Uranium exploration and mining activities in Namibia have increased rapidly since 2003, which increase not only poses a significant impact on the country’s economy, but also on its unique and pristine natural environment. The nature and extent of the environmental impacts associated with uranium mining requires a sound environmental law and policy framework that regulates uranium activities, impacts and aspects during each phase of the project life cycle of a uranium mine. It also requires of authorities to establish and enhance environmental protection and sustainability during uranium mining operations and to ensure that all environmental impacts that inevitably occur as a result of uranium mining activities are addressed in a holistic and integrated manner during each phase of the project life cycle of a uranium mine. In order to do this the country must develop and maintain an efficient and effective environmental governance regime. Namibia’s environmental law and policy framework that regulates uranium mining does not cover the entire PLC of uranium mining. It is vital that the current loops in the country’s existing environmental regulatory framework be closed and that an efficient and effective environmental governance regime, as envisaged in this study, be established. This will enable the administering agents to actively promote and maintain the welfare of the people, ecosystems, essential ecological processes and the biodiversity of Namibia, as well as the utilisation of living natural resources on a sustainable basis to the benefit of all Namibians, both present and future, as pledged in the Namibian Constitution. / Thesis (LL.M. (Environmental law))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2012.

Uranium exploration and mining activities in Namibia have increased rapidly since 2003, which increase not only poses a significant impact on the country’s economy, but also on its unique and pristine natural environment. The nature and extent of the environmental impacts associated with uranium mining requires a sound environmental law and policy framework that regulates uranium activities, impacts and aspects during each phase of the project life cycle of a uranium mine. It also requires of authorities to establish and enhance environmental protection and sustainability during uranium mining operations and to ensure that all environmental impacts that inevitably occur as a result of uranium mining activities are addressed in a holistic and integrated manner during each phase of the project life cycle of a uranium mine. In order to do this the country must develop and maintain an efficient and effective environmental governance regime. Namibia’s environmental law and policy framework that regulates uranium mining does not cover the entire PLC of uranium mining. It is vital that the current loops in the country’s existing environmental regulatory framework be closed and that an efficient and effective environmental governance regime, as envisaged in this study, be established. This will enable the administering agents to actively promote and maintain the welfare of the people, ecosystems, essential ecological processes and the biodiversity of Namibia, as well as the utilisation of living natural resources on a sustainable basis to the benefit of all Namibians, both present and future, as pledged in the Namibian Constitution. / Thesis (LL.M. (Environmental law))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2012.

The processes used to negotiate novel forms of environmental governance being deployed in the North and Central Coast of British Columbia, known as the Great Bear Rainforest, provide useful insights into the kinds of efforts that may be required to effectively address contemporary environmental problems. Through various and complex political processes – constituted by many actors – a novel set of agreements, known as the Great Bear Rainforest Agreements, arguably emerged to resolve a conflict over the management of BC’s forests, a long standing and contentious issue in the province. This thesis first examines the wider limitations of institutions of governance to effectively address environmental problems and efforts to respond to these problems, particularly by environmentalists. Second, it tells the story of the Great Bear Rainforest Agreements, and examines their wider implications for participants of the negotiations and more generally. Overall this thesis argues that the Great Bear Rainforest negotiations can provide instructive lessons to institutions of governance by demonstrating how deliberative processes can help ease some of the structural tensions that condition environmental conflicts in Canada. Second, First Nations in the region played a crucial role in the Great Bear Rainforest negotiations, and the outcomes of this role are likely to have significant implications for future resource conflicts in the province. Third, the role of environmentalists in decision making in British Columbia is evolving. / Graduate

This thesis argues for an approach which goes beyond the conventional urban climate governance view. With engagement in social-technical practices, a more sustainable and inclusive way of transforming the city can be accomplished. One way of doing so is with the offering of the urban living lab as a playground for real-life experiments. With a purposive intervention in an urban socio-technical system, the three- dimensional concept of urban environmental governance, socio-technical experiments and strategic experiments with designed policies can create a more sustainable urban transition. The urban electric vehicle transition is just one example of how these three concepts can be applied. In order to demonstrate the interaction of a sustainable urban transition, an empirical case study was conducted.   This thesis makes a conceptual contribution by engaging with current understanding of urban sustainability transition, using the urban electric vehicle transition as a reference point. The insights of this study extend the theories of the socio-technical system and argue that it is not only about social and technological innovation but how multiple innovations are experimented with and combined in an existing urban context. In addition, the research addresses how this transition is governed on a municipality level and is achieved through a multiple case study approach, analysed through the lens of environmental governance and offers an empirical exploration and develops the theoretical and conceptual framework of the socio-technical system further.

