Ethics in science: enhancing the democratisation of knowledge production in transdisciplinary research partnerships for sustainable development

Better access to knowledge and knowledge production has to be reconsidered as key to successful individual and social mitigation and adaptation strategies for global change. Indeed, concepts of sustainable development imply a transformation of science towards fostering democratisation of knowledge production and the development of knowledge societies as a strategic goal. This means to open the process of scientific knowledge production while simultaneously empowering people to implement their own visions for sustainable development. Advocates of sustainability science support this transformation. In transdisciplinary practice, they advance equity and accountability in the access to and production of knowledge at the science–society interface. UNESCO points to advancements, yet Northern dominance persists in knowledge production as well as in technology design and transfer. Further, transdisciplinary practice remains experimental and hampered by inadequate and asymmetrically equipped institutions in the North and South and related epistemological and operational obscurity. To help identify clear, practicable transdisciplinary approaches, I recommend examining the institutional route – i.e., the learning and adaptation process – followed in concrete cases. The transdisciplinary Eastern and Southern Africa Partnership Programme (1998–2013) is a case ripe for such examination. Understanding transdisciplinarity as an integrative approach, I highlight ESAPP’s three key principles for a more democratised knowledge production for sustainable development: (1) integration of scientific and “non-scientific” knowledge systems; (2) integration of social actors and institutions; and (3) integrative learning processes. The analysis reveals ESAPP’s achievements in contributing to more democratic knowledge production and South ownership in the realm of sustainable development.

Knowledge as a resource: enhancing the democratisation of knowledge production in transdisciplinary research partnerships for sustainable development

Better access to knowledge and knowledge production has to be reconsidered as key to successful individual and social mitigation and adaptation strategies for global change. Indeed, concepts of sustainable development imply a transformation of science (Lubchenco 1998; WBGU 2011 and 2012) towards fostering democratisation of knowledge production as a contribution to the development of knowledge societies as a strategic goal (UNESCO 2005). This means to open the process of scientific knowledge production while simultaneously empowering people to implement their own visions for sustainable development. Advocates of sustainability science support this transformation. In transdisciplinary practice, they advance equity and accountability in the access to and production of knowledge at the science–society interface (Hirsch Hadorn et al 2006; Hirsch Hadorn et al 2008; Jäger 2009; Adger and Jordan 2009; KFPE 2012). UNESCO (2010) points to advancements, yet Northern dominance persists in knowledge production as well as in technology design and transfer (Standing and Taylor 2007; Zingerli 2010). Further, transdisciplinary practice remains experimental and hampered by inadequate and asymmetrically equipped institutions in the North and South and related epistemological and operational obscurity (Wiesmann et al 2011). To help identify clear, practicable transdisciplinary approaches, I recommend examining the institutional route (Mukhopadhyay et al 2006) – i.e., the learning and adaptation process – followed in concrete cases. The transdisciplinary Eastern and Southern Africa Partnership Programme (1998–2013) is a case ripe for such examination. Understanding transdisciplinarity as an integrative approach (Pohl et al 2008; Stock and Burton 2011), I highlight ESAPP’s three key principles for a more democratised knowledge production for sustainable development: (1) integration of scientific and “non-scientific” knowledge systems; (2) integration of social actors and institutions; and (3) integrative learning processes. The analysis reveals ESAPP’s achievements in contributing to more democratic knowledge production and South ownership in the realm of sustainable development.

Participatory modeling for sustainable development in water and agrarian systems: potential and limits of stakeholder involvement

Public participation is increasingly advocated as a necessary feature of natural resources management. The EU Water Framework Directive (WFD) is such an example, as it prescribes participatory processes as necessary features in basin management plans (EC 2000). The rationale behind this mandate is that involving interest groups ideally yields higher-quality decisions, which are arguably more likely to meet public acceptance (Pahl-Wostl, 2006). Furthermore, failing to involve stakeholders in policy-making might hamper the implementation of management initiatives, as controversial decisions can lead pressure lobbies to generate public opposition (Giordano et al. 2005, Mouratiadou and Moran 2007).

