Marie Stenseke , Johanna Alkan Olsson , Susanne Arvidsson , Nils Droste , Viktor Elliot , Lena Gipperth , Henrik G. Smith
{"title":"Defining and operationalizing ‘nature-positive’ — a question of power","authors":"Marie Stenseke , Johanna Alkan Olsson , Susanne Arvidsson , Nils Droste , Viktor Elliot , Lena Gipperth , Henrik G. Smith","doi":"10.1016/j.cosust.2025.101581","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cosust.2025.101581","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This paper examines how the concept ‘nature-positive’ as a means to enhance biodiversity is defined and used, viewed through the lens of power. Building on a three-dimensional conceptualization of power, we elaborate on i) how ‘nature-positive’ enters and remains on business and policy agendas, ii) different interpretations from both ecological and business perspectives, and iii) the governance of its implementation. Our findings reveal divergent positions, where some argue for a clear and operational definition that makes the concept practical for business and enforceable in legal frameworks. Others adopt a more critical standpoint, viewing it as a boundary object that facilitates processes encouraging positive actions. At the same time, yet other voices regard it as a distraction from addressing the structural drivers of biodiversity loss. We conclude that, from a normative standpoint, an open and ideally balanced debate would empower multiple voices and interpretations. Reflecting on who stands to benefit from different operationalizations is important from a justice perspective. For ‘nature-positive’ to serve as a driver of transformative change, it must be underpinned by a robust toolkit capable of addressing the complexity of biodiversity and its multiple values.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":294,"journal":{"name":"Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability","volume":"77 ","pages":"Article 101581"},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-10-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145263664","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Pathways to sustainability in Brazilian agriculture: technological drivers, governance, and policy linkages","authors":"Maurício A Lopes , Geraldo B Martha Jr","doi":"10.1016/j.cosust.2025.101583","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cosust.2025.101583","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The rapid expansion of Brazilian agriculture, although centered on productivity gains, has brought challenges to the forefront, influencing food systems at national, regional, and global scales. Looming threats such as climate change, deforestation, and land degradation cast shadows of uncertainty over the sustainability and resilience of Brazilian agriculture. This paper explores how technological and non-technological drivers can further strengthen sustainability pathways in Brazilian agriculture. Achieving the vision of strengthened sustainability pathways necessitates a reevaluation of the multifaceted governance measures that harmonize technological advancements with environmental and social responsibilities. The integration of science, innovation, and governance is essential, but it additionally requires novel approaches, such as interdisciplinary dialogue, public–private partnerships, and international collaboration to effectively move towards meaningful sustainability outcomes at multiple levels.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":294,"journal":{"name":"Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability","volume":"77 ","pages":"Article 101583"},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-10-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145263665","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The position of women in decision-making processes on environmental issues","authors":"Muhammed Ramazan Demirci","doi":"10.1016/j.cosust.2025.101582","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cosust.2025.101582","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study aims to evaluate the effective representation of women by examining environmental policies from a contemporary context through an ecofeminist perspective. Environmental issues tend to disproportionately affect women on a global scale. Women play a central role in areas such as water, food, and energy in meeting basic vital needs. However, factors such as climate change, environmental disasters, and resource scarcity make women more vulnerable, and the limited representation of women in the policymaking processes related to the environment is observed to deepen environmental problems. The central question of this study is whether women are adequately represented in the formulation of environmental policies today. Additionally, it will focus on fundamental approaches to solution strategies and provide recommendations to policymakers. This study aims to contribute to the more effective development of environmental policies in terms of gender equality and sustainability.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":294,"journal":{"name":"Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability","volume":"77 ","pages":"Article 101582"},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-10-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145218260","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Pathways to a blue economy","authors":"Susan Gourvenec , Wassim Dbouk , Fraser Sturt , Damon A.H. Teagle","doi":"10.1016/j.cosust.2025.101570","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cosust.2025.101570","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Charting a path to a blue economy is imperative to avoid major climate change and irreversible damage to marine ecosystems, the wider environment and society. The blue-ness of the future ocean economy and the associated health of the oceans and our planet will be determined by the pathways chosen, the strategies developed and decisions made now. Here, through bibliometric