Understanding Environmental Policy

In Understanding Environmental Policy, Steven Cohen introduces an innovative, multidimensional framework for developing effective environmental policy within the United States and around the world. He demonstrates his approach through an analysis of four case studies representing current local, national, and international environmental challenges: New York City's garbage crisis; the problem of leaks from underground storage units; toxic waste contamination and the Superfund program; and global climate change. He analyzes the political, scientific, technological, organizational, and moral import of these environmental issues and the nature of the policy surrounding them. He also places a specific focus on the response from the George W. Bush administration. Cohen considers how our current environmental policy and problems reflect the value we place on our ecosystems; whether science and technology can solve the environmental problems they create; and what policy is necessary to reduce environmentally damaging behaviors. Cohen's multifaceted approach is essential reading for analysts, managers, activists, students, and scholars of environmental policy.

Steven Cohen is a Professor in the Practice of Public Affairs at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs and Director of the Master of Public Administration Program in Environmental Science and Policy, Director of the Masters of Science in Sustainability Management at Columbia University’s School of Professional Studies, and the Director of the Earth Institute’s Research Program on Sustainability Policy and Management at Columbia University. He is the author of several books, including The Sustainable City (Columbia University Press, 2017), Understanding Environmental Policy (Columbia University Press, 2006; Columbia University Press, 2014), Sustainability Management (Columbia University Press, 2011) The Effective Public Manager (Jossey-Bass, now in its fifth edition, 2018).