The primary objectives of this study are to understand if and how cities are adapting to heat and water stress and to characterize their understanding of the potential tradeoffs associated with vegetation-based strategies. I address these objectives using two approaches: a comparative analysis of climate adaptation and sustainability planning documents in cities vulnerable to heat and water stress and an in-depth case study of the response to heat and water threats in Los Angeles. The comparative analysis of city plans builds a broad understanding of how cities are planning to adapt to heat and water stress and the degree to which they articulate an understanding of, and mitigate the potential for, maladaptive measures. The Los Angeles case study provides the opportunity to more deeply trace how the process of adapting to heat and water stress has unfolded in a single city. To do so, I locate the city’s contemporary policies in an historical continuum with previous municipal environmental policy efforts, in local patterns of urban development and their entailing political and economic foundations, and in regional, state, national, and international environmental policy hierarchies.

abstract: Employing an interdisciplinary approach with a grounding in new institutional economics, this dissertation investigates how institutions, as shared rules, norms, and strategies, mediate social-ecological outcomes in a system exposed to a novel threat in the form of a rapidly growing and especially destructive invasive plant, Mikania micrantha (Mikania). I explore whether and how communities (largely part of community forest user groups in the buffer zone of Chitwan National Park in Chitwan, Nepal) collectively act in the face of Mikania invasion. Collective action is vital to successful natural resource governance in a variety of contexts and systems globally. Understanding collective action and the role of institutions is especially important in the face of continued and amplifying global environmental changes impacting social-ecological systems, such as climate change and invasive species. Contributing to efforts to bolster knowledge of the role of collective action and institutions in social-ecological systems, this research first establishes that community forest governance and institutional arrangements are heterogeneous. I subsequently utilize content and institutional analyses to identify and address themes and norms related to Mikania management. The content analysis contributes an empirical study of the influence of trust in collective natural resource management efforts. Using two complementary econometric analyses of survey data from 1235 households, I additionally assess equity in access to community forest resources, an understudied area in the institutional literature, and the factors affecting collective action related to Mikania removal. Finally, an agent-based model of institutional change facilitates the comparison of two perspectives, rational choice and cultural diffusion, of how shared norms and strategies for Mikania management change over time, providing insight into institutional change generally. Results highlight the importance of trust and understanding the de facto, or on-the-ground institutions; the influence of perception on collective action; that integrating equity into institutional analyses may strengthen sustainable resource management efforts; and that rational choice is an unlikely mechanism of institutional change. The mixed-methods approach contributes to a more comprehensive understanding of the role of institutions and collective action in invasive species management and broadly to the scientific understanding of the role of institutions in mediating global environmental changes. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Environmental Social Science 2016

