Non-State Actors in Environmental Governance

In recent years, extensive research has emerged on the role of non-state actors within environmental decision making, stewardship, and governance. This research has focused on a variety of environmental issues/policy domains and at multiple scales of governance, from the local to the transnational. Sociologists have played a significant role in this research, specifically looking at the role of environmental movements and networks, nonprofit intermediaries, multi-stakeholder partnerships, community-based social capital, corporate culture and sustainability practices, cognitive framing within civic associations, and public agencies. Led by Drs. Dana Fisher and Carmen Sirianni, a team of scholars engaged in this area of research will work together to identify and explore emergent questions of significance and how they might connect their work to that of natural scientists.