Through theoretical discussions and case studies, this volume explores how processes of contestation about knowledge, norms, and governance processes shape efforts to promote sustainability through international environmental governance. The epistemic communities literature of the 1990s highlighted the importance of expert consensus on scientific knowledge for problem definition and solution specification in international environmental agreements. This book addresses a gap in this literature - insufficient attention to the multiple forms of contestation that also inform international environmental governance. These forms include within-discipline contestation that helps forge expert consensus, inter-disciplinary contestation regarding the types of expert knowledge needed for effective response to environmental problems, normative and practical arguments about the proper roles of experts and laypersons, and contestation over how to combine globally developed norms and scientific knowledge with locally prevalent norms and traditional knowledge in ways ensuring effective implementation of environmental policies. This collection advances understanding of the conditions under which contestation facilitates or hinders the development of effective global environmental governance. The contributors examine how attempts to incorporate more than one stream of expert knowledge and to include lay knowledge alongside it have played out in efforts to create and maintain multilateral agreements relating to environmental concerns. It will interest scholars and graduate students of political science, global governance, international environmental politics, and global policy making. Policy analysts should also find it useful.

The United Nations General Assembly is arguably the most important discussion forum in global politics. This is a concise and accessible introduction to its history, organization and politics. Examining the development of the Assembly as a forum for improving international cooperation, this study details its development of shared norms and goals in the political context of the immediate post-World War II era. The Assembly has had to adapt quickly to the Cold War, the South-North contentions over development, the dissolution of the Soviet bloc and the rise in concern about terrorism. This study also presents a fascinating look ahead to three potential futures: a world of states, a world government, and a world of network governance. To flourish in any of these contexts it shows how the practices of the institution will require considerable change. The common criticisms of the Assembly are also covered in depth, such as that it is just a talking shop; that it is hamstrung by the Security Council and that it benefits the rich at the expense of the poor. This is an ideal book for students of the United Nations, international organizations and global governance.

The United Nations General Assembly is arguably the most important discussion forum in global politics. This is a concise and accessible introduction to its history, organization and politics. Examining the development of the Assembly as a forum for improving international cooperation, this study details its development of shared norms and goals in the political context of the immediate post-World War II era. The Assembly has had to adapt quickly to the Cold War, the South-North contentions over development, the dissolution of the Soviet bloc and the rise in concern about terrorism. This study also presents a fascinating look ahead to three potential futures: a world of states, a world government, and a world of network governance. To flourish in any of these contexts it shows how the practices of the institution will require considerable change. The common criticisms of the Assembly are also covered in depth, such as that it is just a talking shop; that it is hamstrung by the Security Council and that it benefits the rich at the expense of the poor. This is an ideal book for students of the United Nations, international organizations and global governance.

Through theoretical discussions and case studies, this volume explores how processes of contestation about knowledge, norms, and governance processes shape efforts to promote sustainability through international environmental governance. The epistemic communities literature of the 1990s highlighted the importance of expert consensus on scientific knowledge for problem definition and solution specification in international environmental agreements. This book addresses a gap in this literature - insufficient attention to the multiple forms of contestation that also inform international environmental governance. These forms include within-discipline contestation that helps forge expert consensus, inter-disciplinary contestation regarding the types of expert knowledge needed for effective response to environmental problems, normative and practical arguments about the proper roles of experts and laypersons, and contestation over how to combine globally developed norms and scientific knowledge with locally prevalent norms and traditional knowledge in ways ensuring effective implementation of environmental policies. This collection advances understanding of the conditions under which contestation facilitates or hinders the development of effective global environmental governance. The contributors examine how attempts to incorporate more than one stream of expert knowledge and to include lay knowledge alongside it have played out in efforts to create and maintain multilateral agreements relating to environmental concerns. It will interest scholars and graduate students of political science, global governance, international environmental politics, and global policy making. Policy analysts should also find it useful.

This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press's mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1988.

This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press’s mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1988.