Submitted by Nadir Basilio (nadirsb@uninove.br) on 2017-05-22T17:38:32Z No. of bitstreams: 1 Guilherme Leite Gaudereto.pdf: 2391348 bytes, checksum: 86d937f6efb13ef64b0966215120efee (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2017-05-22T17:38:32Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Guilherme Leite Gaudereto.pdf: 2391348 bytes, checksum: 86d937f6efb13ef64b0966215120efee (MD5) Previous issue date: 2017-02-21 / The environmental governance is a concept that can be understood as a framework for the environment. With the objective of analyze the contribution of three instruments of Impact Assessment (IA) to the environmental governance of the hydroelectric sector, this work sought to contribute to the understanding of the functioning and mechanisms of this governance. The hydroelectric sector, while is known for its significant impact on environmental due infrastructure, is a pioneer in the use of AI instruments, including the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), Integrated Environmental Assessment (AAI) And with some experiences of Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA). As there is no much exploration in this theme, the objective of this work, a research of quality and exploratory nature has been carried out, which results in an analysis on the main dynamics, regulatory frameworks and institutional mapping of the hydroelectric sector. For that, an environmental governance analysis was developed on two smaller systems, the electric sector and the protection of the environment sector, which in turn, a set of structures of water resources management and application of the Environmental Policy. The results of the study indicate that the IA instruments, when used, contribute to the strengthening of the governmental environmental structure of the hydroelectric sector, especially if the SEA is adopted, following principles of international good practices. The research also indicates that the current structure of environmental governance is weak, not having a definition of environmental guidelines for the sector and lacking mechanisms for coordination, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the goals. / A governança ambiental é um conceito que pode ser entendido como a estrutura pela qual atores e mecanismos políticos diversos interagem regulando as ações para com o meio ambiente. Com o objetivo de analisar a contribuição de três instrumentos da Avaliação de Impacto (AI) à governança ambiental do setor hidrelétrico, este trabalho buscou contribuir ao entendimento sobre o funcionamento e os mecanismos desta governança. O setor hidrelétrico, ao mesmo tempo em que é reconhecido por causar significativos impactos ambientais decorrentes das grandes obras de infraestrutura hidráulica, é pioneiro na utilização de instrumentos AI no país, dentre os quais a Avaliação de Impacto Ambiental (AIA), a Avaliação Ambiental Integrada (AAI) e, com algumas experiências de Avaliação Ambiental Estratégica (AAE). Por se tratar de um tema amplo e ainda pouco explorado com o enfoque deste trabalho, foi realizada uma pesquisa de cunho qualitativo e de natureza exploratória, que trouxe como resultado uma análise sobre as principais dinâmicas, marcos regulatórios e o mapeamento institucional do setor hidrelétrico. Para tanto, desenvolveu-se a análise de governança ambiental sobre dois sistemas menores, o do setor elétrico e o de proteção do meio ambiente, que por sua vez, é composto pelas estruturas de gestão de recursos hídricos e de aplicação da Política Ambiental. Os resultados do trabalho indicam que os instrumentos de AI, quando utilizados, contribuem para o fortalecimento da estrutura governança ambiental do setor hidrelétrico, especialmente se for utilizada a AAE, e se esta for implementada seguindo princípios de boas práticas internacionais. A pesquisa também indica que a estrutura atual de governança ambiental é pouco funcional, não tendo uma definição de diretrizes ambientais para o setor e carecendo de mecanismos para a coordenação, implementação, monitoramento e avaliação das metas pretendidas.

