National Governance and the Global Climate Change Regime

Societal and international struggles over the Kyoto Protocol will no doubt be the signature environmental conflict of fin du sicle global society. Dana Fisher is one of the few environmental sociologists to explore international environmental regime dynamics in the detail and breadth they deserve. -- Frederick H. Buttel, University of Wisconsin, Madison Dana Fisher's interviews with a total of eighty national leaders; her superb command of the literature on global warming; and her use of contemporary environmental social theory add up to an excellent work in the field of environmental sociology. -- Craig Humphrey, Pennsylvania State University An important, well-written, insightful contribution toward explaining regulation of the global environment. Highly recommended. * CHOICE * The world's future depends on what concerted measures major governments take to mitigate destructive effects of industrialization on environments across and around the earth. In this thought-provoking, closely documented study, Dana Fisher shows how officialdom, business, scientists, and activists in each country interact to produce their country's approach to worldwide environmental measures. Her sustained comparisons of Japan, the Netherlands, and the United States establish that countries differ dramatically in their readiness to act against global threats to the environment, and that national politicsnot simply national interestmakes the difference. -- Charles Tilly, Joseph L. Buttenwieser Professor of Social Science, Columbia University

Dana R. Fisher is assistant professor in the Department of Sociology at Columbia University.

Chapter 1 Explaining the Regulation of the Global Environment: Theoretical Perspectives and Alternative Theories Chapter 2 The History of the Science and Policy of the Global Climate Change Regime Chapter 3 Postindustrialization and Global Climate Change: An Empirical Analysis of the Material Characteristics of the Environmental State and Moving toward Understanding the Political Characteristics Chapter 4 State-Led Collaboration in Japan Chapter 5 Market Innovation with Consumer Demand in the Netherlands Chapter 6 Debate and Discord in the United States Chapter 7 Conclusion Chapter 8 Appendix A: Interviewees in Japan Chapter 9 Appendix B: Interviewees in the Netherlands Chapter 10 Appendix C: Interviewees in the United States