Political and Social Foundations for Environmental Sustainability
In: Political research quarterly: PRQ ; official journal of the Western Political Science Association and other associations, Volume 62, Issue 1, p. 190-204
ISSN: 1938-274X
This article quantitatively investigates several possible foundations for environmental sustainability, as measured across countries with varying geography, development patterns, social customs, and political arrangements. Two central hypotheses about the roles of democracy and federalism, as well as other hypotheses about economic development, religion, and demographics, are tested. The study provides moderate evidence that sustainability levels depend on democratization, but little evidence that it depends on the presence of federalism. In addition, it is found that the effects of environmental interests, development paths, and religious orientations vary across different measures of sustainability. Adapted from the source document.