Sustainable Development and its Discontents

Sustainable development (or sustainability) is a decision-making framework for maintaining and achieving human well-being, both in the present and into the future. The framework requires both consideration and achievement of environmental protection, social justice and economic development. In that framework, environmental protection must be integrated into decisions about social and economic development, and social justice and economic viability must be integrated into decisions about environmental quality. First endorsed by the world’s nations in 1992, this framework is intended to provide an effective response to the twin global challenges of growing environmental degradation and widespread extreme poverty. Sustainability provides a framework for humans to live in harmony with nature, rather than at nature’s expense. It may therefore be one of the most important ideas to come out of the 20th century. In the last two decades, the framework has become a touchstone in nearly every economic sector and at every level of government, unleashing an extraordinary range of creativity in all of those realms. Sustainable development is having a significant effect on the practice of law and on the way in which laws are written and implemented. Understanding the framework is increasingly important for law makers and lawyers. As sustainable development (or sustainability) has grown in prominence, its critics have become more numerous and more vocal. Three major lines of criticism are that the term is “too boring” to command public attention, “too vague” to provide guidance, and “too late” to address the world’s problems. Critics suggest goals such as abundance, environmental integrity, and resilience. Beginning with the international agreements that shaped the concept of sustainable development, this Article provides a functional and historical analysis of the meaning of sustainable development. It then analyzes and responds to each of these criticisms in turn. While the critics, understood constructively, suggest ways of strengthening this framework, they do not provide a compelling alternative. The challenge for lawyers, law makers, and others is to use and improve this framework to make better decisions.

Morocco at the Crossroads: Seizing the window of opportunity for sustainable development. MEDPRO Technical Report No. 2/April 2011

The question of state sustainability is highly relevant in the case of Morocco. Despite the image of a modernising and liberalising country, Morocco is undergoing a delicate phase in its development. The recent upheavals in the Maghreb and the Middle East alongside the growing problems of poor education and high unemployment are likely to bring to the surface the unsustainable elements of Morocco’s status quo. The central issues concern the quality of institutions, reforms aimed at promoting the rule of law, curbing corruption and overhauling the judiciary. This paper will argue that while institutional quality is a pre-requisite for successful and sustainable socioeconomic performance, this cannot be achieved unless major reforms in the political system are carried out. There exists a window of opportunity to accelerate reforms and to address the acute centralisation of Moroccan politics and decision-making, the lack of accountability of the monarchic institutions, as well as the fragility of representative bodies, such as parties and trade unions. Seizing this window of opportunity could spare Morocco a period of instability, while also assuring continuity in the framework of the transition that started in 1999 when the new king came to power.

Sustainable Development and Collective Learning: Theory and a European Case Study. Bruges European Economic Policy (BEEP) Briefing 7/2004

Network governance of collective learning processes is an essential approach to sustainable development. The first section of the article briefly refers to recent theories about both market and government failures that express scepticism about the way framework conditions for market actors are set. For this reason, the development of networks for collective learning processes seems advantageous if new solutions are to be developed in policy areas concerned with long-term changes and a stepwise internalisation of externalities. With regard to corporate actors’ interests, the article shows recent insights from theories about the knowledge-based firm, where the creation of new knowledge is based on the absorption of societal views. This concept shifts the focus towards knowledge generation as an essential element in the evolution of sustainable markets. This involves at the same time the development of new policies. In this context innovation-inducing regulation is suggested and discussed. The evolution of the Swedish, German and Dutch wind turbine industries are analysed based on the approach of governance put forward in this article. We conclude that these coevolutionary mechanisms may take for granted some of the stabilising and orientating functions previously exercised by basic regulatory activities of the state. In this context, the main function of the governments is to facilitate learning processes that depart from the government functions suggested by welfare economics.

