ABSTRACT

President Trump had a profound, largely adverse impact on environmental and climate policy, both domestically and internationally. In addition to rolling back environmental regulations and related policies, Trump sought to undermine the institutions and core values undergirding environmental and climate protection. This article analyses Trump’s environmental tenure and legacy, examining key policies and regulations, but also norms, values and discourse. Drawing on insights from new institutionalism, the article explores three different dimensions of Trump’s potential environmental legacy – organisational, policy and ideational. For each it identifies the institutional and discursive factors shaping Trump’s impact, its “stickiness” and durability. It then analyses attempts by the Biden Administration and others to counter, reshape or chip away at that potential legacy. Re-visiting and adapting core institutionalist assumptions, the analysis suggests a decisive factor determining Trump’s legacy is not his own actions and narrative but rather how – and how successfully – other institutional actors support, spread or counter them. The article finds that while Trump’s impact on organisations, regulations and even policies can be diluted (and his legacy diminished), Trump’s attack on the norms and trust underpinning environmental action may be more long lasting.

摘要

特朗普总统对国内和国际的环境和气候政策产生了深远的、主要是不利的影响。除了撤销环境法规和相关政策外，特朗普还试图破坏支撑环境和气候保护的制度和核心价值观。本文分析了特朗普的环境任期和遗产，考察了关键政策和法规，以及规范、价值观和话语。本文借鉴新制度主义的见解，探讨了特朗普潜在环境遗产的三个不同维度——组织、政策和理念。对于每一个，它都确定了塑造特朗普影响力、“粘性”和持久性的制度和话语因素。然后它分析了拜登政府和其他人的反击尝试，重塑或消除潜在的遗产。重新审视和调整核心制度主义假设，分析表明，决定特朗普遗产的决定性因素不是他自己的行为和叙述，而是其他机构参与者如何——以及如何成功——支持、传播或反击它们。文章发现，虽然特朗普对组织、法规甚至政策的影响可能会被淡化（他的遗产也会减少），但特朗普对支持环境行动的规范和信任的攻击可能会更持久。