Complexity Theory and the Constraints on Environmental Policymaking

Complexity theory has been highly influential within environmental studies circles, including among environmental legal scholars. The focus of the majority of this research has been on the implications of complex natural systems for policymaking; how best to design and implement public policy instruments in the context of complex natural systems in order to achieve desired objectives. Far less attention has been paid to the application of complexity theory to the policy process itself. This article addresses this gap by looking at what complexity theory adds to the study of environmental policymaking. To do this, the article builds a bounded model of environmental policymaking based on a meta-analysis of the existing non-complexity related theoretical and empirical policy literature. The model is used to illustrate how complexity theory changes and how environmental policy processes are perceived and studied.