Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
fi rms, the authors suggest there are far more interdependencies than are
often acknowledged and that achieving environmental equity is contin-
gent on accountability across multiple scales of governance. Chapter 4,
by Ali and Ackley, examines the impact that investments are having
in Fiji and the pros and cons of economic diversifi cation for local
populations. Extending arguments initiated in the previous chapter, they
maintain that justice will only be achieved when it is accompanied
by environmental policies and systems of accountability that foster
communication and coordination across industrial sectors and levels of
government.
Part II, “The Amplifi cation of Inequality through International Donors
and Institutions,” consists of three chapters, each of which examines how
global institutions and protocols—often designed to foster justice—can
inadvertently promote and further entrench inequities. In chapter 5,
Lewis picks up on the theme of foreign investment. However, her focus
is on how funding for environmental projects from foreign foundations
has shaped environmental agendas in Ecuador. She observes that many
donors target their support for biodiversity projects rather than issues
such as pollution reduction, workplace safety, and natural resource pro-
tection. She argues that the promotion of these agendas has, in turn,
marginalized the growth and activism of organizations that focus on
issues related to environmental justice.
Vermeylen and Walker take a different starting point in their investiga-
tion in chapter 6 by examining how international conventions designed
to protect the rights of indigenous
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peoples and communities from
exploitation do not always achieve their stated intent. More specifi cally,
they examine how extraction of Hoodia, a plant that has medicinal
properties, has undermined environmental quality and the rights of the
San tribes in Namibia and South Africa. They maintain that because
conventions are based on values and views imposed by external parties,
they are unable to achieve outcomes that are regarded as just and fair in
indigenous communities; these outcomes may even contribute to the rise
of internal dissent. Caniglia also considers international protocols in
chapter 7, but focuses on the structure and processes of committees and
organizations rather than the outcomes of their decisions. Through an
assessment of the Committee on Sustainable Development and the United
Nations Convention on Climate Change, she fi nds that treaty organiza-
tions are unable to be as responsive to the claims of nonstate actors, and
therefore are less likely to engage and support issues of environmental
justice. As with other chapters in this section, her chapter points to the
