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ABSTRACT Local Agenda 21 has become well embedded as a mechanism for promoting sustainable development strategies at the municipal level. Quantitative studies indicate an impressive rate of progress on strategy production and adoption. This paper reports on qualitative research focused mainly on four innovative UK case studies, and explores the reality of experiences as revealed by participants in Local Agenda 21. It considers the nature of claims made in relation to sustainability networks, the role of local government and stakeholder characteristics. The paper concludes that, whilst many of the claims about LA 21 are intractable to test, there is some evidence of genuine attainment. This relates mainly to processes of strategy production, stimulation of environmental citizenship, inclusion of various sectors, challenging traditional assumptions and actions, and assisting local democracy.
Introduction One of the more unexpected outcomes of the Earth Summit in 1992 was the prominent role claimed by local government. The summit was expected to set global agendas and instigate international treaties, which it achieved to a limited extent. The very brief chapter in Agenda 21 (A 21) (United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), 1992) dealing with local government (Chapter 28) seemed almost incidental by comparison, yet it has precipitated extensive action for sustainable development at the level of the municipality. The United Nations General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) conference in New York in 1997 confirmed the progress being made by municipalities through Local Agenda 21s (LA 21). Equally, a variety of transnational initiatives-such as the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives' (ICLEI) Model Communities Programme, the Council of European Municipalities and Regions' directory of LA 21 activity, the Habitat II Summit in Istanbul in 1996, the UN Environment Programme's Sustainable Cities Programme, and the UN Development Programme's Capacity 21 study-indicate a growing acceptance of the need for local sustainable development. Yet there is still a widespread suspicion in the UK that LA 21 is a mirage: either it flatters to deceive, or it is a device of local authorities to reclaim lost territory and fend off unwelcome reform.
This paper reports on a study of a small number of UK local authorities which aimed to probe beneath the surface of official accounts of LA 21. By examining published documents and interviewing...