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Rio+20: Sustainable Development in a Time of Multilateral Decline

Author

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  • Steven Bernstein

    (Steven Bernstein is a professor of political science and co-director of the Environmental Governance Lab in the Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto.)

Abstract

The conditions that led to low expectations for the Rio+20 conference tell us more about the prospects for addressing collective global problems than a focus only on its substantive outcomes. Three conjectures on why expectations were so low are put forward: a lack of vision and modest ambition at the conference's core; unresolved and unconfronted normative contestation that limited progress on potentially transformative ideas such as the green economy; and practices of multilateralism that have not caught up to structural changes in the global system, exacerbated by the inability or unwillingness of key actors to move from entrenched identities. Some surprising institutional outcomes of Rio are also assessed in light of the three conjectures. This form of analysis turns attention to the politics that the outcomes reflect and opportunities and pitfalls going forward. © 2013 by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Suggested Citation

  • Steven Bernstein, 2013. "Rio+20: Sustainable Development in a Time of Multilateral Decline," Global Environmental Politics, MIT Press, vol. 13(4), pages 12-21, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:tpr:glenvp:v:13:y:2013:i:4:p:12-21
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Bernhard Reinsberg & Oliver Westerwinter, 2021. "The global governance of international development: Documenting the rise of multi-stakeholder partnerships and identifying underlying theoretical explanations," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 16(1), pages 59-94, January.
    2. Rodriguez Lopez, Miguel & do Nascimento, Daniele Vieira & Garcia Sanchez, Daniela & Bolivar Lobato, Martha, 2015. "Disabling the Steering Wheel? National and International Actors' Climate Change Mitigation Strategies in Latin America," GIGA Working Papers 278, GIGA German Institute of Global and Area Studies.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    sustainable development; United Nations; global environmental governance; Rio+20;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • Q01 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - General - - - Sustainable Development
    • Q50 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - General

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