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Reflections

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Sustainable Development
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Abstract

This chapter pulls together the key elements in the book to present an analysis of nongovernmental organizations' influence during the creation of the sustainable development discourse. The chapter forms three key propositions based upon the case study. The key propositions give an overview of the theoretical importance of this research, namely, that NGOs successfully bargained their special expertise into a seemingly permanent symbiotic relationship with UNEP. The next section assesses the explanatory power of current global environmental governance theory and concludes that existing approaches explain some facets of this case study. However, current theories generally fail to consider NGOs role as a policy implementer and also fail to assess NGOs influence while engaging in this activity. The fourth section fills this gap in scholarly theories. Similarly, the fifth section reviews conditions impacting NGO influence. This chapter also concludes that NGOs influence did not begin at the end of the Cold War.

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Egelston, A.E. (2013). Reflections. In: Sustainable Development. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-4878-1_5

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