Research Articles: Case Study: Collaborative Governance as a Tool for Natural Resource Management in China and the United States

Abstract

This case study considers the applicability of collaborative governance to natural resource management challenges in China, particularly when compared with its use in the United States (US). The specific case in point centers on a June 2012 workshop in Beijing co-organized by the China Environmental Law Project of the Beijing Representative Office of the Natural Resources Defense Council and the Beijing Zhonglin Union Forestry Consulting Company, Ltd. The case study is based on participant observation, literature review, and policy analysis. The critical distinction between the applicability of collaborative governance in China and in the US relates to the incentives to collaborate, which differ in China and in the US. The authors suggest eight possible next steps encompassing research, practice, and education.

Acknowledgments

The authors wish to express their appreciation to the China Environmental Law Project and Beijing Zhonglin Consulting for organizing the project that is the focus of this article.

Notes

Notes

1. The CELP director referred to these latter two points as the “dual role of the nongovernmental organization: both public educator and government auxiliary.”

2. Carl von Clausewitz's work (1832/1968, p. 101) is discussed by Zartman and Rubin (2005) in their chapter “The Study of Power and the Practice of Negotiation” (p. 7).

3. This trend arguably began in 1999, with the China Environmental Sciences Publishing House publication of Ma Jun's seminal work: China's Water Crisis (Zhongguo Shui Weiji) (1999/2004). Mr. Ma, who is considered the Rachel Carson of China, received the Goldman Prize for grassroots environmental activism in 2012. He is the director of the Institute for Public Affairs and the Environment (IPE), a renowned PRC environmental NGO in the People's Republic of China. The NGO's primary focus is open environmental information, one of the building blocks of public participation.