Sustainable Governance and Local Agenda 21 Processes

1
Sustainable Governance and Local Agenda 21
Processes

• MECIBS 4th Conference
• June 6-7, Chojnice
• Lisa Van Well, The Royal Institute of Technology
• Arto Ruotsalainen, Nordregio

2
What is Sustainable Development?

• Sustainable development is development that
  meets the needs of the present without
  compromising the ability of future generations to
  meet their own needs.
• Bruntland report World Commission on Environment
  and Development, 1987, p. 43)

3
Local SD interpretation

• Sustainable development is development that
  delivers basic environmental, social and economic
  services to all residents of a community without
  threatening the viability of the natural, built
  and social systems upon which the delivery of
  these services depends
• International Council for Local
  Environmental Initiatives (1994)

4
TheHoly Trinity

• Integrating environment, social aspects and
  economy

5
What is development?

• Economic growth?
• Meeting basic needs?
• Improving quality of life?
• Meeting higher infrastructure needs?
• Meeting social, welfare, spiritual needs?

6
Growth vs Development

• Growth
• Increasing the level and scale of economic
  activity

• Development
• A qualitative improvement and unfolding of
  further potential

7
Sustainable development strategy

• Cities perceived as sustainable will in the
  future come to be seen as attractive locations
  for investment as well as pleasant places in
  which to live and work (199620)

8
Principles of sustainable governance

• Urban Management, including a range of tools for
  managing sustainability
• Policy integration-vertically and horizontally
• Ecosystems thinking, with a social dimension
• Cooperation and Partnership Learning by doing
  and by example, networks
• EUROPEAN SUSTAINABLE CITIES EXPERT GROUP
  ON THE URBAN ENVIRONMENT, MARCH 1996, BRUSSELS

9
Local Agenda 21 consultation process supporting
sustainable governance

• From Earth Summit to LA21
• LA21 and good governance
• Public involvement in LA21
• Conclusions

10
From Earth Summit to LA21 (1)

• Chapter 28
• LOCAL AUTHORITIES' INITIATIVES IN SUPPORT OF
  AGENDA 21
• Local authorities construct, operate and
  maintain economic, social and environmental
  infrastructure, oversee planning processes,
  establish local environmental policies and
  regulations, and assist in implementing national
  and subnational environmental policies. As the
  level of governance closest to the people, they
  play a vital role in educating, mobilizing and
  responding to the public to promote sustainable
  development.

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From Earth Summit to LA21 (2)

• Activities at the local level
• Each local authority should enter into a
  dialogue with its citizens, local organizations
  and private enterprises and adopt "a local Agenda
  21". Through consultation and consensus-building,
  local authorities would learn from citizens and
  from local, civic, community, business and
  industrial organizations and acquire the
  information needed for formulating the best
  strategies. The process of consultation would
  increase household awareness of sustainable
  development issues.

12
LA21 and good governance (1)

• Actions in the local authority
• Integration of SD aims into the local authoritys
  policies and activities
• Managing and improving local authoritys own
  environmental performance

13
LA21 and good governance (2)

• Actions in the local community
• Awareness raising and education
• Consulting and involving the general public
• Creating partnerships
• Measuring, monitoring, evaluating and reporting
  on progress towards sustainability

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Public involvement in LA21 why?

• People should have the right to obtain
  information on the environment and to participate
  in decisions that affect the environment
• Improves local democracy
• Utilises the local social capital by using the
  knowledge, experiences, skills and enthusiasm of
  people
• Can lead to better decisions, which will lead to
  improvements in everyones quality of life
• Crucial for achieving common SD strategy for the
  whole municipality

15
Public involvement in LA21 how?

• Informing and educating the public
  (announcements, articles, exhibitions, stands at
  local public events, local media, www)
• Collecting public opinions (attitude surveys,
  public enquiries, statements)
• Consultation (public meetings, brain storming,
  panel discussions, neighbourhood meetings)
• Negotiation (joint committees, environmental
  forums)

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Conclusions

• At its best, LA21is a process, that
• Develops citys organisational culture
• Presents an excellent opportunity for integrating
  and implementing SD into the development of
  municipality
• Builds new relationships between local
  authorities and the community
• Facilitates making development sustainable (or
  less unsustainable)