ABSTRACT
This chapter explores central government-funded programmes within selected EU member states aimed at the promotion of sustainable development at the sub-national level. It presents the results of research undertaken from 2002 to 2005 and funded by the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency (Eckerberg et al. 2005). Interest was confined to initiatives that had an explicit aim of promoting sustainable development. These initiatives are important as they signal a shift from declaratory intent to actual policy commitment. The research aims at portraying an initial picture of the emerging agenda of sustainable development – what sustainable development is understood to mean in policy practice and which societal actors become engaged in its implementation.