Made available in DSpace on 2015-04-11T13:53:57Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Iona.pdf: 610370 bytes, checksum: 7a71ec04f3f947d971c22dea8a95cbac (MD5) Previous issue date: 2009-06-17 / This paper aims to analyze the construction of environmental governance in Brazilian cities, characterized as the ability of governments to plan, formulate and implement policies in collaboration with civil society, particularly in the implementation of legislative and regulatory environment, culminating in the creation and strengthening of public and private organizations focused on environmental protection.The depletion of natural resources requires a new attitude of citizens, for the continuity of life on the planet. Within this reality and with the aim of searching aspects of environmental governance, especially in the municipal government of Colinas do Tocantins, was conducted a survey of municipal environmental legislation as well as analysis of secondary data obtained from the local Environmental research 2002, public bodies As the Municipal Department of Environment and before social bodies.. The social participation in the city of Colinas do Tocantins is fragile, because there is more environmental problems. The study found a city with considerable degree of progress in the provision of instruments for environmental management in the period between the years 2002-2008, however the lack of relevance for environmental issues, makes the city stage classics of environmental problems as inadequate disposal of waste solid, water contamination, among others. The municipal competencies and social performance are key pieces in achieving the goals pursued by the law to protect the environment and that is what will show how important is the need for a harmonious relationship between the householders, the public and the environment. This requires that civil society can participate effectively in decision-making, either through the formulation of public policies is for implementation, I mean, we must implement mechanisms for participation, ensuring the exercise of environmental citizenship. Making effective civil society participation can occur differently and this study examines the form of actions of civil society organizations in the environmental policy of the City of Colinas do Tocantins. To do so is made a diagnosis of the composition and role of eating and Civil Society organizations, emphasizing that although embryonic, the second segment that participation is central to the formulation and implementation of public policies and environmental well for the preservation and conservation of social and biodiversity. Analysis of these data possible to build the profile of environmental management implemented in the municipality, and verification of the fragility of governance. From this perspective, we investigated the environmental management practiced and characterized as unfit for the protection of the natural environment and quality of life / Este trabalho tem como objetivo analisar a construção da governança ambiental, nos municípios brasileiros, caracterizada como a capacidade dos governos de planejar, formular e implementar políticas com a colaboração da sociedade civil, particularmente na implantação de quadros legislativos e regulatórios ambientais, culminando na criação e fortalecimento de organismos públicos ou privados voltados para tutela meio ambiente. O esgotamento dos recursos naturais, exige uma nova postura dos cidadãos, para a continuidade da vida no Planeta. Dentro desta realidade e com o intuito de pesquisar aspectos da governança ambiental, notadamente na administração pública municipal de Colinas do Tocantins, foi realizado um levantamento da legislação municipal ambiental, bem como análise de dados secundários obtidos junto ao IBGE, Secretaria Municipal de Meio Ambiente e perante organismos sociais. A participação social no município de Colinas é frágil, em razão disso, há vários problemas ambientais. O estudo revelou um município com considerável grau de evolução na disponibilização de instrumentos de gestão ambiental, no período compreendido entre os anos 2002-2008, entretanto a inefetividade, torna o município palco de problemas ambientais clássicos como disposição inadequada de resíduos sólidos, contaminação da água, dentre outros. As competências municipais e a atuação social são peças-chave na consecução dos objetivos almejados pela legislação que tutela o meio ambiente e é nesse sentido que se mostrará o quão importante é a necessidade de uma relação harmônica entre os munícipes, o poder público e o meio ambiente. Para isso, é necessário que a sociedade civil possa participar efetivamente da tomada de decisões, seja através da formulação de políticas públicas seja pela sua execução, quer dizer, é preciso implementar mecanismos de participação, assegurando o exercício da cidadania ambiental. Este estudo analisa a forma de atuação da Sociedade Civil na política ambiental do Município de Colinas do Tocantins, destacando-se que embora embrionária, a participação desse segmento é fundamental para a formulação e execução de políticas públicas ambientais e assim para a preservação e conservação da sócio e biodiversidade. A análise destes dados permitiu construir o perfil da gestão ambiental implementada no município, e verificação da fragilidade da governança. Nesta perspectiva, investigamos a gestão ambiental praticada e a caracterizamos como imprópria para a proteção do ambiente natural e da qualidade de vida

