Addressing Complexity in Environmental Management and Governance

Sabrina Kirschke and Jens Newig
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Sabrina Kirschke: Faculty of Sustainability, Leuphana University Lüneburg, Scharnhorststrasse 1, 21335 Lüneburg, Germany
Jens Newig: Faculty of Sustainability, Leuphana University Lüneburg, Scharnhorststrasse 1, 21335 Lüneburg, Germany

Sustainability, 2017, vol. 9, issue 6, 1-18

Abstract: Governance for complex problem solving has been increasingly discussed in environmental sustainability research. Above all, researchers continuously observe that sustainability problems are complex or “wicked”, and suggest participatory models to address these problems in practice. In order to add to this debate, this study suggests a more differentiated theoretical approach to define governance for complex environmental problem solving than in previous studies. The approach consists of two vital steps: First, we operationalize complexity and define management strategies for solving environmental sustainability problems based on findings from psychology research. Second, we identify governance strategies that facilitate these management strategies. Linking those strategies suggests that the role of diverse institutions, actors, and interactions differs for five key dimensions of complexity: goals, variables, dynamics, interconnections, and informational uncertainty. The results strengthen systematic analyses of environmental sustainability problems in both theory and practice.

Keywords: complex problems; complex problem solving; governance; Integrated Water Resources Management; Water Framework Directive; wicked problems (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (7)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:9:y:2017:i:6:p:983-:d:100727

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