Recommending Books for Purchase (Bulletin 76 - June 2020): Environmental Politics

While previous studies focus on lack of enforcement of forest laws, poverty, and ecological values of forest dependent people, coherent studies on people's motivations for forest illegalities and non-compliance behavior remain scanty. Emmanuel Ametepeh argues that the systematic analysis of cause-and-effect patterns related to forest management measures and policies through the lenses of the Forest Transition Theory uncovers severe limitations. The resulting multi-complex stress factors adversely impact and hence manifest in the form of deviant compliance behavior ("syndrome") in the management endeavor of forest-fringe people. The Author shows that motivations for forest illegalities and associated non-compliance behavior is largely an outcome of adverse experiences forest people have been subjected to as a result of historical and contemporary neglects and marginalization in the management endeavor.

Can we sidestep tedious climate policy negotiations and forge a coalition of the willing instead? Many international organizations and scholars hope to spur local climate action by orchestration, indirect and voluntary governance arrangements. Lena Bendlin looks beyond the apparent success of voluntary initiatives using the example of the Covenant of Mayors, often heralded as an exemplary multi-level EU initiative. Five in-depth case studies show why, how, and with what difficulties local governments engage in this voluntary commitment scheme. The analysis identifies durability, intensity, and causality as crucial building blocks for more cautious orchestration theorizing and derives recommendations for appropriate incentives and support at the regional, national, and international level.

This open access book discusses the eroding economics of nuclear power for electricity generation as well as technical, legal, and political acceptance issues. The use of nuclear power for electricity generation is still a heavily disputed issue. Aside from technical risks, safety issues, and the unsolved problem of nuclear waste disposal, the economic performance is currently a major barrier. In recent years, the costs have skyrocketed especially in the European countries and North America. At the same time, the costs of alternatives such as photovoltaics and wind power have significantly decreased. 

This book examines the role of unauthorized water use in the American West (Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming) and the coming demand for water accountability.  Arguing that status quo responses to unauthorized water use (or water theft) and the protection of water rights are largely inadequate, this title examines the far-ranging impacts of this lackluster response on issues ranging from food production to urban livability, and concludes that there will be intense pressure at both the federal and state level to address these issues. Utilizing qualitative and quantitative models and collaborative management literature to identify ideal approaches, this project ultimately seeks to address this major crisis of states' legitimacy and analyze potential solutions under the ever-expanding threat of climate change.