A Tese trata da ação pública voltada à governança socioambiental da Amazônia na década de 2000. Os objetivos da pesquisa foram registrar o conjunto de ações implementadas e analisar os principais elementos que explicam os resultados do sucesso obtido na inédita redução do desmatamento verificada no período, que se caracterizou pela consistência e constância. A metodologia adotada consistiu na identificação e classificação das iniciativas desenvolvidas nos campos institucional, legal e político pelo Plano de Prevenção e Controle do Desmatamento na Amazônia (PPCDAm); avaliação do esforço governamental empreendido de forma comparativa com as iniciativas da década anterior; suas correlações com as taxas de desmatamento; o grau de impacto nas mídias nacional e regional das medidas implementadas; e a percepção de atores locais sobre os principais fatores que explicam a redução obtida no desmatamento. Para o desenvolvimento da pesquisa foi realizada extensa revisão bibliográfica; analisados dados secundários das principais instituições de pesquisa e de produção de estatísticas socioeconômicas sobre a região; feito levantamento detalhado dos atos legais e infralegais elaborados e das ações implementadas pelo governo federal na região no período de 1990 a 2010; levantamento pormenorizado das matérias sobre desmatamento na Amazônia veiculadas pelos principais veículos de imprensa, em âmbito nacional e regional do período de 1990 a 2010; produção de dados primários, notadamente por meio da utilização de sistema de informação geográfica, que permitem o cruzamento e espacialização de informações secundárias; e realizada pesquisa semiestruturada com atores locais. Os resultados indicam que, associadas ao efeito direto das ações desenvolvidas, muitas das quais tiveram baixa implementação, o volume expressivo de ações de fiscalização e ordenamento territorial, principalmente com a criação de unidades de conservação em terras públicas nas zonas de expansão da fronteira agrícola e no aperfeiçoamento do monitoramento por satélite, somadas à grande repercussão das operações lideradas pela Polícia Federal e a presença do governo federal de forma articulada e constante, estabeleceu na sociedade local uma percepção acentuada de aumento do risco, que induziu a uma mudança de comportamento em relação ao cumprimento da legislação ambiental. A conclusão gera elementos para uma discussão sobre a importância da coerência de posicionamento do Estado e sua clara comunicação à sociedade, constância de atuação e rigor na exigência do cumprimento das normas legais para, juntamente com medidas objetivas de ação pública, na indução da governança socioambiental com efetividade e eficácia. As mudanças no posicionamento do governo federal frente ao tema observadas nos últimos cinco anos e a estabilização da curva descendente da taxa de desmatamento observada a partir de 2012 juntamente com o recente aumento registrado nos anos 2014 e 2015, reforçam os argumentos para a oportunidade dessa discussão. / The thesis deals with public action focused on the socio-environmental governance of the Amazon in the decade of 2000. The goals of the research were to record the set of actions implemented and to analyze the main elements that explain the results of the success obtained in the unprecedented reduction of deforestation in the period, characterized by consistency and constancy. The methodology adopted consisted in identifying and classifying the initiatives developed in the institutional, legal and political fields by the Plan for Prevention and Control of Deforestation in the Amazon (PPCDAm, in Portuguese acronym); evaluation of the governmental effort undertaken in a comparative manner with the initiatives of the previous decade; their correlations with deforestation rates; the impact of the implemented measures on national and regional media; and perception of local actors about the main factors that explain the achieved reduction in deforestation. For the development of the research, an extensive bibliographic review was carried out; secondary data from the main research institutions and socioeconomic statistics on the region were analyzed; a detailed survey of the legal and regulatory acts and the actions implemented by the federal government in the region in the period from 1990 to 2010 was produced; a detailed survey of the press material about Amazon deforestation carried out by the main media outlets at national and regional levels from 1990 to 2010 was developed; production of primary data, notably through the use of geographic information system, thus allowing secondary information intersection and spatialization; and a semi-structured research with local actors was undertaken. The results indicate that, associated with the direct effect of the developed actions, many of which had low implementation, the expressive number of actions on territorial control and planning, mainly with the creation of conservation units on public lands in the agricultural frontier zones and the improvement of satellite monitoring, along with the great repercussion of operations led by the Federal Police and the presence of the federal government in an articulated and constant manner, established among local society a remarkable perception of risk increase, which induced a change of behavior in relation to their compliance with environmental legislation. The conclusion creates elements for a discussion about the importance of the coherence in the State\'s position and its clear communication to the society, constancy of action and rigor in the requirement of compliance with the legal norms, together with objective measures of public action, in the induction of an effective and efficiency socio-environmental governance. The changes in the federal government\'s position in the last five years and the stabilization of the downward trend in the rate of deforestation observed from 2012, as well as the recent increase in 2014 and 2015, reinforce the arguments for the opportunity of this discussion.

Biodiversity loss caused by human activities is considered to be one of the greatest challenges to the stability of our planet. Protected areas emerged as a solution to this challenge, but they are not always successful due to the exclusion and displacement of local communities that live in proximity to the protected area, especially in low income countries. The Maasai Mara conservancy model presents an opportunity to mitigate these problems by increasing wildlife habitat and simultaneously improving the livelihoods of surrounding Maasai communities. However, the model is threatened by the Covid-19 pandemic which has suspended the international tourism on which the conservancies rely. In order to understand how the model can potentially increase its resilience to future global shocks, I interviewed stakeholders about their experiences within the model, during the pandemic and relating to past global shocks. Using the concept of environmentality, I sought to evaluate the structure of the model, its historical roots and the governance tools which enable its function. Some already existing issues were emphasised by the impact of the pandemic, while new opportunities for evolution were also unearthed. The most prominent theme arising from these conversations was that of equity - between tourism partners and landowners, relating to the rights of women and to the place of Maasai youth in the future of the model. The colonial history of wildlife conservation also created discussions around the exclusion of local tourists and the underlying biases that may exist. Finally, I attempt to understand how the governance enacted within the conservancy model creates different kinds of environmental subjects. Although previous discussions on environmental governance have assumed that regulation is successful, I illustrate here that power is not unidirectional because resistance and negotiation by the governed population is common. By interrogating the different layers of environmentality and how they interplay, I trace the creation new environmental subjectivities in those who are involved in the conservation of wildlife in the Maasai Mara.