based incentives. Sterner‘s book encourages more widespread and careful use of economic policy instruments. Intended primarily for application in developing and transitional countries, the book compares the accumulated experiences of the use of economic policy instruments in the U.S. and Europe, as well as in select rich and poor countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Ambitious in scope, the book discusses the design of instruments that can be employed in a wide range of contexts, including transportation, industrial pollution, water pricing, waste, fisheries, forests, and agriculture. Policy Instruments for Environmental and Natural Resource Management is deeply rooted in economics but also informed by perspectives drawn from political, legal, ecological, and psychological research. Sterner notes that, in addition to meeting requirements for efficiency, the selection and design of policy instruments must satisfy criteria involving equity and political acceptability. He is careful to distinguish between the well-designed plans of policymakers and the resulting behavior of society. A copublication of Resources for the Future, the World Bank, and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida).
Natural resource policies provide the foundation for sustainable resource use, management, and protection. Natural Resource Policy blends policy processes, history, institutions, and current events to analyze sustainable development of natural resources. The book’s detailed coverage explores the market and political allocation and management of natural resources for human benefits, as well as their contributions for environmental services. Wise natural resource policies that promote sustainable development, not senseless exploitation, promise to improve our quality of life and the environment. Public or private policies may be used to manage natural resources. When private markets are inadequate due to public goods or market failure, many policy options, including regulations, education, incentives, government ownership, and hybrid public/private policy instruments may be crafted by policy makers. Whether a policy is intended to promote intensive management of natural resources to enhance sustained yield or to restore degraded conditions to a more socially desirable state, this comprehensive guide outlines the ways in which natural resource managers can use their technical skills within existing administrative and legal frameworks to implement or influence policy.
