Strengthen national governance: New policy instruments are a promising complement to regulation if carefully designed. But they are not panaceas.

The shortcomings of international institutions largely reflect those of domestic policies. An effective institutional framework for sustainable development requires critical institutional innovations at the national level. New policy instruments – often involving nonstate actors – have become popular  as a means of overcoming problems in implementing regulations, since they are often seen as being more flexible. However, questions remain about their transparency, equity implications and long-term effectiveness. When designed carefully, new policy instruments are a promising complement to regulation, but they are not panaceas. Success lies in developing packages of different instruments, and in evaluating the effectiveness of  these in their own terms as well as in relation to alternative options.

This text is an excerpt from the Policy Brief Transforming Governance and Institutions for a Planet under Pressure. Revitalizing the Institutional Framework for Global Sustainability. A longer, fully referenced version of the policy brief is available as Earth System Governance Working Paper No. 17.