Sustainability through Participation? International, European and comparative perspectives - SustaiNET

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SustaiNET is a network of younger researchers from Germany, Italy and Norway. They consider the topic „sustainability by participation“ important and relevant, and in need of further adressing. „Sustainability“ and „participation“ currently seem a panacea to many environmental problems: they cover topics apart as climate change, emission control or town planning. Still, the exact legal characteristics of both concepts need further specification. Their dogmatic embeddedness, as well as the actual rights or duties associated with them still need to be identified. Especially the relationship between both concepts is not sufficiently clear. Their connection transpires from many legal instruments in the field of environmental law. Nonetheless, questions, such as whether participation serves as an instrument to sustainability remain. Likewise, one needs to assess if and whether there are situations in which participation may stymie the realization of sustainability goals. SustaiNET addresses the legal specifics of sustainability and participation as well as their connection. It follows an inductive, functional and comparative approach. SustaiNET starts from a comparative analysis of sustainability and participation in specific reference areas (such as food law, investment, or environmental law). It concentrates on the systematic relationship of those legal documents which determine those reference areas. This serves as a basis for further theoretical conclusions on the two concepts, and their relationship. Ultimately, this allows SustaiNET to define the functions, contents and legal consequences of sustainability and participation. SustaiNET aims to publish their findings in an edited book. The book's overall goals are to define the legal contents of both concepts beyond the colloquial and in dissociation from other disciplines, such as the social sciences. The book also intends to define those rights and obligations associated with sustainability and participation, for the state, as well as for other private actors. Thus it is envisaged to contribute to the establishment of a specific, legal vocabulary on sustainability and participation and to open new research perspectives on this topic. Specifically, SustaiNET will discuss joint research applications two specific European outlets (the COST-Action programme of the European Research Council and the Programme of the Villa Vigoni). Those two programmes seem to fit best to the current composition of SustaiNET, which unites Researchers from Norway, Italy and Germany.