Is environmental sustainability a case of failure of policy implementation?

For several decades now, governments all around the globe have been committed to the development of environmental sustainability as a policy goal (Ahu Akgün, van Leeuwen, & Nijkamp, 2011) have supported this. Despite such efforts and dedication, decades of scientific monitoring prove that the world is no closer to achieving environmental sustainability and in various respects; the situation is actually getting worse. This papers argument is that a significant factor that contributes to the situation is policy implementation failure (Caviglia-Harris, Kahn, & Green, 2003). The research objectives of the study included: identifying the factors that have led to policy implementation failure; identification of the impact of policy implementation failure on sustainability; and identification of the measures that can be implemented to achieve sustainability. The research methodology involved a systematic quantitative review of the literature which was conducted using the techniques outlined by Pickering and Byrne. Findings from the methodical review of the literature affirms that the failure to achieve the planned outcomes of environmental policies is because of communication, political, and economic factors. Additionally, these findings prove that the failure of environmental policies continues to be a growing concern. The research outcomes identify that the main factors that lead to the inability to achieve environmental sustainability include the conflict between the roles of environmental policies and the objectives focused on economic development, the failure of communicating objectives to the key stakeholders, and a lack of incentives to adopt environmental policies. Therefore, policy-makers need to learn from such mistakes, and still have the ability to set the globe on a path of sustainable development (Desrochers & Ikeda, 2003).