ABSTRACT
This chapter brings forward ways in which legitimacy is an enriching concept for the study of global sustainability governance. It distinguishes between normative and empirical-sociological approaches to the study of political legitimacy with regard to the questions these approaches raise on global sustainability governance. The first approach revolves around appropriate standards of assessment of global sustainability governance. The latter is preoccupied with studying legitimacy perceptions, sources, and processes. The chapter suggests that transformative perspectives in the study of global sustainability governance ought to employ a combination of both approaches. Such a combination can result in visions that are aspirational yet grounded in systematic empirical knowledge on power relations and legitimacy perceptions. In order to illustrate tentative steps involved in combining the approaches, the chapter refers to the consultations on the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, part of the global 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
