Discursive methods in environmental decision making

Sustainable practices can be initiated or encouraged by governmental regulation and economic incentives. A major element to promote sustainability will be, however, the exploration and organization of discursive processes between and among different actors. Many analysts agree that sustainability will remain a highly desirable, but unrealistic option for development, if people do not feel a degree of ownership and identity with the goal of sustainability for their own life and a preference for its policy implications. Inviting the public to be part of the decision‐making process from the beginning improves the likelihood that the resulting decision will be accepted. Participatory processes are needed that combine technical expertise, rational decision making, and public values and preferences. To accomplish such an integration, negotiation, mediation, and arbitration are potential solutions. Many different procedures and forms of mediation have been proposed and some tested. One major attempt of the authors has been the organization of round‐table discourses among a wide variety of stakeholders to develop environmental policy goals or to design local and regional waste management plans. These discourses are based on the assumption that each participant can contribute to the common good if the setting of the discourse encourages the generation of shared values and discourages strategic reasoning. The emphasis of the paper will be on the model of cooperative discourse and first applications in Germany, Switzerland and the United States. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.