Strengthening Institutional Frameworks for Sustainable Development: The Role of Public

Participation

Claudia de Windt, Senior Legal Specialist, Department of Sustainable Development

Dialogue Series in the Framework of Rio+20 Governance for Sustainability: Basic Tools, Principles and Stakeholder Roles

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 betweengovernment and civil society

Includes the process bywhich government and civilsociety open dialogue,establish partnerships, shareinformation, and alsointeract to design, implement,and evaluate developmentpolicies, projects, andprograms

CIVIL SOCIETY

• Individuals• Private sector• Labor sector• Political parties • Academia • Youth• Indigenous people

Public Participation

Public participation

Judicialsystem

Access to information

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.

Evolution of participation and key elements: Principle 10 Río Declaration (1992)

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 andincludes 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 fullparticipation 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 ofindividuals 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.

Participation in the Americas:

From Principles to Rights

From principles to Rights

• Interamerican Democratic CharterArticle 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

• 168 didn't include access

• 260 provisions addressed participation

43%

57%

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 TrendsParticipation TrendsEnvironmental Laws -- ‘50 - ‘98Environmental Laws -- ‘50 - ‘98

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

50's 60's 70's 80's 90-94 95-96 97-98

Lacks Participation Provision Includes Participation Provision

Types of Access

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

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

BolChi

Ecu

Obligation

Right0

10

20

30

40

GuaHon

Nic

Obligation

Right0

2

4

6

8

10

12

Right vs. Obligation

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

    Regional Consultation - Pathways to Prosperity

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

   • 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 Sustaina

ble 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