Professor Ben Cashore, Director, Program on Forest Policy and Governance, Yale University
Summary: In recent years, transnational and domestic non-governmental organizations have created non-state market driven (NSMD) global governance systems whose purpose is to develop and implement environmentally and socially responsible management practices. Eschewing traditional state authority, these systems and their supporters have turned to the market's supply chain to create incentives and reward sustainable businesses. The presenter assesses this phenomenon in three steps. First, he presents a theoretical framework designed to understand better the emergence of NSMD governance systems, and the conditions under which they may gain authority to create policy. Second, he presents the empirical results from the application of this framework to the European and North American forest sectors. Third, drawing on this review, Professor Cashore reflects on the ability and potential of market-based authority, in the global era, to reward, and promote, sustainable businesses.