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. 2024 May 21;121(21):e2310186121.
doi: 10.1073/pnas.2310186121. Epub 2024 Apr 25.

Negotiating discord in sustainability transformations

James J Patterson  1 , Giuseppe Feola  1 , Rakhyun E Kim  1
Affiliations

Negotiating discord in sustainability transformations

James J Patterson et al. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. .

Abstract

Policy action for sustainability transformation faces inherent and ever-present sources of conflict, pushback, and resistance (i.e., discord). However, conceptual frameworks and policy prescriptions for sustainability transformations often reflect an undue image of accord. This involves simplified assumptions about consensus, steering, friction, discreteness, and additiveness of policy action, conferring an unrealistic view of the potential to deliberately realize transformation. Instead, negotiating discord through continuously finding partial political settlements among divided actors needs to become a key focus of policy action for sustainability transformations. Doing so can help to navigate deeply political settings through imperfect but workable steps that loosen deadlock, generate momentum for further policy action, and avoid complete derailment of transformation agendas when discord arises.

Keywords: conflict; governance; negotiation; political settlements; transformative change.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests statement:The authors declare no competing interest.

Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
Two views on action for sustainability transformation: (A) Accord-based view where solutions are first identified and then accord is obtained from all involved actors, or (B) discord-based view where discord is taken as the starting point requiring ongoing efforts to (continuously) find partial political settlements among limited sets of actors.
Fig. 2.
Fig. 2.
Mental models and associated assumptions about sustainability transformations underlying (A) accord-based view and (B) discord-based view, which underpin frameworks and prescriptions informing policy action.
Fig. 3.
Fig. 3.
Approaches to policy action under different circumstances, where partial political settlements involve negotiation in the presence of discord.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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