A World that Counts: Mobilising the Data Revolution for Sustainable Development

In September 2015, the UN Member States are expected to commit to an ambitious new set of global goals for a new era of sustainable development. Achieving them will require an unprecedented joint effort on the part of governments at every level, civil society and the private sector, and millions of individual choices and actions. To be realised, the SDGs will require a monitoring and accountability framework and a plan for implementation. A commitment to realise the opportunities of the data revolution should be firmly embedded into the action plan for the SDGs, to support those countries most in need of resources, and to set the world on track for an unprecedented push towards a new world of data for change.

An account of the sustainable development process in Bangladesh

With the accelerating industrialization process, even further increasing population and mass deforestation, ‘sustainability’ as a concept has only recently been popularized in Bangladesh. This paper sheds light on the sustainable development process in Bangladesh. It points out the major challenges to this process and identifies the motivating factors for a sustainable society in Bangladesh. The paper concludes with some strategies that are considered essential for the development of a sustainable society in Bangladesh, e.g., strong and effective regulatory framework, emphasis on rural entrepreneurship, development of indigenous technology and an integrated environmental management system.

Enhanced renewable energy adoption for sustainable development in India:interpretive structural modeling approach

Poverty alleviation and social upliftment of rural India is closely linked with the availability and use of energy for development. At the same time, sustainable supply of clean and affordable renewable energy sources is required if development is to be sustainable, so that it does not cause any environmental problems. The purpose of this paper is to determine the key variables of renewable energy implementation for sustainable development, on which the top management should focus. In this paper, an interpretive structural modeling (ISM) - based approach has been employed to model the implementation variables of renewable energy for sustainable development. These variables have been categorized under ‘enablers’ that help to increase the implementation of renewable energy for sustainable development. A major finding of this research is that public awareness regarding renewable energy for sustainable development is a very significant enabler. In this paper, an interpretation of variables of renewable energy for sustainable development in terms of their driving and dependence powers has been examined. For better results, top management should focus on improving the high-driving power enablers such as leadership, strategic planning, public awareness, top management support, availability of finance, government support, and support from interest groups.

A fenntartható fejlődéssel foglalkozó nemzetközi együttműködés négy évtizede (Four Decades of International Cooperation on Sustainable Development)

Along with the recognition of the increasing environmental and social problems stemming from globalization, the need to address these problems and to develop the relevant international framework has strengthened since the 1970s. The scope of this cooperation gradually broadened and eventually it embraced all issues, which were considered to be critical for sustainable development. The summits on sustainability, namely, the UN Conference on Environment and Development in 1992, the “Rio+5” in 1997 and the World Summit on Sustainable Development in 2002, wished to respond to all unsustainable processes by adopting, reinforcing and expanding a global program. This program is based on a series of important principles and includes various goals and instruments adopted by consensus; however, it also reflects delicate compromises between development related aspirations and environmental barriers, and also between the developed and the developing countries. Actually, there is a serious implementation gap and there are also new challenges. Referring to these problems, the idea of convening an extraordinary summit in 2012 was raised and it was eventually adopted but with a rather narrow mandate and agenda. It turned out that besides the “usual” conflicts between the developed and developing countries e.g. upon the common but differentiated responsibilities or international development financing, there were also diverting views on the green economy and on the ways of institutional strengthening of the international sustainable development and environmental governance. As a consequence, the 2012 Conference concluded with rather modest results.

A fenntartható fejlődés elvei és azok érvényre jutása a banki gyakorlatban II. rész (The principles of sustainable development and their realization in the banking practice II. part)

