This open access book hinges on 3 broad but interlinked elements: sustainable development as a concept, sustainable development in the Global South, and implementation challenges.

The advent of the Sustainable Development Goals and the 2030 Agenda have contributed to the deepening of the concept of sustainable development within global and national policy schemes. The fact that sustainable development is crucial for our very survival is no longer a contested issue; rather, the key concern now is how this can be achieved equitably by reconciling competing priorities and concerns of the Global South and the Global North. While the Global South countries are eager to adopt and integrate the 2030 Agenda in their respective policy frameworks, local contexts are often at odds with the global model of sustainable development.

The book examines national capacities and institutional arrangements in countries in the Global South. It considers the challenges of integrating sustainable development in national policy frameworks. This includes the role, interactions, and inter-dependence of different branches of international law in, inter alia, protecting human rights, promoting access to justice, ensuring environmental justice, guaranteeing social protection, and safeguarding the rule of law for sustainable societies. This book explores the emerging patterns and processes of development projects that have either succeeded or failed, critical reflections on what has been achieved and whose interests the projects served, and the costs and benefits of particular interventions.

The ebook editions of this book are available open access under a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence on bloomsburycollections.com.