Building a greener Peñalolén (CLPLN0002)

Commitment ID

CLPLN0002

Commitment Title

Building a greener Peñalolén

Problem

In the 21 st century there is no doubt that one of the greatest challenges in national and international politics is caring for the environment and advancing climate change. To deal with this problem, one of the most important axes is how to build a public policy that, with criteria of efficacy and relevance, has democratic legitimacy. In this sense, the Regional Agreement on Access to Information, Public Participation and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters in Latin America and the Caribbean (Escazú 2018), sheds lights on the way in which we must face environmental problems, where the emphasis is in the construction of an institutionality that commits society as a whole, that is, public and private institutions and civil society.

Status quo

Municipality of Peñalolen has incorporated sustainability as a of its central axes, nevertheless, it is necessary co-constructing instruments and regulations that set a guideline that trascends the current administration, in order to comply with the signed agreements and local planning instruments. That said, it is important to emphasize how these instruments should be built, because the co-creation process fulfills a legitimizing function, but also a formative one, where in many occasions we must reconsider the initial assessments to address this problem.

Nowadays municipality promotes and encourages processes of active citizen participation within the current framework of environmental legislation, specifically in the environmental impact assessment. Nevertheless, the environmental policies are generally communicated in a technical way and in unfriendly language, so efforts are required to facilitate and bring these issues closer to the whole community.

Action

To Design a work plan with the different actors of the community. This work should incorporate the following elements:

Confront the climate crisis, protect the environment and promote local sustainable development requires a joint and empowered work with the different actors of the municipality.
Incorporate and promote an environmental approach in territorial planning instruments, to reinforce the sustainable development of the municipality.
Co-create instruments and environmental regulations at local level.
Encourage participation and access to information within the framework of the environmental impact assessment of the projects carried out in the municipality, in order to guarantee information and active participation of citizens.
The Citizen Environmental Participation Program: promote local environmental education in order to achieve cooperative and joint work with a community.
Strengthen local environmental institutions to better manage sustainable development at local level.

How will the commitment contribute to solving the public problem described above?

The commitment proposes as necessary actions to promote an environmental approach to co-create instruments and regulations at the local level, which allow to improve the management of the environmental components of the commune, guaranteeing the active and informed participation of the community. Promote environmental education, in order to strengthen the commitment of civil society in this matter.

What long-term goal as identified in your Open Government Strategy does this commitment relate to?

The Municipality has proposed to develop a strategy of co-responsibility between civil society and the Municipal institution,  emphasising on collaboration to face challenges such as climate change and to have a sustainable local policy that involves all of people.

Primary Policy Area

Regulatory Governance, Social Accountability

Primary Sector

Environment & Climate

What OGP value is this commitment relevant to?