Considering involving stakeholders after COVID: or – there is no good except doing!
During the early days of the lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic a “witty expression” did the rounds on social media in Germany. “Now the young are helping the old” - by not attending parties and staying at home. “Tomorrow (after the pandemic) the old will help the young” - by – finally – adapting their lifestyle to the challenges of climate change.
Although it was meant to be funny, there is a key message to this: actions and measures are required for solutions and the needed changes to have a chance. It might sound trivial, but it’s important. After all, in the past the scientific and political debate has often too much focused on the “what” and somewhat neglected the “who” and the “how”.
In addition to asking “what”, for example whether “green” and/or “blue” hydrogen is the solution, and which methods ensure negative emissions, more systematic deliberations are required on how socio-ecological change can be achieved through stakeholders, actions, and alliances.
Below are five initial considerations for taking this perspective into account.
- Empowered government institutions
Public authorities must be sufficiently empowered. For example: economic stimulus programmes often cannot be accessed due to insufficient capacities at a municipal level to process the aid programmes and to coordinate the obligatory approval procedures for projects. This strongly emphasizes the necessity that economic stimulus programmes should be designed to ensure the public authorities is suitably empowered for the envisaged project funding and permission procedures.
- Cooperation of the various civil society movements
The various civil society movements in Germany and around the world often operate separately despite pursuing (partly) common objectives. Key persons often do not know each other, let alone speak to each other. Civil societymovements – such as unions, environmental and climate movements, churches, anti-racism movements, peace movements and feminist movements – should network better and coordinate their efforts to fight for a socio-ecological transformation together. There have been initial efforts to do so, such as the anti-racism and climate movement recently cooperating. It is important to encourage and strengthen these approaches.
- Changes come from within society
Fundamental attitudes and perceptions within government institutions need to change. The coronavirus crisis showed the government can and must establish the framework for a change of the society. But the crisis management would not have worked without committed and engaged citizens. This also applies to fighting climate change. Therefore, it is not the government that solves the crisis and/or achieves transformation. The necessary changes regarding technical solutions, but also values and behaviour, can only be triggered and kept moving from the middle of the society. Therefore, the government and its institutions can only establish the framework for change. Implementation requires cooperation with and among the actual social forces – economy, science, and civil society organisations (which hopefully become better connected).
Government bodies are well-advised to approach those stakeholders in business and in the society in general that are willing and ready for solutions – for example often more individual progressive companies, then industry associations.
- Involving more people with a migrant background
Furthermore, conceptual approaches are required to specifically include more people with a migrant background in this transformation. Unfortunately, this group of society is not being involved much, if at all.
- Stakeholder orientation in transformation research
Lastly, transformation research must more strongly address the know-how, the concerns and problem solving skills of stakeholders. Thus, it is not enough to just find solutionswhich can be implemented by government institutions. Transdisciplinary approaches, that is to say developing solutions together with those concerned and with an eye toward their problem solving options, should be the rule rather than the exception.
Furthermore, independent scientific research into how the involvement of various stakeholders works towards transformation, is necessary. The research results can and should then provide the necessary information for designing transformative policies.
Five initial points, but there are many more to be examined and analysed: such as the role of churches or unions (which in some areas of Germany represent around 25 % of employees). After all, only systematic deliberation in business and politics can achieve adequate involvement and engagement of all stakeholders, which in turn is required for valid and profound transformation towards sustainability.
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