|
Thank you for sharing. Many of you may enjoy these short but pithy video pieces in The New Republic produced by one of the up and coming journalists of the next generation.
"Environmental Economics 101"
http://www.tnr.com/politics/story.html?id=e95ca531-e809-4c0d-8ccb-4d376a3af2e0&k=90167
In a message dated 07/18/08 14:45:34 Pacific Daylight Time, lennysiegel@gmail.com writes:
[Please excuse the duplicate posting. - LS]
Building Environmental Policy Bridges
An Open Letter to the Presidential Candidates
Lenny Siegel
July, 2008
The last several years have been marked by a decline in the federal
government's commitment to environmental protection and equally
important, a hardening of the battle lines between environmental
advocates and those responsible for pollution and other forms of
environmental degradation. The inauguration of a new administration in
2009 presents an opportunity, not only to strengthen regulation and
allocate sufficient funds to environmental programs, but also to change
the way environmental disputes are resolved.
Both major presidential candidates tout their ability to create
bi-partisan legislative coalitions. Indeed, the U.S. Senate's tradition
of cooperating with colleagues on one issue while fighting on another is
admirable. But I'm talking about something deeper in the halls of
government, the use of multi-stakeholder dialogues to develop win-win
solutions to difficult, often technical environmental problems.
A multi-stakeholder dialogue is a committee, usually advisory in its
mission, which brings together multiple perspectives and interest
groups, in and out of government, to address specific problems. Over the
last three administrations I have participated in several such groups. I
discuss below three of my most successful dialogues as the basis for the
problem-solving model I recommend to the new administration.
Multi-stakeholder dialogues don't always work. Some disputes are too
entrenched to solve cooperatively. Other policies are so overarching
that they belong, from the start, in the hands of elected officials. But
when they work, the dialogues not only establish better policies, but
they spread knowledge and build the interpersonal relationships
necessary to implement their findings and address other environmental
challenges as they arise.
...
To download the full, three-page formatted letter, go to
http://www.cpeo.org/pubs/Bridges.pdf
--
Lenny Siegel
Executive Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight
a project of the Pacific Studies Center
278-A Hope St., Mountain View, CA 94041
Voice: 650/961-8918 or 650/969-1545
Fax: 650/961-8918
<lsiegel@cpeo.org>
http://www.cpeo.org
_______________________________________________
Brownfields mailing list
Brownfields@lists.cpeo.org
http://lists.cpeo.org/listinfo.cgi/brownfields-cpeo.org
|