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When facing momentous societal change, such as the transformation to a sustainable world, the sciences must impress their importance upon the public and convince scientific and policy institutions in order to obtain the means to carry out their mission. This book represents the first attempt to integrate disciplinary views on the topic of transformation towards sustainability.
This collection of papers gives a broad overview of the state of the art in Multiple Criteria Decision Making (MCDM), in both theory and practice. Topical sections are ranging from preference modelling and methodological developments to a number of applications of MCDM thinking. Special sections are devoted to applications in natural resources and environmental management issues, to negotiation and group decision support, and to philosophical issues, particularly in the interface between systems thinking and MCDM. The book will be relevant not only to those working in the area of MCDM, but also to researchers and practitioners concerned with broader areas of management science, especially those concerned with decision support systems and negotiation support.
At the end of the 20th century, the question of how to meet human needs and preferences while safeguarding the environment is a concern facing humanity. This text reflects the thinking on the necessary concepts, tools and instruments that are likely to help producers, consumers and governments.
Although economists have long advocated the use of economic instruments in the implementation of environmental policy, they have only recently gained acceptance. There is a growing consensus within the European Union that both Member States and the environment would benefit from the use of such incentive-based economic instruments. Environment, Incentives and the Common Market has been written by members of the Study Group on the Environment and Economics of the National Environmental Forum, which includes economists and social scientists from all the major Dutch universities and research institutes. The book covers a wide range of topics on the use of taxation and tradeable permits in a variety of abatement policies. It concludes with comments on political feasibility.
Most publications on heavy metals and the environment have focused on environmental pathways and risks. The present book establishes a link between the environmental risks of heavy metals and the societal causes of the risks. Economic models, substance flow models and environmental fate and risk assessment models have been integrated into a single analytical framework that has been used to trace and understand the routes by which four heavy metals enter the economy, through to their final destination in the environment. The long-term impacts of the current metals management regime in the Netherlands have been used as a case study by which to assess the effectiveness of certain policy measures. Readership: Environmental scientists, especially those practising in the areas of ecological economics, industrial ecology, materials flow accounting and integrated environmental assessment. Environmental policy makers will also find the book an invaluable aid in their deliberations.
World Bank Technical Paper No. 381.Swelling urban populations and increased concentration of industry and automotive traffic in Asia?s cities has resulted in severe air pollution. The goal of the Urban Air Quality Management Strategy is to assist in designing and implementing policies and monitoring and managing tools to improve air quality in the major Asian metropolitan areas. This report focuses on the development of an air quality management system for Greater Mumbai (Bombay), India. Measures to reduce air pollution in this area focus on a traffic and action plan for air pollution abatement that takes into account the economic costs and benefits of abatement measures.
This book contains a collection of papers on economic incentives and environmental policies which result from the authors' joint research work in the program `Environment, Science and Society', conducted under the auspices of the European Science Foundation, with whose cooperation the book has been published. The work concentrates on the scientific and methodological aspects of the development, implementation and evaluation of economic instruments at a national level. The research is both theoretical and empirical. At a theoretical level attention is given to the dynamics of instrument choice in various political and economic contexts, and to the means for evaluating economic instruments in terms of their effectiveness and efficiency. At an empirical level the research seeks to investigate the performance of economic instruments in reality and to explore options for new approaches on the interface between technology, economy and the environment. A subject index complements this first volume in the ESF `Environment, Science and Society' series.
Cities in Transition focuses on the sustainability transitions initiated in 40 European cities. The book presents the incredible wealth of insights gathered through hundreds of interviews and questionnaires. Four key domains—local energy systems, local green spaces, local water systems and local labour markets—have been the focus of the field research investigating local potentials for social innovation and new forms of civil society self-organisation. Examining the potential of new organizational frameworks like co-operatives, multi-stakeholder constructions, local-regional partnerships and networks for the success of such transitions, this book presents the key ingredients of a sustainable urban community as a viable concept to address current global financial, environmental and social challenges. Crucial reading for academics and practitioners of urban planning and sustainability in Europe, Cities in Transition is an innovative roadmap for sustainability in changing cities.
What would a de-carbonised society be like? What are the implications of a general de-globalisation for our social futures? How will our high-carbon patterns of life be restructured in a de-energized world? As global society gradually wakes up to the new reality of peak oil, these questions remain unanswered. For the last hundred years oil made the world go round, and as we move into the century of 'tough oil' this book examines some profound consequences. It considers what societies would be like that are powering down; what lessons can be learned from the past about de-energized societies; will there be rationing systems or just the market to allocate scarce energy? Can virtual worlds solve energy problems? What levels of income and wellbeing would be likely? In this groundbreaking book, John Urry analyzes how the twentieth century created a kind of mirage of the future that is unsustainable into even the medium term and envisions the future of an oil-dependent world facing energy descent. Without a large-scale plan B, how can the energizing of society possibly be going into reverse?