Doctoral Dissertation Research: The Emergence of Local Environmental Governance

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SES-1334870)Gary Paul Green Yifei Li University of Wisconsin-MadisonEnvironmental protection has become a core area of policy intervention for governments across the world. Sociological research in the past few decades articulated the process by which increasing public awareness of environmental issues led to environmental policy-making. The rise of environmental movements, as well as many other forms of democratic expression of environmental attitudes, shaped the extent to which governments commit resources to protect the natural environment. Existing research emphasizes the relationship between the power of popular environmentalism and the capacity of state agencies to protect the environment. These existing theories presume the existence of democratic institutional arrangements. In the absence of democracy, how is the emergence of environmental governance explained? What motivation does an authoritarian governmental structure offer for the local state to engage in environmental protection? Sociological theories provide two hypotheses. First, past research found that in the authoritarian context, the local state tends to be highly responsive to mandates from the central regime. It seems likely that some cities have strong environmental protection programs because of tighter bureaucratic connection to the central state. Second, scholars have noted the unique mechanism of government accountability in the absence of voting power. They point to informal channels of public expression as a bridge between the public and the state. It therefore also seems plausible that cities commit to environmental protection because of strong local expression of environmentalism through informal means. To answer these questions, this dissertation research will collect archival data from four Chinese cities. Structured comparisons between the historical evolutions of local state intervention in environmental protection in these cities to identify the political mechanisms that gave rise to local environmental governance. Research findings will contribute to an explanatory theory of the local environmental state that is sensitive to political structuring from above, as well as public sentiments from below.Broader ImpactsEnvironmental protection is a central problem in international development. Global efforts to combat climate change will not succeed without effectively engaging the most populated country in the world. The hundreds of international environmental organizations currently operating in the country testify to the importance of China in the global enterprise of sustainability. This dissertation will supply important knowledge about the working of the Chinese state and its propensity to commit to, and act in accordance with, environmental protection goals. The co-PI will provide summaries of best practices of environmental protection policies for educators, environmental advocacy groups, and policy-makers. Public data obtained during fieldwork will also be shared with interested parties to contribute to future studies into environmental protection in China and elsewhere.