Az utóbbi évtizedben a környezettudatos gazdálkodás szerepének felértékelődése új tevékenységi területet nyitott meg a bankok előtt, amit nemzetközi szóhasználattal élve green banking-nek neveznek. A fenntartható fejlődést támogató projektek banki finanszírozása számos lehetőséget nyit a pénzügyi intézmények számára – hírnév, új ügyfélbázis, kockázatcsökkentés, jövedelmezőség növelése –, amennyiben a bankok a fenntarthatóság elveit megfelelően integrálják működési stratégiájukba. A cikksorozat második részében a szerzők a bankok fenntartható működését támogató külső és belső motiváló tényezőit veszik vizsgálat alá, amelyet már nemzetközi elvek és megállapodások is szabályoznak és támogatnak. Kiemelt fontosságot tulajdonítanak a környezettudatos gazdálkodás banki stratégiába történő integrálásának, melynek alapjait teremthetik meg a cikkben vizsgált nemzetközi irányelvek. ________ In the last decade, a lot of publications came to light, dealing with the social and environmental responsibility of financial institutions. Banks are expected to improve their competitive advantage by demonstrating economic development, while promoting environment care and social responsibility. This sustainable finance means to manage environmental and social risks in corporate lending and project financing. Green financial institutions have developed a wide range of innovations that can support sustainable development. This article highlights a few external and internal factor that support this aim, and which are regulated by international principles. However the authors’ survey shows that in the relevant literature there are a lot of ways to define sustainability and its achievement. They suggest that all of them can be interpreted associated with green banking operation. The goal of this paper is to identify the role of financial institutions in achieving sustainable development, and stress its strategic importance. The authors also attempt to show, why and how can this sector become the promoter of sustainability.

The role of community college faculty in teaching and learning for sustainable development

The purpose of this study was to explore the attitudes, beliefs, and practices of community college professors regarding education for sustainable development (ESD). In-depth interviews with 14 professors from different disciplines were conducted. The participants taught at Miami Dade College, Florida, a Talloires Declaration signatory since 2006, and all had attended Green Studies professional development workshops. Written documents such as assignments and samples of student work were used for triangulation. The annual report of the college’s Earth Ethics Institute and its Web site served as additional sources. The interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed for common themes. The Talloires Declaration’s 10-point action plan and the key characteristics of ESD (UN DESD, 2006) served as the conceptual framework. The study found that the professors considered ESD an essential issue. The majority discussed the economic and social aspects of ESD; however, the environmental aspect was mentioned most frequently. The professors’ conceptualizations of ESD were influenced by their experiences and evidenced by the metaphors they used. Although their engagement with ESD differed, the professors expressed optimism toward ESD related teaching and learning. They regarded ESD as compatible with their subjects, and most had already been infusing sustainability into their courses or planned to do so. Additionally, the participants’ teaching practices reflected many of the characteristics of ESD. Even though the professors considered ESD challenging, they believed that they could make contributions to the college’s effort. The metaphor of “Planting a Seed” was frequently used to describe this holistic approach. The study also found that many professors regarded interpersonal relationships and communication significant factors for the advancement of ESD. The participants described several challenges to integrating ESD at their college. These related to time constraints, density of curriculum, institutional size and fragmentation, dearth of administrative support and incentives, students’ lack of academic preparation and sustainability awareness, students’ inability to focus on ESD because of personal, social, or economic circumstances, and professors’ frustration about a divisive atmosphere as a result of their engagement with sustainability. Despite these obstacles, the professors believed that ESD could be successfully woven into the community college experience.

Sustainable Development: The Search for the Tipping Point

The United Nations recently launched the Decade of Education for Sustainable Development. Literature indicates the need for an authoritative definition of sustainable development. Sustainable Human Development is analyzed through the lens of Gladwell’s The Tipping Point as a framework for guiding ethical development practice and instigating changes in human behavior.

Exploring Financial Inclusion for Smallholders: Promoting the Sustainable Development of Smallholder Aquaculture in Developing Countries

Thesis (Master's)--University of Washington, 2016-08

Can Regional Cooperation Promote Sustainable Development?

This chapter argues that regional cooperation may be a promising framework to work towards sustainable development. There are two broad pathways linking regional cooperation and sustainable development. On the one hand, shared or transboundary socio-environmental concerns may spark regional cooperation and on the other, pre-existing regional organisations created for other purposes become frameworks to address sustainability concerns. Yet, neither of these processes is automatic and whether they take place depends on the existence of particular drivers pursuing a sustainability agenda at the regional level. Ultimately, whether regional cooperation fosters sustainable development and how this takes place thus depends to a large extent on the specific people or organisations driving a sustainability agenda at the regional level and their relationship to national governments.