The evolution of transnational sustainability governance through a systems theory lens

This article applies Luhmann’s systems theory approach to the argumentative dynamics of the processes and outcomes of key UN and EU initiatives during the decade 2002-2011 in regard to the development and acceptance of human rights responsibilities for business enterprises. That decade saw a change...

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Main Author: Karin Buhmann
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Oñati International Institute for the Sociology of Law 2024-10-01
Series:Oñati Socio-Legal Series
Subjects:
Online Access:https://opo.iisj.net/index.php/osls/article/view/1863
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author Karin Buhmann
author_facet Karin Buhmann
author_sort Karin Buhmann
collection DOAJ
description This article applies Luhmann’s systems theory approach to the argumentative dynamics of the processes and outcomes of key UN and EU initiatives during the decade 2002-2011 in regard to the development and acceptance of human rights responsibilities for business enterprises. That decade saw a change from rejection to welcoming of ideas on such responsibilities as a key social sustainability issue. Demonstrating the use of systems theory to empirical cases, the article shows how the systems theory perspective generates important insights on communicative aspects of a regulatory process towards a normative change in contexts with multiple and diverse interests at play in today’s legal order where the transnational character of many sustainability problems exceeds the nation state. The article fills a knowledge gap concerning processes for governing transnational sustainability issues, where the territorial limits of national public law and the weak private-actor coverage of international law pose challenges to conventional regulation.
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publisher Oñati International Institute for the Sociology of Law
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series Oñati Socio-Legal Series
spelling doaj-art-a64dc92b88134b81bcd1001ca7b40aa72024-11-25T14:20:22ZengOñati International Institute for the Sociology of LawOñati Socio-Legal Series2079-59712024-10-0114510.35295/osls.iisl.18632650The evolution of transnational sustainability governance through a systems theory lensKarin Buhmann0Copenhagen Business School This article applies Luhmann’s systems theory approach to the argumentative dynamics of the processes and outcomes of key UN and EU initiatives during the decade 2002-2011 in regard to the development and acceptance of human rights responsibilities for business enterprises. That decade saw a change from rejection to welcoming of ideas on such responsibilities as a key social sustainability issue. Demonstrating the use of systems theory to empirical cases, the article shows how the systems theory perspective generates important insights on communicative aspects of a regulatory process towards a normative change in contexts with multiple and diverse interests at play in today’s legal order where the transnational character of many sustainability problems exceeds the nation state. The article fills a knowledge gap concerning processes for governing transnational sustainability issues, where the territorial limits of national public law and the weak private-actor coverage of international law pose challenges to conventional regulation. https://opo.iisj.net/index.php/osls/article/view/1863business and human rightssustainable business conductrationality-based argumentsregulatory communicationregulated self-regulation
spellingShingle Karin Buhmann
The evolution of transnational sustainability governance through a systems theory lens
Oñati Socio-Legal Series
business and human rights
sustainable business conduct
rationality-based arguments
regulatory communication
regulated self-regulation
title The evolution of transnational sustainability governance through a systems theory lens
title_full The evolution of transnational sustainability governance through a systems theory lens
title_fullStr The evolution of transnational sustainability governance through a systems theory lens
title_full_unstemmed The evolution of transnational sustainability governance through a systems theory lens
title_short The evolution of transnational sustainability governance through a systems theory lens
title_sort evolution of transnational sustainability governance through a systems theory lens
topic business and human rights
sustainable business conduct
rationality-based arguments
regulatory communication
regulated self-regulation
url https://opo.iisj.net/index.php/osls/article/view/1863
work_keys_str_mv AT karinbuhmann theevolutionoftransnationalsustainabilitygovernancethroughasystemstheorylens
AT karinbuhmann evolutionoftransnationalsustainabilitygovernancethroughasystemstheorylens