Environmental Negotiation pt. 1: The Basics

In the quest for positive environmental policy, it's always helpful seek council from some success stories. Dale Gorczynski provides such tales of triumph in his 1991 book Insider's Guide to Environmental Negotiation. Working on Houston City Council for over eleven years, Gorczynski has spearheaded negotiations that removed raw sewage from Lake Houston (the city's major drinking water source), developed a less intensive water consumption policy for Houston, and a wide range of other environmental issues ranging from the disposal of toxic wastes to the protection of park lands.

He begins by assuring readers that environmental negotiation is a "game" (p. 4). All too often [and I'm definitely guilty of this] negotiations over environmental policy can become heated as the issues at stake appear drastically different to each side. Environmental activists easily become enraged just by the sheer existence of a new coal plant proposal, while the industrialist simply sees it as means towards making a living. Gorczynski calls environmental negiation a game in part to eliminate this contention. If you view the opposite side as an opposing team in a game, then you can prepare defensive strategies based upon their strengths, rather than reverting to anger and unflinching statements of opinion.

Gorczynski's second bit of wisdom is that environmental negotiation favors the generalist and interdisciplinarian. Environmental activists often don't know enough about politics and focus purely on ecology and public health, ignoring the economic or political elements of a proposal "You must be willing to go outside of your discipline; there is no way around it," he states (p. 9).

Environmental negotiations are further complicated in that they are unlike traditional negotiation, such as sitting down with your boss to negotiate a salary rase. Rather, they are informal negotiations. Some parties can't negotiate [trees, watercourses, animal species] and some parties refuse to negotiate at all [community next to a proposed sewage treatment plant]. Oftentimes there is complete lack of mutual respect between parties, each feeling they have the moral obligation to do whatever they want [e.g. our environmentalist v. coal plant industrialist] (p. 12).

The game of environmental negotiation is therefore quite difficult to play. Yet Gorczynski offers a five-step path, which he claims are the "heart and soul of successful environmental negotiating strategy" (p. 100).:

Step 1: Do research. This is when the need for level-headedness comes largely into play. Most environmental debate arises because one party feels greatly threatened by the behavior of another. In our example of the proposed coal plant, the activists case must be bolstered by adequate research. One must learn everything possible about the company in question, particularly their history of coal plant building [proposed size, standards for emissions, environmental problems associated with past plants, etc] (p. 105). [This, of course, is useful advice for both sides of the debate, but I haven't kept my personal bias a secret thus far, so why start now?]

This may seem like obvious advice, but according to Gorczynski, one common mistake made in the "do research" step is researching the individual environmental perpetrators themselves. What specific members of the company are supporting the coal plant? What is the extent of their influence [both internatl and external to the company]? This information becomes priceless in the negotiation process, as certain individuals follow patterns of behavior depending on their values (p. 108).

Step 2: Take Stock. Take account of those who support your cause and all accompanying allies. Not only should our environmentalist take into account the abilities of all vocal opponents to the coal plant, such as non-profit organizations or concerned citizens, but also potential allies who might not know about the proposition. For example, experts in public health, Congressmen from the districts in question, local councilmen, can offer resources and influence the outcome (p. 112). Furthermore, combining steps 1 and 2 enables one to imagine likely scenarios for victory. For example, if the coal companyt has funded extensive scientific research, support from public officials might be more helpful than environmental consultants (p. 120).

Step 3: Organize. Educate your team and the public, actively and continuously engage new allies for your cause. Delegate duties towards appropriate strengths to maximize efficiency (p. 124).

Step 4: Act. Clearly action is key towards victory. However, it is crucial that action be calculated and strategic. Our activist coalition mustn't get trapped in an endless internal debate, but must act once steps 1-3 are adequately achieved. Engaging the coal company too soon or too late could be detrimental (p. 143).

Step 5: React. Dale Gorczynski claims that the reaction step is most crucial in environmental negotiation. Particularly, it's essential to react appropriately to the oppositions reactions. For example, highlighting the bad behavior of an overtly hostile reaction from the coal company could fuel your team in resolve and possibly enlist support from previously neutral groups (p. 159).