Previous studies of environmental non-governmental organizations (ENGO) have primarily taken place within a nation-state perspective without considering multiple levels of politics and governance. Because environmental problems are usually cross-border phenomena, environmental movements must develop transnational features to play constructive roles in politics and governance. This study contributes to the theorizing and study of transnationalization of ENGOs by illuminating the different regional conditions for this process. The conditions for ENGOs to develop transnational collaboration are explored by comparing ENGOs from six countries in two macro-regions: Sweden, Germany, and Poland in the Baltic Sea region, and Italy, Slovenia, and Croatia in the Adriatic-Ionian Sea region. Grounded in the literatures on social movement theory and ENGO transnationalization, the study identifies how different national, macro-regional, and European institutional structures shape the conditions under which ENGOs develop cross-border collaborations, and demonstrate the importance of long-term and dynamic interplay between processes that occur at the domestic and transnational levels.

This report presents the results of a web survey distributed to stakeholders in the Baltic Sea marine sector regarding environmental communication on air pollution from shipping. The survey was carried out in the spring and summer of 2012. Drawing on the literature on risk communication and environmental governance, the main focus was placed on so-called communication barriers, that is, possible hindrances to effective communication among stakeholders on how to reduce air pollution without threatening sector competitiveness. The results show that although there is a dense networking among stakeholders in this sector, there is a demand for improvements in communication in (a) exploratory phases among broad groups of stakeholders and (b) operational phases among selected groups of e.g. business and research teams. To facilitate the emergence of such improved communication, regional organizations such as HELCOM and EU could play important roles. Furthermore, it is shown that there is a perceived need among many stakehold­ers to step up the involvement of certain stakeholders, for example fuel companies, in collabora­tion on how to reduce pollution from shipping in cost-efficient ways. Finally, the results show that although continuous improvements of international regulation is a vital part of the governance of the marine sector, compliance will suffer if operators’ incentives are too strong in favor of not con­tributing to reduced pollution levels. Therefore, there is a strong need for innovative thinking on how to design such incentive schemes, not the least in relation to the continued implementation of Baltic Sea SECA and NECA as well as of the Baltic Sea Action Plan.

This PhD thesis in environmental science aims to contribute to the theoretical and empirical understanding of the relation between participation and legitimacy in multi-level environmental governance.

It is widely assumed that actor involvement has great potential to improve the legitimacy of nature conservation through long-term acceptance and target achievement. However, local resource conflicts problematize the way a relation between participation and legitimacy is depicted on other administrative levels. Studies exploring the effect that participation has on legitimacy are relatively rare, especially in multi-level arrangements of coastal conservation.

In this thesis the relation between participation and legitimacy on the local level is examined, as well as how this relation is conditioned by multi-level governance and power. The relation is empirical studied with two local implementation processes of the Helsinki Convention’s network of marine protected areas (HELCOM MPAs). The cases are located in Sweden.

Sweden and the Baltic Sea region are in the forefront of participation in nature conservation, and therefore act as a strong case for the exploration of institutional participation. However, despite apparent political will and international support, the efficiency of actor involvement for nature conservation has been questioned, also for the HELCOM MPA and especially on the local level.

Based on the results of this study, I question the assumption that weak legitimacy predominantly is an issue of insufficient information sharing. The findings show that involving actors to legitimize the adoption of strict adherence to a pre-established model of conservation likely fails to create long term support for conservation. Instead, relocation of power to the affected actors seems essential in order to make participation establish legitimacy. It appears important to create room for local influence in the design, management and implementation of a particular conservation area in the particular place/context. In both examined cases, there are elements of participation that support legitimacy, for example the development of a shared vision. There are also elements that hamper legitimacy, such as, for example, the high expectations different actors have on participation to reach consensus on protective values. These unmet expectations seem to fuel conflicts of interests among actors on different levels.

Local participation, especially in natural resource management, has been promoted as a key strategy in the quest for sustainable development. Community-based Natural Resource Management (CBNRM) is an approach that has generally been promoted as an institution that genuinely includes and empowers ‘local people' in natural resource use and management. This paper examines how local participation in conservation projects works in practice by drawing on concepts from institutional and actor-oriented theories and applying a case study approach to examine community-based mangrove management at Jozani-Pete, Zanzibar. Here CBNRM became embedded within a conservation agenda that resulted in conflict, resistance, frustration and uncertainty amongst community members. The paper offers insight into how exogenously initiated CBNRM projects have difficulty gaining traction unless they both address existing power relations and deliver on promises of material benefits. If they fail to do so the experience of the Jozani-Pete case study suggests that CBNRM may work to further marginalize already marginalized people.