Sustainable Development: Representing a reflexive modernity inside the United Nations

Gregory Borne ()
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Gregory Borne: University of Plymouth

Journal of Global Analysis, 2010, vol. 1, issue 1, 27-50

Abstract: This paper suggests that the discourse of sustainable development (SD) within the United Nations (UN) represents a paradigm shift from first/industrial modernity to a reflexive modernity. Reflexive modernity is defined by the changing nature of political structures in the face of globalised environmental risk, as well as a questioning of the hegemony of the scientific process as a basis for the development of humanity and the planet. SD is a concept that innately reflects these concerns, questioning normative assumptions. This paper will argue that the rise of SD in governance discourse is not only a catalyst for a reflexive modernity, but also is representative of a modernity that is already in a state of reflexivity. This proposition is examined by exploring the various ways that SD is utilised in the governance structure of the United Nations (UN).

Keywords: United Nations; Risk; Sustainable Development; Climate Change; Reflexive Modernity; Globalisation. (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2010
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:csy:journl:v:1:y:2010:i:1:p:27-50

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