Transboundary Environmental Governance in the Mekong River Basin: Civil Society Spaces for Transboundary Participation

Abstract

From Pages 1 and 2:

"'New regionalism' promoted in mainland Southeast Asia (MSEA) integrates the riparian nations into a coordinated Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS). The GMS framework establishes the foundation for transboundary environmental governance among bilateral international donors, regional institutions, state apparatuses and local communities. With increasing market neo-liberalization to foster inter-state trading relations and concomitant development projects and natural resource exploitation, environmental concerns begin to take precedence. The Mekong River best represents the inter-relationships among nation-states, and embodies the conflict and connectedness among and within the different geopolitical scales. The geo- and cultural-politics, history and political economy of the different riparian nations must be taken into account when addressing environmental governance mechanisms. With increased regional integration, spaces for local communities become wedged between situated livelihoods and beyond national borders. Development projects in the Mekong River basin create new local and regional boundaries, inventing transnational communities. Thus spaces of maneuverability for local people become blurred and more complex by being affected by transnational environmental degradation but without regional representation to take action. The focus of this paper is on the ability for transboundary environmental governance to create avenues of action for local communities to participate in transboundary decision-making. Public participation in the regional decision-making process remains problematic as local communities constitute complexity with divergent, dynamic viewpoints. The research variables analyzed include geo-and cultural-politics, regional institutions and environmental governance mechanisms, such as transparency and access to information, accountability and public participation."