Page 71 - Module_5_en

Module
6 Step 3: What is being done, and how effective is it?

After analysing what is happening to the environment and why, and what the impacts are, the third step 5
in the IEA is to address the question: What is being done and how effective is it?

This is a retrospective analysis of what has been and is being done to maintain and enhance the
environment and human well-being. This information paves the way for forward-looking policy analysis,
which is further considered in Module 6, Scenario Development and Analysis. Abu Dhabi, UAE

From an analytic perspective, this third step in the GEO approach to IEA deals with societal responses

(Figure 21). These actions include government policies, plans and programmes, as well as actions of civil
society and business through such interventions as science and technology.

Responses can have an effect on many facets of an environmental issue, including the state of the
environmental issue (e.g., afforestation actions affect the state of forests), pressures (e.g., housing

construction), drivers (e.g., community population growth) and even the impacts of changes in an
environmental state (e.g., actions which help communities adapt to lack of forest cover, such as alternative
fuel or building material sources [21]).

As a general categorization, those actions that influence drivers, pressures and environmental states are
helping to reduce society’s exposure to a change in the environment. In contrast, societal responses

which alleviate the impact of a change in the environment help build society’s capacity to adapt. Together,
responses that influence both our exposure to change and our ability to adapt to impacts help reduce
our vulnerability to environmental change.

This section focuses on societal responses in the form of government policy. To help you better
understand what is meant by policies, section 6.1 presents background information on policies and

policy analysis. Sections 6.2–6.7 introduce you to five simple steps for analysing the mix of existing
policies that may be having an influence on environmental issues in your area.

IEA Training Manual Workshop for the National Reporting Toolkit (NRT) 69