analysis, multidisciplinary literature review and data synthesis, we present prospective pathways that define different future ocean economies. The intention is to provoke interdisciplinary debate, exchange of ideas, further research and action towards shifting the ocean economy from grey to blue. We show that a business-as-usual pathway that sustains the current grey ocean economy will lead to accelerated violation of planetary boundaries and ultimately destruction of the natural capital on which the ocean economy and humanity depend; that a probable pathway, based on optimistic trends, which attempt to meet the conflicting increasing demand of populations globally and need to curb carbon emissions, is insufficient to meet decarbonisation and broader sustainability targets; and that a pathway to transition to a blue economy requires ambitious proactive strategies and immediate decisions, based on principles that aspire to the collaborative, fair and sustainable use of the ocean.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":294,"journal":{"name":"Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability","volume":"77 ","pages":"Article 101570"},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145218261","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Sechindra Vallury , Donald R Nelson , Nathan J Cook
{"title":"Rethinking adaptation interventions in agricultural systems for sustainability","authors":"Sechindra Vallury , Donald R Nelson , Nathan J Cook","doi":"10.1016/j.cosust.2025.101571","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cosust.2025.101571","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Global policy frameworks have accelerated investments in agricultural adaptation interventions. However, prevailing approaches often conflate adoption intensity with success, overlooking the complex behavioral, structural, and temporal dynamics that shape who can sustain adoptions over time. We synthesize empirical evidence to argue that a narrow focus on adoption in adaptation intervention programs risks exacerbating inequalities in agricultural systems. Many such programs view adoption as a one-time decision, disproportionately target resource-rich farmers, and overlook the dynamic, long-term conditions essential for sustained adoption. Sustained use of adaptation strategies, however, requires distinct capacities, and when farmers discontinue these strategies, they can become entrenched in poverty traps, leading to widening wealth inequalities between sustained adopters and dropouts. Marginalized farmers are particularly vulnerable to these outcomes, which contradict the equity goals of policy frameworks. This review emphasizes the need to re-evaluate adaptation intervention programs in agricultural systems to better address the long-term needs of marginalized communities.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":294,"journal":{"name":"Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability","volume":"77 ","pages":"Article 101571"},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145156271","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Social limits to adaptation in the context of intangible cultural heritage","authors":"Daniel Puig","doi":"10.1016/j.cosust.2025.101569","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cosust.2025.101569","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Amid mounting evidence of limited progress in adapting to climate change, scholarship on the limits to adaptation is gaining renewed momentum. Nevertheless, there remains a dearth of studies examining human systems explicitly from the perspective of how and why the limits to adaptation have been exceeded. Such retrospective studies can shed light on why these limits were exceeded in the first place and how communities responded. This article explores these issues in the context of intangible cultural heritage affected by climate change. It finds that adaptation faces biophysical constraints that are, in most cases, insurmountable. For this reason, efforts to overcome them are rare. In contrast, responses to the impacts of climate change on intangible cultural heritage are more common. They encompass four main types of actions: practical, organisational, culture grounded, and psychology informed. The article illustrates these issues with examples drawn from the scientific literature. It concludes by reflecting on the temporal dimension of limits to adaptation.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":294,"journal":{"name":"Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability","volume":"77 ","pages":"Article 101569"},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-09-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145108521","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Danielle S Spence , Maureen G Reed , James P Robson , Bianca Currie , Eureta Rosenberg , Marlis Merry , Jana Gengelbach
{"title":"Intercultural networks deepen learning for transformative sustainability education: lessons from co-designing transdisciplinary international learning labs","authors":"Danielle S Spence , Maureen G Reed , James P Robson , Bianca Currie , Eureta Rosenberg , Marlis Merry , Jana Gengelbach","doi":"10.1016/j.cosust.2025.101567","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cosust.2025.101567","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In this paper, we emphasize the value of an intercultural network of researchers, students, and practitioners engaged in co-creating and delivering transdisciplinary sustainability learning opportunities. The network, the <em>Trans</em>disciplinary <em>E</em>ducation <em>C</em>ollaboration for <em>T</em>ransformations in <em>S</em>ustainability (TRANSECTS), is a north–south partnership with hub universities in Canada, Germany, and South Africa. Here, we introduce one pathway for learning — Transdisciplinary International Learning Labs (TILLs) — which are immersive learning experiences that take place in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and CulturalOrganization (UNESCO)-designated Biosphere Reserves/Regions. We describe preliminary lessons learned through collaborating across national and disciplinary boundaries to design, deliver, and evaluate this novel sustainability educational format. Drawing on a framework for transformative transdisciplinary learning, we explain how TILLs have contributed to single, double, and triple loop learning by students and the academics and practitioners who co-design and implement them. We share these lessons to inform other lab models that seek to provide transformative sustainability education.