Towards deliberative environmental governance: Rethinking participation

In the face of more and more conflicting demands for management of the environment, deliberative governance approaches are failing to build the institutions that scholars and leaders advocate as solutions to the complex pressures. While the practice of participation has become a mandatory principle in the conduct of environmental governance, little attention has been paid to the lack of participation in conceiving deliberative processes. This thesis argues that neither the creation of deliberative environmental governance processes, nor deliberative processes for the reform of environmental governance have been achieved. This dissertation explores alternative perspectives of participative processes, as seen both from theory and practice, to construct a situated approach. A multi-layered research methodology is used to reveal the juxtaposed dimensions where circumstances and possibilities shift participative practices into unforeseen dilemmas and contradictions. The starting premise is that the environmental problematic is complex and multidimensional, which generates variety of problem definitions and diagnoses, projections of environmental futures, evaluations of solutions, and policy prescriptions. Extensive attention to how scholars are grappling with the diverse facets of stakeholder participation organises a 3-dimensional theoretical framework, drawing on principles and ideas from a variety of disciplines including sociology, political science, environmental studies, public policy and development studies. And by anchoring myself in my own professional, community and scholarly grounding, I endeavour to maintain the self-conscious attitude that a post-structural view expects. The empirical research focuses on the overlapping social and governance processes on Great Barrier Island. This is preceded by an exploration of three empirical contexts that offer insights into the experience of deliberative approaches. Beginning with general reflections on practitioner experiences in community-based development project in Mauritania, the preparatory work considers the introduction of community-based governance of coastal resources in Fiji, and also an ad-hoc alliance of recreational fishing amateurs with Maori iwi challenging central government reforms of fishing regulations. Data in the preliminary and the main studies was collected with participant observation, semi-structured interviews and documentary analysis. The empirical evidence points to much more complex processes that do not render easily to theoretical or procedural reduction. A situated approach promises to develop a new culture of deliberative environmental governance for increasingly complex 'managed environments'.

Name thesis:degree_name

PhD

Level thesis:degree_level

Doctoral

Grantor dc:publisher

ResearchSpace@Auckland

Year dc:date.issued

2011

Author dc:creator

• Gorter, Rendt

Advisors dc:contributor.advisor

• Leheron, R
• Lewis, N

Statement dc:rights

• Items in ResearchSpace are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated. Previously published items are made available in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher.

Licence dc:rights.uri

• https://researchspace.auckland.ac.nz/docs/uoa-docs/rights.htm

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/2292/19003

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:researchspace.auckland.ac.nz:2292/19003