Strengthening Institutional Frameworks for
Sustainable Development: The Role of Public
Participation
Dialogue Series in the Framework of Rio+20 Governance for Sustainability:
Basic Tools, Principles and Stakeholder Roles
Claudia de Windt, Senior Legal Specialist, Department of Sustainable Development
GOOD GOVERNANCE
Supports the process that links and harmonizes policies,
institutions, procedures, tools, and information to make it
possible for stakeholders to make fundamental decisions,
manage conflicts, seek points of consensus, and be
accountable for their actions.
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION
Refers to all interaction between
government and civil society
Includes the process by
which government and civil
society open dialogue,
establish partnerships, share
information, and also
interact to design, implement,
and evaluate development
policies, projects, and
programs
CIVIL SOCIETY
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Individuals
Private sector
Labor sector
Political parties
Academia
Youth
Indigenous
people
Evolution of participation and key elements:
Principle 10 Río Declaration (1992)
Public Participation
Public
participation
Access to
information
Judicial
system
Evolution of participation and key elements:
Principle 10 Río Declaration (1992)
Participation
Environmental issues are best handled with participation of
all concerned citizens, at the relevant level
Access to
information
At the national level, each individual shall have appropriate
access to information concerning the environment that is
held by public authorities, including information on
hazardous materials and activities in their communities, and
the opportunity to participate in decision-making processes.
States shall facilitate and encourage public awareness and
participation by making information widely available.
Access to justice
Effective access to judicial and administrative proceedings,
including redress and remedy, shall be provided.
Participation in the Americas:
From Principles to Rights
Miami
(1994)
“We will facilitate fuller participation of our people in
political, economic and social activity, in accordance with
national legislation”.
“Democracy is based, among other fundamentals, on free
and transparent elections and
includes the right of all citizens to participate in
government. Democracy and development reinforce one
another.”
Santa
Cruz
(1996)
6. “..In developing policies and programs for sustainable
development, special attention should be given to the needs
of indigenous people, minority communities, women, youth,
and children and to facilitating their full
participation in the development process.
8. We will support and encourage, as a basic requisite for
sustainable development, broad participation by civil
society in the decision-making process, including policies
and programs and their design, implementation, and
evaluation. To this end, we will promote the enhancement
of institutional mechanisms for public participation.
Santiago
(1998)
The strength and meaning of representative democracy lie
in the active participation of
individuals at all levels of civic life.
The democratic culture must encompass our entire
population. We will strengthen education for democracy and
promote the necessary actions for government institutions to
become more participatory structures. We undertake to
strengthen the capabilities of regional and local
governments, when appropriate, and to foster more active
participation in civil society.
Quebec
(2001)
“We are committed to …. As well as to the promotion of gender equality, and to achieving the full participation of all
persons in the political, economic, social and cultural life of our countries.”
Mar del
Plata
(2005)
62. Increased participation by citizens, communities, and civil society will contribute to ensuring that the benefits of
democracy are shared by society as a whole.
Trinidad
& tobago
(2009)
94. We commit to continue encouraging the participation of our peoples, through the engagement of our citizens,
communities and civil society in the design and execution of development policies and programmes, by providing technical
and financial assistance, as appropriate, and in accordance with national legislation to strengthen and build their capacity to
participate more fully in the inter-American system.
From principles to Rights
• Interamerican Democratic Charter
Article 6
– It is the right and responsibility of all
citizens to participate in decisions
relating to their own development. This
is also a necessary condition for the full
and effective exercise of
democracy.Promoting and fostering
diverse forms of participationstrengthens
democracy.
From Principles to Rights
• Interamerican Democratic Charter
• Article 15
• The exercise of democracy promotes the
preservation and good stewardship of
the environment. It is essential that the
states of the Hemisphere implement
policies and strategies to protect the
environment, including application of
various treaties and conventions, to
achieve sustainable development for the
benefit of future generations.
POLICY FRAMEWORK: Inter-American Strategy for
Public Participation in Decision Making for
Sustainable Development (ISP)
Adopted in April, 2000.
