Public participation is widely lauded as a way to make environmental decisions more democratic, to improve their quality, and to enhance their legitimacy. Scholars and citizens around the world ...repeatedly complain, however, that public participation frequently serves primarily as a pro forma exercise to defend predetermined decisions rather than as a meaningful opportunity for the affected public to influence decision-making. These critiques persist despite considerable research suggesting ways to improve the quality of public participation. This essay explores this problem by analyzing citizen involvement in the environmental impact assessment (EIA) processes for the Allain Duhangan hydropower project in northern India. It describes how meaningful public involvement was compromised-despite repeated objections by citizens and independent consultants-by four communication practices: (1) failing to provide adequate access to information; (2) predetermining EIA outcomes by controlling the definition of issues ("definitional hegemony"); (3) privileging scientific/technical discourse; (4) utilizing "consultative" forms of communication that promote one-way flows of information rather than more interactive forms that encourage the joint construction of information and values. This study further argues that these practices persist because they serve as acts of power that privilege dominant actors and interests in the larger socio-political context. This analysis thus suggests that altering communication practices that compromise the quality of public participation may require attending to the interaction between communication practices, relations of power, and the larger socio-political context in which public participation takes place.
Equator Principles – Now and Then Wörsdörfer, Manuel
The Ethical Contribution of Organizations to Society,
01/2015, Volume:
14
Book Chapter
Abstract
The Equator Principles are a transnational corporate social responsibility initiative in the project finance sector. In 2013, the Equator Principles Association celebrated the tenth ...anniversary of its principles and at the same time the formal launch of the latest generation of the Equator Principles (EP III). The paper describes the historic development of the Equator Principles – from the initial drafting process in the early 2000s up to the latest review process which led to the third generation of the Equator Principles. The paper also analyzes the current state of affairs of the Equator Principles (Association) and gives a brief outlook on potential lines of (future) development. In particular, the paper deals with the following questions: What are the main characteristics of the Equator Principles framework? What are the relevant actors involved in the drafting and reviewing process? Why are the EPs and other organizational and associational codes of conduct in the finance sector so important? What has been achieved so far by the Equator Principles (Association) and the participating (financial) institutions and what remains to be done?
This article discusses the role of the Compliance Advisor/Ombudsman (CA O) of the International Finance Corporation and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency, which both belong to the World ...Bank Group. Given the traditional hesitancy of the World Bank to deal with human rights violations that occur as a result of the investment projects that it supports, our objective is to analyse how the CAO office has integrated human rights into its activity. The study consists of two parts which examine how the CAO's office has deployed its functions with regard to its terms of reference laid out in 1998. In the first part, we study the procedural practices of the compliance advisor/ombudsman's functions, and in the second part, the substantive practices in applying performance standards.
L'article traite de l'Office de l'ombudsman et conseiller de conformité (CAO) de la Société financière internationale et de l'Agence multilatérale de garantie des investissements, qui font partie du groupe de la Banque mondiale. L'objectif est d'analyser la façon d intégrer les droits de l'homme dans les travaux de cet office, compte tenu de la méfiance traditionnelle de la Banque mondiale pour faire face aux violations des droits humains qui se produisent à la suite des projets d'investissement soutenus par elle. À cette fin, nous analysons comment le CAO a donné un contenu à son statut de 1998 avec une pratique qui a joué sur les aspects des dispositions de procédure, notamment des fonctions d'ombudsman, de conformité et de conseil, et sur le fond des réclamations présentées en application des critères de performance.
El estudio analiza la Oficina del Ombudsman y Asesor en Materia de Observancia (CAO) de la Corporación Financiera Internacional y de la Agencia Multilateral de Garantía de Inversiones, que forman parte del Grupo del Banco Mundial. El objetivo es analizar cómo se integran los derechos humanos en la labor de este mecanismo, a la vista del tradicional
recelo del Banco Mundial para ocuparse abiertamente de las violaciones de los derechos humanos que se producen como consecuencia de la realización de proyectos de inversión por él apoyados. Para ello, se analiza cómo el CAO ha dado contenido a su estatuto de 1998 a lo largo de una práctica en la que ha interpretado tanto las disposiciones procesales sobre sus funciones de ombudsman, cumplimiento y asesoramiento, como las normas sustantivas
contenidas en los normas de desempeño.
Sub-Saharan Africa's economic recovery is well under way, although among country groups there is variation in the speed of the recovery. In most of the region's low-income countries and among the ...seven oil exporters growth is almost back to precrisis levels. However, in the region's middle-income countries, including South Africa, the recovery has been more gradual. This Regional Economic Outlook describes the impact of recent economic developments---sharp increases in food and fuel prices will need fiscal interventions targeting the poor, while higher oil prices will be a boon to some countries and adversely affect others. Policy adjustments are needed to move away from the supportive stance of the last few years but should be balanced against the need to alleviate the impact of rising food prices on poor households.