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":294,"journal":{"name":"Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability","volume":"76 ","pages":"Article 101567"},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-08-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144917617","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Relational follow-up and review of the 2030 Agenda: accelerating the implementation of the sustainable development goals","authors":"Fernando Ortiz-Moya , Marco Reggiani","doi":"10.1016/j.cosust.2025.101558","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cosust.2025.101558","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Achieving the 2030 Agenda requires comprehensive follow-up and review across all levels of government. Although local governments play a critical role in implementing the sustainable development goals (SDGs), their current follow-up and review architecture — conceived from a global perspective and tailored to national reporting — ignores local actors. Understanding follow-up and review as a relational process, grounded in dynamic interactions across levels, can help ensure that no place is left behind. Advancing such a system involves three key shifts: repositioning follow-up and review as a strategic governance tool, aligning global goals with local priorities, and developing context-specific indicators. Drawing on emerging local practices, we show how relational approaches bridge the gap between global ambitions and on-the-ground realities by fostering adaptive policymaking, embedding the SDGs into strategic planning, and enabling context-sensitive implementation. This approach supports a more inclusive architecture for sustainable development, rooted in the strengths and agency of local actors.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":294,"journal":{"name":"Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability","volume":"76 ","pages":"Article 101558"},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-08-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144903675","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Astrid Zabel , Vong Nanhthavong , Michael Epprecht
{"title":"Gaps between demand and supply of biodiversity impact finance in the Global South","authors":"Astrid Zabel , Vong Nanhthavong , Michael Epprecht","doi":"10.1016/j.cosust.2025.101568","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cosust.2025.101568","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This contribution seeks to fill knowledge gaps on what kinds of biodiversity impact investment models already exist, what factors are constraining biodiversity impact finance in the Global South, and what could be done to bridge the gap. The review identifies complexity, high transaction costs, unfamiliarity with the product, and shortages of bankable projects as key challenges pertaining to the financial sector. On the investors’ side, concerns often revolve around the risk–return ratio, insufficient global biodiversity data, and the lack of an international framework defining biodiversity finance. On the investees’ side, there is anxiety over power imbalances from the past finding their way into these new products, which could be detrimental, especially in areas with informal land rights. To move forward, learning platforms and training opportunities on impact finance could be provided to stakeholders, and more resources are needed for de-risking investments through blended financing approaches.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":294,"journal":{"name":"Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability","volume":"76 ","pages":"Article 101568"},"PeriodicalIF":6.3,"publicationDate":"2025-08-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144895401","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"How civil society organizations influence environmental governance in the Global South","authors":"Yaohui Wang, Yang Qiu","doi":"10.1016/j.cosust.2025.101556","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.cosust.2025.101556","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In the current decade, civil society organizations (CSOs) have become more deeply integrated into global environmental governance networks, playing a pivotal role in addressing urgent environmental challenges. Acting as key drivers of sustainable development, CSOs navigate complex political landscapes to collaborate with government entities, even in the face of less hospitable political climates found in many Global South states. A growing body of literature has recently begun to examine the strategies that have enabled CSOs in the Global South to foster meaningful partnerships with policymakers, thereby advancing effective environmental governance. By participating in multiple stages of policy processes, namely, formulation, implementation, and supervision, Global South CSOs effectively mitigate political risks while encouraging governments to design and enforce policies aligned with global environmental values.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":294,"journal":{"name":"Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability","volume":"75 ","pages":"Article 101556"},"PeriodicalIF":6.6,"publicationDate":"2025-07-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144633313","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"环境科学与生态学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}