“To promote transparent, effective, and responsible public
participation in decision-making and in the formulation
and execution of policy related to sustainable
development in the Americas”
 Public Participation demonstration sites: 3 local models of effective public
involvement in shared decision-making: Jamaica, Peru, and the Gulf of
Honduras
 Legal and institutional framework: Assessment of existing legal and
institutional mechanisms (12 countries: AR, BO, Ch, EC, GT,HN, JM, MX, NI,Pe,
T&T, USA) . For example: Bolivia’s Public Participation Law: An Institutional
Framework for Local Decision-Making; Local and International Participation in
the Case of Mexico’s Turbio River; and Access to Information through
Pollutant Release and Transfer Registers: the Case of the Toxic Release
Inventory Law in the United States
• Information Network: Regional network
POLICY FRAMEWORK: Inter-American Strategy for
Public Participation in Decision Making for
Sustainable Development (ISP)
• Technical assistance and training: In participation in regional, national and
local policy formulation.
- Costa Rica: Develop environmental policies in Central America and Mexico
- Uruguay: Water Resource Management in Transboundary Watersheds
- Barbados: Participatory Management of Biodiversity and Coastal resources
in the Caribbean
- El Salvador: Participatory Management of Biodiversity and Coastal Resources in
Mesoamerica
• Participation in environment policy and decision-making: Each
seminar/workshop/meeting yielded recommendations for improving the
consistency and effectiveness of public participation of sustainable development
decisions at national and regional level. ISP.
ISP Legal Assessment
• Constitutional, Administrative
and General EL and Reg
• 296 laws
• 128 include access
57
%
43
%
• 168 didn't include access
• 260 provisions addressed
participation
Access
No Access
n = 296
Legal Participation Indicators
• Categories of access
(information/
process/justice)
• Standing
• Basis for Standing
• Level of Government
• Entity with implementing
Responsibility
• Entity with implementing
Jurisdiction
• Right to Appeal
• Source of Funding
• Design or implementation
• Discretionary or Mandatory
mechanism
• Intra-societal Rights
• Remedy
• Area of Law (EIA, Toxics,H20)
• Area of Government
• Information Right
• Integration Requirement
• Publication Requirement
• Related Provisions
Participation Trends
Environmental Laws -- ‘50 - ‘98
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
50's
60's
70's
Lacks Participation Provision
80's 90-94 95-96 97-98
Includes Participation Provision
Types of Access
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
Access Information
Access Process
Access Justice
Participation Provisions -- 12 Country Aggregate
Principles of participation
• In the Americas the possibility of citizens
participation in development decisions has been
expressed as a principle, a right and an
obligation.
• Governments refer to the “right to participation”
within policy and legal frameworks acquiring the
commitment to create the necessary structures
to guarantee this right.
Right vs. Obligation
Right vs. Obligation
40
30
20
10
Right
0
Bol
Obligation
Chi
Ec u
12
10
8
6
4
2
R ig h t
0
G ua
O b lig atio n
Ho n
N ic
ISP Principles
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Proactivity
Inclusiveness
Shared Responsibility
Openness Throughout the Process
Access
Transparency
Respect for public input
DEPARTMENT OF SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT
 Integrated Water Resources Management
 Energy and Climate Change Mitigation
 Risk Management and Adaptation to Climate
Change
 Biodiversity
 Environmental Law, Policy and Good
Governance
ISP Framework: policy level
 Hemispheric and regional level consultations on ministerial
process.
•
•
First Inter American Meeting of Ministers and High-Level
Authorities on Sustainable Development . Santa Cruz, Bolivia.
December 4-5, 2006
Second Inter American Meeting of Ministers and High-Level
Authorities on Sustainable Development .Santo Domingo,
Dominican Republic. November 17-19, 2010
Regional Consultation - Pathways to Prosperity
• Pathways to Prosperity Dialogue on Public Participation in
Sustainable Development . Costa Rica. January, 22-2010
PROJECT PORTFOLIO
•
•
•
Preparatory Process for ISP
Cross-cutting element for all DSD-PROJECT
PORTFOLIO
Information for Decision-Making for
Sustainable Development for Caribbean
Small Island Developing States – IDSD
1. Belize – Disasters and Climate Change
2. Jamaica – National Training Workshop on Information
Management Methodologies, Tools and Best Practices
3. Saint Lucia – National Environmental Statistics Information
System
New Initiative
Promote access to information and facilitate full
participation by individuals, institutions, and
organizations of civil society in existing
mechanisms that address environmental and
sustainable development concerns at the
regional and national levels