The Sustainable Use of Natural Resources: The Governance Challenge

This policy brief by the International Institute for Sustainable Development examines the governance challenges associated with the over-exploitation of natural resources. It argues that current resource use is unsustainable and unevenly distributed, calling for transformative change through inclusive decision-making, the protection of human rights for marginalized groups, and a shift toward circular economies.

• Global material demand per capita increased from 7.4 tons in 1970 to 12.2 tons in 2017, contributing to higher greenhouse gas emissions.
• There is a significant disparity in resource consumption between high-income and low-income countries, with the former consuming thirteen times more per capita (27 tons versus 2 tons). High-income nations often outsource environmental and social impacts by relying on extraction in other countries, where the value created for the origin countries remains relatively low.
• Natural resource governance is a complex web of national laws, intergovernmental agreements, and industry initiatives. However, these can conflict; for example, the Energy Charter Treaty has been used by corporations to challenge coal phase-out decisions made under the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.
• Women face systemic exclusion from resource decision-making due to patriarchal norms. An OECD analysis of 180 countries found that while 164 explicitly recognize women's rights to own and use land on par with men, only 52 guarantee these rights in both law and practice.
• Indigenous Peoples face ongoing struggles for the recognition of their rights to self-determination and customary resource use, specifically in Canada, Sweden, and Finland. Conflicts also arise from the expansion of large infrastructure, such as hydraulic dams, and conservation models based on strictly protected areas.
• Transformative change is required to move from a linear "extract-use-discard" model to a circular economy that treats waste as a resource. This includes implementing extended producer responsibility, where manufacturers are responsible for post-use disposal to incentivize better product design and increase material recovery.

APA

Schröder,, J. B. (2021). The Sustainable Use of Natural Resources: The Governance Challenge. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/articles/deep-dive/sustainable-use-natural-resources-governance-challenge

Chicago

Schröder,, Jennifer Bansard,Mika. The Sustainable Use of Natural Resources: The Governance Challenge. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2021. https://www.iisd.org/articles/deep-dive/sustainable-use-natural-resources-governance-challenge.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Schröder, |first1=Jennifer Bansard,Mika |title=The Sustainable Use of Natural Resources: The Governance Challenge |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=15 April 2021 |url=https://www.iisd.org/articles/deep-dive/sustainable-use-natural-resources-governance-challenge |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{schrder2021sustainable, author = {Schröder,, Jennifer Bansard,Mika}, title = {{The Sustainable Use of Natural Resources: The Governance Challenge}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2021}, month = apr, url = {https://www.iisd.org/articles/deep-dive/sustainable-use-natural-resources-governance-challenge}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }