(SIDS): the Impact of Singapore on International Environmental Policymaking (1992-2019)”, for an Academic Study at Northeastern University

MAPPING THE LITTLE RED DOT'S ADVOCACY FOR SMALL ISLAND

DEVELOPING STATES (SIDS): THE IMPACT OF SINGAPORE ON INTERNATIONAL

ENVIRONMENTAL POLICYMAKING (1992-2019)

Mansurah Izzul Bolkiah, MALD, MA, BA

A doctoral thesis

Presented to the Graduate Faculty of the Doctor of Law and Policy Program

at Northeastern University

In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of

Doctor of Law and Policy

Under the supervision of Dr. Golnoosh Hakimdavar

And second reader, Dr. Amanda Bradshaw

College of Professional Studies Northeastern University Boston, Massachusetts

Defense Date: July 5, 2021

DEDICATION

To the most important beacons of light, M.O.A. and P.A.Z., whose support, love, and understanding were all I ever needed to embark on this venture and accomplish what I have done. To my family members who have provided a strong foundation in the past few years and throughout my educational endeavor.

To the bibliophile, who has nurtured my lifelong interest in reading, forever placing a book in my hands that allowed me to aspire towards the hopes and dreams that once did not seem achievable. Thank you for always making me feel like family.

To my friends, mentors, and colleagues, past and present, at the Ministry of Foreign

Affairs (MFA) for continuously being there to offer good advice or lend an ear. I could not have done this without each one of you.

To W.S., N.R., L.G.N., L.J.S., E.Y., M.A., S.N., T.B.Y., P.A.H., J.S. and O.P. - All of whom I would like to celebrate this accomplishment with, you have all played a prominent part in this undertaking.

To my brothers and sisters of Cohort VIII in Northeastern University's Doctor of Law and Policy (DLP) program, I am grateful for everyone's constant check-ins, motivation, and feedback. Our time together has forged an everlasting bond that I will forever treasure. You all incarnate the saying "friends that become family."

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

To my advisor, Dr. Golnoosh Hakimdavar, I am grateful for the constant perseverance, support, and guidance throughout this process. Your comprehensive knowledge of research methods has helped shape the thesis to where it is today. I would also like to thank my second reader, Dr. Amanda Bradshaw, for her time and sage advice.

To the faculty and staff of the Doctor of Law and Policy (DLP) program at Northeastern

University, the knowledge you provided will prove valuable to me for a long time. Honorable mention to Dr. Alireza Raisi for stimulating our inquisitiveness in class while also making the journey a manageable one. This finished product would not have been possible without Prof.

S.P., I am grateful for your guidance and valuable feedback.

ABSTRACT

This dissertation analyzes the central role of Singapore, as a Small Island Developing

States (SIDS) country, in formulating, implementing and advocating for international environmental policy for the period of 1992 to 2019. This study uses qualitative interpretive/ hermeneutic phenomenological analysis to explore the policy-related documents and opinions gathered by members of the policymaking and research community, at the international and domestic level, to understand how their collaboration changed the culture of policy negotiation, policy formulation, and policy implementation in environmental policy. The research investigates how United Nations Member States (UNMS) adopt and implement international environmental policy documents in their own countries from 1992 to 2019. The investigation traced a change over time in participation trends, policy documents, and outcomes to examine a general complex set of factors surrounding a central phenomenon. The research contributes to adaptation-centric literature on environmental policy. In filling gaps in the existing literature, this dissertation highlights the policy negotiation, policy formulation, and policy implementation of

SIDS countries regarding the transition from international to national environmental policy.

Additionally, few studies have looked at the role of Singapore in SIDS environmental policymaking. By focusing on Singapore's policy documents and interviews with Singaporean and UN representatives, these research findings highlight the importance of mitigation strategy, sustainable financing, training, capacity building in Singapore's environmental policy initiatives, and the country's unique role as a SIDS advocate in international environmental policy. The social constructivist worldview elucidates the understanding of Singapore's environmental policy through a narrative lens that unfolds through interviews with Singaporean-centric representatives, practitioners, and experts. The policy feedback theory allows for investigating

Singapore's environmental policy from a domestic, regional and international perspective, looking at how the policies serve as institutions that control policy change. The research distinguishes past, current, and future trends in international environmental policy and informs of the evolution of Singapore's environmental policy regarding what their priorities were, currently are, and will be. The research outcome identifies emerging trends in international environmental policy research and serves as a strong basis for future research, particularly for SIDS countries.

Singapore; International Environmental Policy; Case Study; Small Island Developing

States (SIDS); Qualitative Interviews; Document Analysis; Interpretive/ Hermeneutic

Phenomenological Analysis; Social Constructivist Worldview; Policy Feedback Theory;

Policy Adaptation; Policy Implementation; Policy Evaluation.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter 1: Introduction ...... 16

Background...... 17

Law and Policy Review…………………………………………………………………...... 23

National Policies Relevant to the Environment...... 25

International and Regional Agreements Relevant to the Environment...... 28

Problem Statement……...... ………………………………...... ………………...... 35

Purpose of the Study…………………………………………………………………………37

Research Questions...... ………………...37

Theoretical Framework…...... ………………………………………………………38

Definitions…………………………………………………………………………………....44

Assumptions………………………………………………………………………………….47

Scope and Delimitations……………………………………………………………………..48

Limitations…………………………………………………………………………………...49

Significance…………………………………………………………………………………..50

Summary……………………………………………………………………………………..51

Chapter 2: Literature Review ...... 52

Literature Search Strategy ...... 52

Literature Review Related to Key Concepts and Variables...... 53

Adaptation...... 54

Regional Organizations...... 55

Organizational Effectiveness, National Participation, and Commitments...... 56

Related Research Studies...... 59

Summary……………………………………………………………………………………..67

Chapter 3: Research Methodology ...... 69

Research Design and Rationale ...... 69

Methodology ...... 71

Positionality Statement...... 77

Participant Selection ...... 79

Procedures for Recruitment and Participation or Access to Data...... 81

Data Collection...... 85

Data Analysis Plan...... 87

Trustworthiness...... 91

Ethical Procedures...... 95

Summary...... 99

Chapter 4: Results ...... 102

Response Rate ...... 103

Data Collection Procedure...... 103

Policy Documents Data Analysis...... 108

Interview Analysis...... 113

Themes Derived from the Data Analysis...... 115

Theme 1: The Singaporean Mindset...... 116

Theme 2: National Institutional Structure...... 122

Theme 3: Building of International Reputation...... 126

Theme 4: Priority Areas for Environmental Policies...... 132

Findings...... 134

Summary...... 135

Chapter 5: Recommendations and Conclusions ...... 137

Summary of the Study ...... 137

Research Questions...... 138

Literature Review...... 139

Methodology and Method...... 140

Summary of the Results...... 142

Discussions and Conclusions ...... 143

Discussion of Findings...... 143

Discussion of Conclusions...... 151

Conclusions Related to the Research Questions...... 151

Conclusions Derived from the Themes and Findings...... 155

Discussion in Relation to the Theoretical Framework...... 157

Limitations...... 159

Potential Impact on Policy...... 160

Recommendations for Future Research...... 164

References ...... 166

Appendix A ...... 188

Appendix B ...... 189

Appendix C ...... 191

Appendix D ...... 192

Appendix E ...... 195

Appendix F ...... 196

Appendix G ...... 197

Appendix H ...... 198

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1. Priority Areas for Barbados Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of

Small Island Developing States (BPOA), Mauritius Strategy for the Further Implementation

of the Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing

States (MSI) and Small Island Developing States (SIDS) Accelerated Modalities of Action

(SAMOA) Pathway (2014) ...... 31

Table 2. Summary of Studies Included in Empirical Literature Review ...... 64

Table 3. Policy Documents Included in Research ...... 86

Table 4. Data Management Protocol ...... 98

Table 5. Data Source Characteristics ...... 103

Table 6. Criteria for Research Participants ...... 104

Table 7. Demographic Composition of Interview Participants ...... 106

Table 8. Comments on the Historical Environmental Challenges to Singapore ...... 119

Table 9. Comments on Domestic Procedures and Approaches ...... 123

Table 10. Comments on the Characteristics of Singapore Stakeholders ...... 125

Table 11. Comments on the Need for Singapore to be Ahead ...... 127

Table 12. Comments on the Negotiating Blocs that Singapore Associates With ...... 128

Table 13. Comments on the Role of Singapore in Negotiations ...... 130

Table 14. Important Environmental Policies ...... 133

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1. Committees and Working Groups Addressing Singapore's Climate Change-Related

Issues ...... 21

Figure 2. Geographic World Map for Small Island Developing States (SIDS) Case Study -

Singapore ...... 22

Figure 3. Timeline of Environmental Policy Documents Related to Singapore ...... 24

Figure 4. Theoretical Framework Map for Social Constructivism and Policy Feedback Theory . 40

Figure 5. Flowchart of Data Collection and Analysis Procedures for the Research ...... 91

Figure 6. Environmental Issues Covered in Singapore's Green Plan (1992, 2006, 2021) ...... 111

Figure 7. Word Cloud for 16 Open-Ended Semi-Structured Interviews ...... 114

LIST OF ACRONYMS

AIS...... Atlantic, Indian Oceans, and South China Seas

AOSIS...... Alliance of Small Island States

ASEAN...... Association of Southeast Asian Nations

BAU...... Business-As-Usual Emissions

BPOA...... Barbados Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of

Small Island Developing States

CAP...... Climate Action Package

CAST...... Fund for Peace’s Conflict Assessment Systems Tool

CCCCC...... Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre

CCUS...... Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage

CDM...... Clean Development Mechanism

CRI...... Climate Risk Index

DEFRA, UK...... Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, United Kingdom

FSI...... Failed States Index

GBS...... Green Bond Scheme

GDP...... Gross Domestic Product

GHG...... Greenhouse Gas

HPSR...... Health Policy and Systems Research

HRS...... Health Research Systems

IFC...... International Finance Corporation

IKM...... Information and Knowledge Management

IMCCC...... Inter-Ministerial Committee on Climate Change

IMF...... International Monetary Fund

IRB...... Institutional Review Board

ISO/IEC...... International Organization for Standardization / International

Electrotechnical Commission

LEDS...... Long-Term Low Emissions Development Strategy

MAS...... Monetary Authority of Singapore

MEWR...... Singapore Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources

MDGs...... Millennium Development Goals

MND...... Singapore Ministry of National Development

MOU...... Memorandum of Understanding

MSI...... Mauritius Strategy for the Further Implementation of the Programme of

Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing

States

NCs...... National Communications

NCCS...... Singapore National Climate Change Secretariat, Prime Minister’s Office

NDC...... Nationally Determined Contributions

NEA...... Singapore National Environment Agency

NGOs...... Non-Governmental Organizations

NHRS...... National Health Research Systems

OECD...... Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development

SAMOA Pathway...... SIDS Accelerated Modalities of Action Pathway

SBGS...... Sustainable Bond Grant Scheme

SIDS...... Small Island Developing States

SPC...... Secretariat of the Pacific Community

SPREP...... Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme

TIES...... Threat and Imposition of Economic Sanctions

TSC...... Targeted Sanctions Committee

UN...... United Nations

UN-OHRLLS...... United Nations Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed

Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island

Developing States

UNEP...... United Nations Environment Programme

UNFCCC...... United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change

UNGA...... United Nations General Assembly

Chapter 1

The vulnerability of Small Island Developing States (SIDS) countries and their success in adopting and implementing international environmental policy agreements allow for research into a regional grouping's effective policy strategy (Klöck & Nunn, 2019; Robinson, 2017;

Robinson & Gilfillan, 2017). Environmental policy discussions, negotiations, and formulations at the national, regional, and international levels have underlined Singapore's emergence as an advocate for SIDS countries. This emergence is exemplified by the establishment of the Inter-

Ministerial Committee on Climate Change (IMCCC), which enhances Whole-of-Government coordination on climate change policies to ensure that Singapore is ready to tackle the impacts of climate change (Singapore National Climate Change Secretariat - Prime Minister's Office, 2020).

While Singapore is identified here as a single case study, this dissertation further shows that this qualitative approach can be replicated for other countries, regardless of whether they are SIDS countries. Singapore as the little red dot was explained by then Deputy Prime Minister Lee Hsien

Loong (2003) as the recognition that Singapore was represented as a red dot on the map, and the country was small and vulnerable. He further mentioned that the reference "has entered the psyche of every Singaporean" and become a permanent part of their vocabulary (Singapore

Government Press Release, 2003).

The study aimed to expand beyond adaptation-centric research (Robinson, 2017a;

Robinson, 2018; Saxena et al., 2018) and investigate the impact of Singapore as a SIDS country on international environmental policy for the period of 1992 to 2019. In essence, the research observed how United Nations Member States (UNMS) adapted and implemented international environmental policy documents in their own countries. The information provided by the semi-

17 structured open-ended interviews conducted for this research supported the document analysis undertaken by the researcher and identified emerging trends in international environmental policy research, forming a solid basis for future SIDS research. The study also highlights the evolution of Singapore's environmental policymaking - what its current priorities are, and what they will be.

Chapter One of this thesis presents the research issue, the research questions that guide the study, the theoretical framework utilized for the research, and the limitations and significance of the study. The law and policy review summarizes key documents about national policies, regional and international agreements, and standards relating to the environment. The research conducted a text analysis and legal analysis on archival work related to provisions and policy development in the law and policy section.

Background

Environmental policy is defined as the obligation of a government or organization to the laws, regulations, and other policy devices regarding environmental issues such as pollution, wildlife and endangered species, the management of natural resources, waste management, and eco-system management (Eccleston & March, 2010). The climate change agenda, involving the negotiation, formulation and implementation of environmental policy, is presented at the international stage through platforms such as the United Nations Framework Convention on

Climate Change Conference of the Parties (UNFCCC-COP), the SIDS, and the Association of

Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Countries that are directly affected by climate change state their case on these about their mere struggle to survive on these international platforms while threatened by rising sea levels and unfair treatment with regards to policy direction and actions (Intergovernmental Panel on

Climate Change (IPCC), 2014). The most vulnerable of these countries are the SIDS grouping comprised of 58 countries from three regions, namely the Atlantic, Indian Oceans, and South

China Seas (AIS), the Caribbean, and the Pacific (United Nations, n.d.).

SIDS are a distinct group of developing countries facing specific economic, social, and environmental vulnerabilities (United Nations - Office of the High Representative for the Least

Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States,

1992). The vulnerabilities arise from biodiversity loss, climate change, small size remoteness, narrow resource base, and heavy dependence on volatile export markets (Lisowska, 2016).

The use of the social constructivist worldview illustrates the understanding of Singapore's environmental policy through a narrative lens that unfolds through interviews with Singaporean- centric representatives, practitioners, and experts (Moustakas, 1994). The policy feedback theory allows for investigating Singapore's environmental policy from a domestic, regional, and international perspective, looking at how the policies serve as institutions that control policy change (Mettler, 2016). The research followed an interpretivist inquiry, which embraces the complicated and dynamic attributes of the social realm while allowing the researcher to view a phenomenon holistically, get close to participants, enter their realities, and interpret their perceptions when need be (Bogdan & Taylor, 1975; Hoepfl, 1997; Shaw, 1999). The interpretive form of inquiry was chosen such that interviews with individuals related to environmental policy pertaining to Singapore as a SIDS case study could generate rich descriptions and depictions of

19 actual events that would reveal and reflect the meaning that those involved in the policymaking and research of environmental policy ascribe to (Gephart, 2004).

The research looked at the relevant law and policies that make up environmental policy in

Singapore and enlightened relevant stakeholders and policymakers on the efficiency of these environmental policies to allow for mutual benefit in policy implementation and compliance. The significant policies highlight the priorities that Singapore emphasize in its efforts towards environmental policy (Singapore Green Plan 2030, 2021; Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs,

2018, 2020; Singapore Ministry of the Environment, 1992; Singapore Ministry of the

Environment and Water Resources, and Ministry of National Development, 2012, 2015, 2016;

Singapore National Climate Change Secretariat, Prime Minister's Office, 2012, 2016, 2020a,

2020b). The trends emerging from this research justify how the environmental policies have been constructed and evolved through international environmental history and contributed to by scholars, lobbyists, and policymakers. The study's interview participants identified other trends in policy documents that collectively constitute valuable assets or tools used to design future policy.

Environmental policy is categorized into three tiers: international, regional, and national.

All countries have an obligation, whether by principle, participation, or legally binding measures, to adhere to and comply with initiatives established within these tiers. Three UN international environmental policy agreements have been introduced since 1992, namely the UN Framework

Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)(1992b), the Kyoto Protocol (1998), and the Paris

Agreement (2015). The most active policy formulation and evaluation mechanism is the

UNFCCC-COP, which has met annually unless the Parties decided otherwise, since 1995. The

Conference of the Parties (COP) of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change

Conference (UNFCCC) is made up of all Parties to the Convention and is responsible for reviewing the implementation of the Convention as well as other adopted instruments to ensure the effective enforcement of the Convention (United Nations, 2021). As the supreme decision- making body of the UNFCCC, the COP examines the national communications and emission inventories submitted by Parties. In turn, it evaluates the repercussions of the measures taken by

Parties and their progress towards achieving the fundamental purpose of the Convention (United

Nations, 2021).

Regional outcomes include the SIDS Accelerated Modalities of Action (SAMOA)

Pathway (2014) and international guidelines incorporated are the Organisation of International

Standards' ISO 14090:2019 Adaptation to Climate Change - Principles, Requirements, and

Guidelines (2019). As an ASEAN member, Singapore plays a dynamic role in the championing of climate change efforts in the region. Two initiatives are the inclusion of "Section D10:

Responding to Climate Change and Addressing its Impacts" in the ASEAN Socio-Cultural

Community (ASCC) Blueprint 2009-2015 (ASEAN, 2009) and the implementation of the

"Rehabilitation and Sustainable Use of Peatland Forests in Southeast Asia" regional project from

2009 to 2013 that aims to prevent peatland fires, a cause of smoke haze which has frequented the region (ASEAN, 2021).

On the domestic front, the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Climate Change (IMCCC), launched in 2007, augments Whole-of Government coordination on climate change policies to prepare Singapore for the impacts of climate change (Singapore National Climate Change

Secretariat - Prime Minister's Office, 2020). The Committee's members comprise government representatives from the Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment, Ministry of Foreign

Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Trade and Industry, Ministry of Transport, and Ministry

of National Development. The Committee Chair is the Senior Minister and Coordinating

Minister for National Security, Mr. Teo Chee Hean (Singapore National Climate Change

Secretariat - Prime Minister's Office, 2021). Figure 1 illustrates the Committees and Working

Groups associated with addressing Singapore's climate change-related issues and the structure of

climate change policy formulation (Singapore National Climate Change Secretariat - Prime

Minister's Office, 2021).

Figure 1

Committees and Working Groups Addressing Singapore's Climate Change-Related Issues

Inter-Ministerial Committee on Climate Change (IMCCC)

IMCCC Executive Committee

Long-Term Emissions and International Negotiations Resilience Mitigation Working Group Working Group Working Group

The world map indicates the location of the SIDS case study identified for the research,

namely Singapore in the Atlantic, Indian Ocean, and South China Sea (AIS) region as shown and

included in Figure 2. A larger version that depicts the three different regions where SIDS are

situated is illustrated in Appendix A. The website Mapchart.net was used to generate the

geographic world map that indicated the location of Singapore in the AIS region. Singapore was

chosen as the case study for this research because it represents a more developed SIDS country

22 that plays a significant role in international environmental policy. Singapore is a party to all three international environmental agreements, ratifying the UNFCCC in 1997, acceding to the Kyoto

Protocol in 2006, and ratifying the Paris Agreement in 2016.

Figure 2 Geographic World Map for Small Island Developing States (SIDS) Case Study - Singapore

Map generated from Mapchart.net, Retrieved at https://mapchart.net/world.html.

As a SIDS case study, the qualitative research sought to determine and identify

Singapore's impact on international environmental policy (1992-2019). The research examined the relationship between the resolutions, agreements, and regional outcomes sponsored and/or introduced by SIDS, in the form of participation and lobbying at the UN General Assembly

(UNGA), UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Assembly, and UNFCCC-COP meetings, and the effective implementation of international environmental policy from 1992 to 2019. In

23 essence, the research question asked whether the implementation of environmental policy influenced the participation and lobbying of a regional grouping of countries.

To address the overarching research question, three sub-questions were presented to guide the research. The first sub-question explored the national procedures employed by

Singapore to ensure the incorporation of international environmental policy formulation, inclusion, implementation, compliance and evaluation. The second sub-question investigated

Singapore's influence as a SIDS country and its contribution to the international environmental policymaking. The third sub-question considered how Singapore took on SIDS countries' views and enhanced them in the international policy formulation fora.

Additionally, the research explored the relationship between Singapore's participation and implementation of environmental policy through the experience and expert opinion of political practitioners, representatives of Singapore, and the UN. This relationship provided insight into how the UN Member States adopt and implement international environmental policy documents in their own countries.

Law and Policy Review

Climate change and environmental issues are considered social problems when they transpire within international community settings. Members of society, business companies, and relevant government stakeholders, such as government representatives to international meetings, exemplify the importance of environmental policy formulation and implementation on a national, regional, and international level. National policies, regional agreements, and international agreements and standards represent outcomes that led to SIDS' accepted norms and standards.

For example, the Paris Agreement has relied on member states to abide by their nationally determined contributions (NDCs) (United Nations, 2015).

This law and policy section looks at Singapore's national policies, regional agreements, and international agreements and standards that influence international environmental policy in the SIDS. The current topics trending in the research are mitigation strategy, sustainable financing, and training and capacity building. The timeline of Singapore's environmental policy documents is shown as Figure 3, representing international and regional landmark policies (the latter of which is specific to SIDS), and national environmental policy documents.

Figure 3

Timeline of Environmental Policy Documents Related to Singapore

National Policies Relevant to the Environment

National policies of individual countries selected for this review specifically looked at

Singapore, representing the Atlantic, Indian Ocean, and South China Sea (AIS) regions.

Singapore contributes around 0.11% of global emissions and is ranked 126th out of 142 countries regarding CO2 emissions per dollar GDP, based on International Energy Agency (IEA) data

(International Energy Agency, 2018). Singapore ranked 27th out of 142 countries in emissions per capita (International Energy Agency, 2018).

Based on the Fund for Peace's Conflict Assessment Systems Tool (CAST) and Fragile

State Index (FSI), which includes state vulnerability, factionalized elites, group grievance, state legitimacy, demographic pressures, and external intervention (The Fund for Peace, 2019),

Singapore's FSI ranking for 2020 was 162nd out of 178 countries (The Fund for Peace, 2020). In the same year, Singapore's score was 26.3, where cohesion indicators totaled was 6.7, economic indicators totaled was 6.4, political indicators totaled was 9.1, and social and cross-cutting indicators totaled was 4.0 (The Fund for Peace, 2020). An overall trend from 2014 to 2020 saw constant improvement in Singapore's FSI score from 35.9 to 26.3 (The Fund for Peace, 2020).

Mitigation Strategy

Singapore's Climate Action Plan 2016 is divided into two sections. "A Climate-Resilient

Singapore, for a Sustainable Future" describes the country's plans to adapt to the impacts of climate change, such as in coastal protection and infrastructure (Singapore Ministry of the

Environment and Water Resources, and Ministry of National Development, 2016). "Take Action

Today, for a Carbon-Efficient Singapore", elucidates the key principles to Singapore's approach to reducing carbon emissions up to 2030, which include: the improvement of energy efficiency;

26 the reduction of carbon emissions from power generation; the development and demonstration of innovative low-carbon technologies; and feedback through the collective action of government agencies, individuals, businesses and the community (Singapore National Climate Change

Secretariat - Prime Minister's Office, 2016). The Climate Action Plan is an intragovernmental effort between the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, the Ministry of National

Development, and the National Climate Change Secretariat at the Prime Minister's Office which aims to fulfill the country's environmental pledges such as those mentioned in the NDCs under the UN international environmental framework.

Improving energy efficiency across the economy is the central pillar of Singapore's mitigation strategy. The Climate Action Plan (2016) lists policies that would improve energy efficiency across all sectors, such as Green Mark Certification and Energy Labelling schemes, the Energy Conservation Act, and Energy Performance Standards for home appliances. The

Singapore government also implemented a target of 80% of buildings to be certified green buildings by 2030 (Building and Construction Authority, n.d.). In addition, the Energy

Conservation Act (2017) was improved and required energy users covered to have their monitoring plans authenticated by an independent third party and to appoint a greenhouse gas

(GHG) manager (Singapore National Environment Agency, 2017).

Energy efficiency measures expect to improve energy and emissions intensity. The 2018

Biennial Update Report mentioned that emissions intensity decreased by 37% from 2000 to

2014, while energy intensity decreased by 33% (National Environment Agency, 2018). However, these measures would not compensate for the increasing energy demand from the industry and building sectors, which will result in rising emissions (Asia Pacific Energy Research Centre,

2015). The government projected energy demand to grow at a compounded annual growth rate of

27 between 1.2% to 1.8% in the next ten years (Minister for the Environment, 2017). In comparison, the transport sector energy demand and related emissions expect to stagnate due to multiple measures to promote public transport and improve road transport emissions.

Sustainable Financing

Singapore determined that the continued growth of sustainable financing required the coordinated and collective effort of the financial sector, businesses, the government, and civil society. Therefore, the government worked with the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to promote sustainable financing while addressing the need to mobilize private capital to support sustainable development and facilitate the region's transition to a low-carbon and climate- resilient economy (Singapore Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, 2019a). MAS introduced the Green Bond Scheme 2017 to encourage capital market instruments for green financing and promote green investment products' adoption. In 2019, the Scheme was renamed

Sustainable Bond Grant Scheme (SBGS) and extended to include social and sustainability bonds.

As a member of the Network for Greening the Financial System, MAS works closely with banks and international counterparts to strengthen their management of environmental risks and support sustainable financing (Singapore Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources,

2019a). In 2019, Singaporean banks decided to stop financing new coal-fired power plants and are currently working with their clients to transition to cleaner forms of energy production. MAS has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), which aims to raise the awareness and knowledge of green bonds through capacity-building workshops.

Training and Capacity Building

Singapore contributes to effective action on climate change through training and capacity-building programs with fellow developing countries. The technical assistance may be extended bilaterally or in cooperation with international organizations such as the United Nations and the Commonwealth. A Climate Action Package (CAP), under the Singapore Cooperation

Programme established in 2018 for three years, aspires to develop capacity in developing countries, particularly in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region, in areas such as climate science, flood management, and disaster risk reduction (Singapore Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, 2019b). An important initiative derived from the

Singapore Cooperation Programme was the Small Island Developing States Technical

Cooperation Programme that catered to the specific needs of the SIDS countries, including climate-related issues and challenges. The training courses comprise areas such as sustainable urban development, emissions reduction, water management, and energy efficiency (Singapore

Ministry of the Environment, 1992; Singapore Ministry of the Environment and Water

Resources, and Ministry of National Development, 2015).

International and Regional Agreements Relevant to the Environment

International and regional policy documents result from prolonged and intense negotiations between the member states that have signed on to these treaties and the international organizations that champion these documents and causes. Singapore has been a strong supporter of multilateral approaches to global issues, notably a system where all countries follow standard rules that ensure that each country is doing its part (Singapore National Climate Change

Secretariat - Prime Minister's Office, 2012). The research looked at policies, policy revision and development; outcomes of policies; deficiencies of implementation; disparity in implementation

29 and contributions; and countries' experiences - public sentiment due to their encounter with natural disasters and the effects of climate change. These topic areas align with what John W.

Kingdon (1984) mentioned as the catalyst of public policy change due to the convergence of the problem stream, policy stream, and political stream.

Regional Outcomes in International Environmental Policy

Regional outcomes in international environmental policy include the SIDS Accelerated

Modalities of Action (SAMOA) Pathway, which highlighted the importance of partnerships. The

Pathway addresses priority areas for SIDS and calls for urgent actions and support for SIDS' efforts to achieve their sustainable development (United Nations, 2014). With each new addition to the overall framework, unique entities, partnerships, and groupings are introduced. The SIDS

Partnership Framework, which resulted from SAMOA Pathway deliberations, is designed to monitor the progress of existing and stimulate the launch of new, genuine, and durable partnerships for the sustainable development of SIDS (United Nations, 2014). Annual reviews have allowed the Framework to ensure that SIDS partnerships stay high on the UN agenda and provided a multi-stakeholder platform for reviewing SIDS partnerships' progress. These annual review sessions also allowed for the sharing of good practices and lessons learned among all stakeholders.

During the Third International Conference on Small Island Developing States (SIDS),

Singapore was approved as a member of the Credentials Committee (International Institute for

Sustainable Development, 2014). The conference outlined a three-year technical cooperation program that assisted in SIDS priority areas. In the "Water and Sanitation, Food Security and

Waste Management" segment of the Partnership Dialogue, Karen Tan, the Permanent

Representative of Singapore to the United States, mentioned that Singapore's experience in ensuring adequate access to fresh water and sanitation took place over time and required careful planning, even with the country's comparatively small land size (International Institute for

Sustainable Development, 2014). The stakeholder involvement, especially that of the private sector, was essential for the success of this program.

The Barbados Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island

Developing States (BPOA)(1994) reaffirmed the principles and commitments to sustainable development exemplified in Agenda 21 (1992a). The BPOA converted the principles and commitments into particular policies, actions, and measures to be implemented at the national, regional, and international levels of policymaking. The Programme identifies 14 priority areas and specific actions necessary for addressing the unique challenges faced by SIDS (United

Nations. 1994). In addition, the Programme called attention to the special challenges and constraints believed to cause significant impediments to the socio-economic development of the

SIDS countries.

The Mauritius Strategy for the Further Implementation of the Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States (MSI)(2005) elucidates 19 priority areas built from the BPOA's priorities. The actions and strategies outlined in the MSI intend to allow for SIDS to achieve the internationally introduced and supported goals, protocols, and agreements, such as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) (2000) and the Kyoto

Protocol (1998). Table 1 depicts the priority areas for the landmark regional SIDS documents, namely the BPOA, MSI, and the SAMOA Pathway, where seven new targets were introduced for the MSI. The SAMOA Pathway emphasized SIDS' priorities for the post-2015 development agenda and the importance of partnerships to implement policies. These regional frameworks

31 have established a foundation that ensures that SIDS can develop resilience in their environmental policies and actions.

Table 1

Priority Areas for Barbados Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States (BPOA)(1994), Mauritius Strategy for the Further Implementation of the Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States (MSI)(2005), and Small Island Developing States (SIDS) Accelerated Modalities of Action (SAMOA) Pathway (2014)

Barbados Programme Mauritius Strategy for the SIDS Accelerated of Action for the Further Implementation of the Modalities of Action Sustainable Programme of Action for the (SAMOA) Pathway Development of SIDS Sustainable Development of (2014) (BPOA)(1994) Small Island Developing States (MSI)(2005) 1 Climate Change and Climate Change and Sea-level Sustained and sustainable, Sea-level Rise Rise inclusive and equitable economic growth with decent work for all 2 Natural and Natural and Environmental Climate change Environmental Disasters Disasters 3 Management of Wastes Management of Wastes Sustainable energy 4 Coastal and Marine Coastal and Marine Resources Disaster risk reduction Resources 5 Freshwater Resources Freshwater Resources Oceans and seas 6 Land Resources Land Resources Food security and nutrition 7 Energy Resources Energy Resources Water and sanitation 8 Tourism Resources Tourism Resources Sustainable transportation 9 Biodiversity Resources Biodiversity Resources Sustainable consumption and production 10 National Institutions Transportation and Management of chemicals and Administrative Communications and waste, including Capacity hazardous waste 11 Regional Institutions Science and Technology Health and non- and Technical communicable diseases Cooperation 12 Transport and National and Regional Enabling Gender equality and Communication Environments women's empowerment

International Environmental Policy Agreements and Guidelines

Three UN international environmental policy agreements with national and international perspective have been introduced since 1992, namely the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Kyoto Protocol, and the Paris Agreement. These international environmental policy agreements form this research study's foundation as they represent the periods by which the research was apportioned, namely 1992-1998, 1998-2015, and

2015-2019. The UNFCCC defined a framework for stabilizing atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases to avoid dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system (United

Nations, 1992b). The controlled gases include carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide.

The Kyoto Protocol committed Annex I parties, or developed countries and countries in transition to a market economy, to achieve enumerated emission reduction targets. These Annex I

33 countries agreed to reduce their overall emissions of six greenhouse gases by an average of 5% below 1990 levels between 2008 to 2012, with specific targets varying by country (United

Nations, 1998). In addition, the Protocol established three flexible mechanisms to assist Annex I parties in meeting their national targets cost-effectively: an emissions trading system, joint implementation of emission reduction projects between Annex I parties, and the Clean

Development Mechanism (CDM), which allows for emission reduction projects to be implemented in non-Annex I parties or developing countries (United Nations, 1998).

The Paris Agreement introduced nationally determined contributions (NDCs) pledged and periodically updated by individual member states to ensure that the limits are attainable by the specific country (United Nations, 2015). This procedure moves away from the two previous international agreements that differentiated between developed and developing countries and established a common framework that committed all parties to put forward their best efforts by setting self-determined realistic targets. The Agreement reaffirmed the objective of keeping average warming below 2 degrees Celsius and conveyed two long-term emission goals, namely an immediate peaking of emissions, recognizing that it will take longer for developing countries, and a goal of net greenhouse gas neutrality in the second half of this century (United Nations,

2015).

International guidelines incorporated into policy are the ISO/IEC 14090:2019 Adaptation to climate change - Principles, requirements, and guidelines (2019) which are based on: the Paris limits to global temperature rises and determined global adaptation to enhance adaptive capacity, strengthening resilience and reducing vulnerability to climate change, sustainable development contributions to ensure adaptation in response to the context of temperature (Organisation of

International Standards, 2019).

Singapore's Reports to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change

(UNFCCC)

Singapore is a party to all three international environmental agreements. In 1997,

Singapore ratified the UNFCCC and acceded to the Kyoto Protocol to the UNFCCC in 2006.

Singapore ratified the Paris Agreement in 2016. The country's NDC target was reducing of emissions intensity of GDP by 36% below 2005 levels or 0.176 gCO2e/SGD by 2030 and stabilizing emissions, projecting them to peak around 65 MtCO2e in 2030 (Singapore

Government, 2015).

Under the Copenhagen Accord, Singapore committed to reducing its emissions by 7-11% below business-as-usual (BAU) emissions in 2020 unilaterally and, in the event of a legally binding international agreement, by 16% below BAU. The National Climate Change Strategy includes several unconditional mitigation targets for the same year, for example, a 35% reduction in energy intensity from 2005 levels (Singapore National Climate Change Secretariat - Prime

Minister's Office, 2012). The BAU pathway provided by the Singapore government as a reference for the 2020 target assumed that the emissions intensity of the economy would go in the opposite direction from the historical trend, increasing significantly until 2020. However, the emissions intensity of GDP dropped 48% between 2000 and 2010, and the BAU pathway assumes a 17% increase between 2010 and 2020.

In March 2020, Singapore submitted the enhanced NDCs and the Long-Term Low

Emissions Development Strategy (LEDS) to the United Nations Framework Convention on

Climate Change (UNFCCC). The NDC submission updated the country's climate pledge submitted in 2015 under the Paris Agreement (Singapore National Climate Change Secretariat -

Prime Minister's Office, 2020a) and mentioned an absolute emissions target to peak emissions at

65MtCO2e around 2030. Singapore also added to the existing pledge a seventh greenhouse gas

(GHG), nitrogen trifluoride (NF3), within this peak emissions ceiling.

The LEDS report built on the enhanced NDC's target by aiming to halve Singapore's emissions from its peak to 33MtCO2e by 2050, to achieve net-zero emissions as soon as feasible in the second half of the century (Singapore National Climate Change Secretariat - Prime

Minister's Office, 2020b). To enable Singapore's low-carbon transition, the LEDS would have three thrusts: (1) transformations in industry, economy, and society, for example, more renewable energy, greater energy efficiency, and reducing energy consumption; (2) adoption of advanced low-carbon technologies, for example, carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) and use of low-carbon fuels; and (3) effective international collaboration, for example, global climate action, regional power grids, and market-based mechanisms (Singapore National Climate

Change Secretariat - Prime Minister's Office, 2020b).

Problem Statement

The following problem and purpose statements are taken from the research alignment map for Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and international environmental policy from

1992 to 2019, included in Appendix B. The vulnerability of SIDS countries and their success in the adaptation and implementation of international environmental policy agreements allow for research into a regional grouping's effective policy strategy. The study investigated how UN

Member States adopt and implement international environmental policy documents in their own countries' national environmental policies. The qualitative research used Singapore as a case study since it had been identified as an advocate for SIDS countries, and inform policy analysts, policy evaluators, representatives of the Singapore government, and United Nations

36 representatives of trends in environmental policy, and could be a strong foundation for future research on environmental policy for SIDS countries or UN Member States in general.

The purpose of this qualitative research is to examine whether there is a relationship between the participation of Singapore as a SIDS country and the successful implementation of international environmental policy, be it through resolutions and international environmental policy agreements deliberations at the UNGA, UNEP Assembly, and UNFCCC - COP meetings.

The relationship between the participation and implementation of environmental policy in

Singapore was explored through the experience and expert opinion of political practitioners and representatives of Singapore and the UN.

This research investigated Singapore's participation and contribution to language that led to the adoption of the selected policy documents and will determine and identify Singapore's impact on international environmental policy from 1992 to 2019. The study traced how

Singapore's participation trends, policy documents, and outcomes changed over time through thematic analysis and allowed the researcher to explore a general complex set of factors surrounding the central phenomenon (Creswell & Creswell, 2018). The research contributes to adaptation-centric literature on environmental policy and fills deficiencies in research highlighting the policy negotiation, formulation, and implementation of individual countries regarding the transition from international to national environmental policy. Additionally, not many studies have included Singapore in SIDS environmental policy, with particular focus on

Singapore policy documents, and interviews with Singapore Government representatives and UN representatives allowed for a different perspective into environmental policy research.

Purpose of the Study

The purpose of this qualitative research was to study the impact of Singapore as a SIDS country on international environmental policy for the period of 1992 to 2019. The study investigated how United Nations Member States (UNMS) adapted and implemented international environmental policy documents in their own countries.

The research examined the participation and lobbying of Singapore and the effective implementation of international environmental policy, be it through UN resolutions and international environmental policy agreements deliberations at the UN General Assembly

(UNGA), UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Assembly, and United Nations Framework

Convention on Climate Change Conference of the Parties (UNFCCC - COP) meetings. The relationship between the participation and implementation of environmental policy in Singapore was explored through the experience and expert opinion of political practitioners, representatives of Singapore, and the United Nations (UN).

Research Questions

A primary overarching research question guided the research and was accompanied by three subquestions that contributed to addressing and answering the primary research question

(Creswell & Guetterman, 2019). This research question framework was adapted from John W.

Creswell and Timothy C. Guetterman's (2019) book entitled Educational Research: Planning,

Conducting and Evaluating Quantitative and Qualitative Research.

The overarching research question that guided the study is:

• Is there a relationship between the participation and lobbying of Singapore as a Small Island

Developing States (SIDS) country in resolutions, agreements, and regional outcomes at the

United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), the United Nations Environment Programme

(UNEP), and United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of the

Parties (UNFCCC - COP) meetings; and the national policy inclusion and implementation of

international environmental policy?

The following sub-questions helped answer the main research question:

• What are the domestic procedures related to environmental law and policy employed by

Singapore to ensure the incorporation of international environmental policy formulation,

inclusion, implementation, compliance, and evaluation into national environmental policy?

• How does Singapore utilize its prominence as a Small Island Developing States (SIDS)

country to influence the overall formulation and implementation of international

environmental policy? Has this influence changed over time?

• Has Singapore managed to take fellow Small Island Developing States (SIDS) countries'

opinions into account and enhance these vulnerable countries' voice in the international

policy formulation fora?

Theoretical Framework

A theoretical framework is a collection of interrelated concepts akin to a theory but not necessarily so well developed. Theoretical frameworks guide research, determining what phenomena will be measured and what statistical relationships will be investigated (Dash, 2018).

According to Sarah Vinz (2020), the theoretical framework justifies the research and dismisses the unpredictability of the study. Creswell and Creswell (2018) postulate that finalizing what theory will be utilized for the research shapes the types of questions asked, informs how data are collected and analyzed, and provides a call for change. Therefore, the theoretical framework for this qualitative research was defined by the disciplinary justification within social constructivism and policy feedback theory. In other words, the foundation for selecting the theoretical framework of this qualitative research study is made through a disciplinary lens, explained by the applicable interpretations suggested within the theories of social constructivism and policy feedback theory. Specifically, policy feedback theory was applied to the policy documents, and social constructivism is utilized for the interviews.

Figure 4 exemplifies this study's social constructivism theory- and policy feedback theory-grounded theoretical framework. These theories contribute to addressing the research questions by analyzing policy documents and semi-structured interviews.

Figure 4

Theoretical Framework Map for Social Constructivism and Policy Feedback Theory

Social constructivism accentuates the significance of context and culture in comprehending what occurs in society and generating knowledge based on this understanding

(McMahon, 1997; Derry, 1999). The constructivist perspective originated from Gaston

Bachelard's (1984) postulation that "nothing proceeds from itself. Nothing is given. All is constructed" and the works of Berger and Luckmann (1967) The Social Construction of Reality and Lincoln and Guba (1985) Naturalistic Inquiry, where it was predominantly grounded in the discipline of sociology, though iterations in psychology and philosophy are emerging. Social constructivist theory is also associated with contemporary approaches such as Vygotsky and

Bruner's (1985) developmental theory and Bandura's (2005) social cognitive theory. Lave and

Wenger (1991) posit that a society's practical knowledge is situated in relations among practitioners, their practice, and the social organization and political economy of communities of practice, where learning is situated within this knowledge and practices.

Crotty (1998) postulated three assumptions of constructivism. Firstly, individuals construct meanings as they engage with their environment, and qualitative researchers usually use open-ended questions so that individuals can share their opinions. Secondly, individuals engage with their environment and comprehend it based on their historical and social perspectives, where meaning is usually embedded in them by culture. This interpretation would allow the researcher to focus on specific environments that people cohabit in and the interaction processes among individuals to understand the participants' historical and cultural settings

(Creswell & Poth, 2018). Instead of starting with a theory, inquirers tend to generate or inductively develop a theory or pattern of meaning, and the interpretation is shaped by the researcher's own experiences and background. Finally, the basic creation of meaning is always social, arising from interaction with a human community. The qualitative research process is inductive, and the inquirer generates meaning from the data collected during the research.

Social constructivism manifests in phenomenological studies in which individuals describe their experiences (Moustakas, 1994), mainly through an open-ended, broad, and general

42 line of questioning. This study is interpretive because through the open-ended semi-structured interview questions, the researcher intended to infer the participants' meanings of Singapore's environmental policy.

Suzanne Mettler and Mallory SoRelle's (2017) policy feedback theory suggests that since policies shape politics, the theory sought to comprehend what happens after a policy is adopted, emphasizing resource and interpretive effects on mass publics. The theory is situated principally within the political science discipline, supplemented by new approaches to policy in the form of policy analysis. The policy feedback theory originated from the idea introduced by Elmer Eric

Schattschneider (1935) that adopted policies restructure policy processes and subsequently influence how the original procedure affects the initial problem definition and whether the policy itself will continue to exist. Paul Pierson (1993, 2000, 2004) underscored the causal mechanisms essential to policy feedback and created the checklist for detailed empirical analyses of policy stability and change. Pierson (1993) had a similar perspective of policy feedback to

Schattschneider's more historical interpretation and theorized that policy feedback transpired from policies that generate resources and incentives for political actors, and those actors then promote particular interpretations of the political environment. These policies influenced different actors through these two mechanisms.

Mettler (2016) introduced the idea of "policyscape" the accumulation of policies over time, and described why current policies need to be revised to adapt to the evolving economic and social conditions. This notion raised the issue of whether policies are self-reinforcing. The qualitative research looks at this through the analysis of Singapore's policy documents and is strengthened by the open-ended semi-structured interviews. Once established, these entities participate actively in politics, shaping interests and motives, configure social and economic

43 relationships, and promote and inhibit political change (Mettler, 2016; Orren & Skowronek,

2004; and Pierson, 2007). Applicable to this research, the three international environmental agreements, namely the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (1992b), the

Kyoto Protocol (1998), and the Paris Agreement (2015), take the role of institutions responsible for promoting and inhibiting political change. The research studied the modern state political process, with Singapore as a case study, how it influences the political order, and when and why it demonstrates stronger and weaker governing capacity and responsiveness to citizens (Mettler,

2016).

Criticism of policy feedback theory includes methodological concerns and data limitations. Particular work in the feedback domain does not deal with the endogeneity problem, especially those introduced by potential self-selection bias (Mettler & SoRelle, 2017). If analysts do not have the necessary data or statistical tools to control for the possibility of pre-existing bias, they cannot assure the existence of policy feedback effects (Mead, 2004). Critics also dispute that policy maintenance is not a vision and indicate ambitious plans that the country should pursue in various policy areas (Kanter, 2015).

The study's use of the social constructivist theory allows for the understanding of

Singapore's environmental policy via a lens that unfolds through the narrative told through the interviews with Singaporean representatives, practitioners, and experts. Additionally, the policy feedback theory would allow for the investigation of Singapore's environmental policy from a domestic, regional and international perspective, looking at how the policies serve as institutions that control policy change (Mettler, 2016). Though applied at different levels, these perspectives complement each other to outline the theoretical framework for this qualitative research.

Definitions

The following definitions helped in the understanding of the terms used in international environmental policy. The list includes technical language as understood in the space of environmental policy and explains the terms.

Adaptation: Adjusting to the actual or upcoming climate change (California Institute of

Technology, 2021).

Adverse effects of climate change: Adverse effects of climate change depict changes in the physical environment or biota resulting from climate change which have significant deleterious effects on the composition, resilience, or productivity of natural and managed ecosystems or the operation of socio-economic systems or human health and welfare (United

Nations, 1992b).

Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS): The Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) is an intergovernmental organization founded in 1990 and represents the negotiating bloc that advocates for the Small Island Developing States (SIDS) voice in international environmental policy within the United Nations framework (United Nations Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island

Developing States, 2021).

Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN): The Association of Southeast Asian

Nations is a regional grouping comprising of 10 countries from Southeast Asia that promotes intergovernmental cooperation and fosters economic, political, security, military, educational,

45 and sociocultural integration among its members, as well as their dialogue partners (Association of Southeast Asian Nations, n.d.)

Climate change: Climate change denotes a change of climate attributed directly or indirectly to human activity that alters the composition of the global atmosphere, and natural climate variability observed over comparable periods (United Nations, 1992b).

Emissions: Emissions are defined as releasing greenhouse gas or their precursors into the atmosphere over a specified area and period (United Nations, 1992b).

Environmental policy: The definition of Environmental Policy is elucidated by Charles

H. Eccleston and Frederic March (2010) as the obligation of a government or organization to the laws, regulations, and other policy devices regarding environmental issues such as pollution - including air and water, wildlife and endangered species, the management of natural resources, waste management, and ecosystem management.

Greenhouse gases: Greenhouse gases are those gaseous constituents of the atmosphere, both natural and anthropogenic, that absorb and re-emit infrared radiation (United Nations,

1992b).

Mitigation: Reducing and stabilizing the levels of heat-trapping greenhouse gases in the atmosphere (California Institute of Technology, 2021).

Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions (NAMAs): Nationally Appropriate

Mitigation Actions are defined as environmental policies and efforts undertaken by individual countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while acknowledging that different countries might identify their nationally appropriate action in adherence to common but differentiated

46 responsibilities and respective capabilities (United Nations, 1992b). These actions underscored the transfer of financial resources and technical capacity between developed to developing countries to reduce emissions (Bratasida, 2008). NDCs superseded the term NAMAs during the

Paris Agreement (2015).

Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs): The definition of Nationally

Determined Contributions utilized for this research exemplifies efforts by each member state to reduce national emissions and adapt to the impacts of climate change. Concerning this, Article 4 of the Paris Agreement (2015) requires each member state party to the Agreement to prepare, communicate and maintain successive NDCs that it intends to achieve.

Reservoir: Reservoir depicts a component of the climate system where a greenhouse gas or a precursor of a greenhouse gas is stored (United Nations, 1992b).

Sink: Sink represents any process, activity, or mechanism which removes a greenhouse gas, an aerosol, or a precursor of a greenhouse gas from the atmosphere (United Nations, 1992b).

Small Island Developing States (SIDS): For this research, the broad definition of Small

Island Developing States (SIDS) adopted by the United Nations Office of the High

Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries, and Small

Island Developing States (UN-OHRLLS) will apply. The UN Office defined the SIDS as vulnerable countries that have: limited resources, small but growing populations, remoteness, fragile environments, susceptibility to disasters, vulnerability to external shocks, and dependence on international trade (United Nations Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed

Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States, 2011). Fifty- eight countries make up this grouping, spread across three regions, specifically the Atlantic,

Indian Oceans, South China Seas (AIS), the Caribbean, and the Pacific. These countries are listed in Appendix C.

Source: Source denotes any process or activity which releases a greenhouse gas, an aerosol, or a precursor of a greenhouse gas into the atmosphere (United Nations, 1992b).

Sustainability: Sustainability is the state of the global system, including environmental, social, and economic aspects, in which the needs of the present are met without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs (ISO Guide 82:2014, 2014; ISO 14090,

2019).

Assumptions

The theoretical framework for policy formulation and compliance applied to this research was interpretive and centered around six assumptions posited by Pizam and Mansfeld (2009).

These assumptions were the focus of interest, generation of knowledge, subject-researcher relationship, nature of reality, goals of research, and desired information (Pizam & Mansfeld,

2009). The study took an interpretivist approach based on naturalistic data collection methods, mainly interviews with Singaporean and United Nations representatives and observations gathered from documents and data analysis.

Another assumption was that the policy documents to be coded and analyzed through text and legal analysis would be readily available online and easily accessible. In case there was documentation required for the research that was not available online, the researcher included a

"Draft letter to the relevant Singapore Ministry or United Nations Department requesting the

48 release of documents for the research" included in the application submitted for the Institutional

Review Board (IRB) approval. This document is included in Appendix D.

The interview participants, made up of Singapore government representatives and UN representatives, were assumed to have some familiarity with environmental policy, especially as it regards Singapore. Also, there was a hope that 15 to 20 representatives or subject experts would be willing to discuss environmental policy in general, or specific to Singapore for 45 to 60 minutes. A final assumption was that the overarching research question was important to be studied, could be answered through the qualitative methods chosen and would contribute to environmental policy literature.

Scope and Delimitations

A delimitation to this study is that the SIDS country identified for this research,

Singapore, was chosen because it took on the role of a strong advocate for SIDS in international environmental policy. Also, the country's policies are well documented and easily accessible.

The access to policy documents and government representatives and UN representatives who had agreed to participate in the research through interviews was from the specific period of 1992 to

2019.

The period of 1992 to 2019 was chosen because the SIDS grouping was defined at the international stage in 1992, and information up to 2019 served as almost 30 years of documentation to analyze (United Nations - Office of the High Representative for the Least

Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States,

1992).

Additionally, the interview participants were selected based on the following criteria: (a)

Individuals with experience in drafting and formulation of at least one international environmental treaty and/or national environmental policy from the period of 1992 to 2019; (b)

Individuals in high ranking policymaking positions in the Singapore government; or (c)

Individuals informed either academically or on the policy side with international environmental policy related to the UN.

Limitations

The study has identified various limitations related to the area of environmental policy.

One limitation is interview participant response as there is no control over the following: (a) how many people agreed to participate in the interviews; (b) why the participant chose to enlist in the study; or (c) why a potential participant refused to participate in the study. These limitations contributed to the researcher having no control over the final size of the participant pool for interviews and thus the outcome of the study and participants' data sampling.

The researcher also had no control over the depth of information that the participant would disclose during the interview. Additionally, the researcher was unsure if all participants' technical and subject-related language would be consistent.

Because the study dealt with policy formulation, implementation, and evaluation, changes in international policy and relevant diplomatic processes may alter the evolution of environmental policy during the course of this research. There are three instances where this could occur, with the introduction of new international environmental policy that could change

50 the status quo at that time, namely (a) United Nations Framework Convention on Climate

Change (UNFCCC) (1992b); (b) Kyoto Protocol (1998); and (c) Paris Agreement (2015).

Significance

In environmental policy, policymakers must recognize certain issues and problems to strategize the policy's formulation, implementation, and evaluation. The study contributes to the adaptation-centric literature currently available and provides a unique way to analyze the data through text and legal analysis and open-ended semi-structured interviews. Thus policy analysts, policy evaluators, students of law and policy, Singapore government representatives, regional organizations representatives such as SIDS, and non-governmental organizations (NGO) representatives such as the UN can benefit from the study.

According to Deborah Stone (2012), every policy issue potentially induces a dispute between contradictory, though similarly reasonable, concepts of the same abstract goal or value.

This axiom applied to environmental policy: these disputes, agreements, and alliances occur daily at international platforms such as the UN or government ministries that create and amend national policies to adapt to their NDCs and international norms.

2.3.1 Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs). The research would be significant to

NGOs such as the UN as they are the main drivers of international environmental policy and usually garner most of the 193 member states' support. The UN and the relevant stakeholders will be able to adjust and adapt international environmental treaties and conventions to conform to member states' needs and allow for them to adapt their national policies to harmonize with that of international environmental policy.

2.3.2 Small Island Developing States (SIDS). Small Island Developing States (SIDS), which comprise countries such as Singapore, submit their pledges and reports to the United

Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and are the key players in international environmental policy. Therefore, the research would be significant for these countries as the study results identified the themes and trends that emerged or are developing in environmental policy and could influence how these countries choose to address the challenges and solutions in the formulation and implementation of these policies.

Summary

Chapter One of this thesis expressed the growing need to understand international environmental policy, especially the interpretation of these policies by Singapore or regional groupings of countries. Themes and topics in national, regional, and international environmental policy documents were identified through the research and enlightened relevant stakeholders and policymakers on the efficiency of these environmental policies to allow for mutual benefit in policy implementation and compliance. Chapter Two of this thesis provides a valuable expansion of the adaptation-centric literature available on SIDS and highlights gaps in current research.

Chapter 2: Literature Review

The research emphasized the necessity to investigate international environmental policies and how countries subsequently integrate and implement them into their national mechanisms.

The qualitative research explored the relationship of Singapore as an advocate of Small Island

Developing States (SIDS) on international environmental policy for the period of 1992 to 2019.

The literature review outlines the literature search strategy and summarize adaptation- centric empirical research on SIDS. The relationship between participation and lobbying of

Singapore or SIDS and their implementation of international environmental policy had not been studied extensively, and this research integrated behavioral studies with compliance, adaptation, and implementation aspects of environmental policy.

Literature Search Strategy

The initial strategy employed for this empirical research literature was to identify and examine existing research on international environmental policy and SIDS and studies on policy analysis and policy implementation. Foundational literature searches were conducted between

August 2019 and November 2020 to form the basis for the research proposal through

Northeastern University's Snell Library search database. Singapore Government Ministries' websites, and United Nations websites related to environmental policy.

In order to compile a significant volume of peer-reviewed scholarship, a list of search terms was gathered relating to environmental policy, and these terms were then streamlined to ease the search process in scholarly databases. The following databases provided a plethora of

53 relevant information, which is exemplified in the empirical literature review section: (a) JSTOR;

(b) Google Scholar; (c) Lexis Nexis; and (d) Northeastern University Library search database.

The literature review for this research revealed the following themes: (a) adaptation (b) regional organizations (c) organizational effectiveness, national participation and commitments and (d) related research studies.

Literature Review Related to Key Concepts and Variables

For the area of climate change and environmental policy, Stacy-Ann Robinson has significantly contributed to the literature by conducting studies on adaptation relating to financing, mainstreaming, and limits (Robinson, 2017a; Robinson, 2017b; Robinson, 2018;

Robinson & Dornan, 2017; and Robinson & Gilfillan, 2017). The subject of compliance that was the premise of the research undertaken added to the expansion of existing literature that is currently adaptation-centric. Policymakers and evaluators comprehend the country's influence within a particular regional grouping and how Singapore's adherence to international environmental policy converts to domestic policy.

The research undertaken has been influenced by the empirical study conducted by

Atteridge, Verkuijl, and Dzebo (2020) relating to nationally determined contributions NDCs and national development plans of seven SIDS, namely Belize, Fiji, Jamaica, Kiribati, the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI), Seychelles, and St. Lucia. The research has identified literature on

SIDS, specifically looking at adaptation mainstreaming and limits, the role of regional organizations, and organizational effectiveness, national participation, and commitments.

Adaptation

Robinson (2017a) evaluated the national communications (NCs) to the United Nations

Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) of 16 SIDS and found that even with their disproportionate vulnerability, SIDS underwent far more observation and assessment activities, 28% of actions, than any other adaptation-related actions. However, only 21% of adaptation action in SIDS can be categorized as implementation and management. The same study discovered that only 2% of adaptation action in SIDS is categorized as mainstreaming or the incessant incorporation of climate change considerations into development policies and programs. This low acceptance rate was unexpected, especially when looking at separate studies by Gupta (2010) and Klein (2011) that recognize mainstreaming's collaboration-creating ability.

Another study conducted by Robinson (2018) analyzed the factors limiting adaptation action in SIDS, looked at NCs to the UNFCCC of 19 SIDS, and determined that 39% of reported limits are institutional, 29% are physical and ecological, 16% are economic, 14% are social, and

3% are technological. The research makes an essential contribution to understanding the impact of institutional deficiencies on adaptation action in SIDS.

Robinson and Dornan (2017) investigated Organisation for Economic Co-operation and

Development (OECD) adaptation financing to 50 SIDS between 2010 and 2014 and discovered that approximately US$2 billion was committed across all sectors. By applying Germanwatch's

Climate Risk Index (CRI), which measures historical vulnerability, SIDS could expect to generally receive US$140-180 million more financing than their non-SIDS counterparts. The research found that although less populated countries received a smaller amount of total adaptation financing, they received more per capita financing. This notion was supported by

Feeny and McGillivray (2010) when they identified trends in regular development aid.

Saxena, Qui, and Robinson (2018) highlighted the inadequate translation of the Paris

Agreement's targets, specifically those relating to temperature targets, into local adaptation project designs. The research used Caribbean SIDS as a case study and noticed that current adaptation project designs in these countries were based on a general understanding of the science and not particular to a specific region.

Regional Organizations

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) (2005) defined regional organizations as a subcategory of international organizations consisting of supranational institutions whose members are governments or monetary authorities of economies located in a specific region of the world. An intergovernmental political agreement among their members establishes these organizations that have an equivalent status to international treaties and are created for many purposes such as supporting, guiding, and governing aspects of economic relationships among the region's economies.

A study undertaken by Robinson (2017a) found that regional and international organizations were the most concerned in national-level climate adaptation action in addition to national governments, bilateral donors, and development banks. Robinson and Gilfillan (2017) examined three case study regional organizations in the Caribbean and the Pacific, namely the

Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre (CCCCC), Secretariat of the Pacific Community

(SPC), and Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) and measured their effectiveness in the coordination of adaptation across SIDS. These organizations were most efficient with regards to adaptation-related inputs and outputs but less efficient concerning their implementation and management of their assigned adaptation projects and programs. Tarte

(2014) observed that the discontent of an increasing number of island states with the established regional order was stimulating the importance of sub-regional organizations in the Pacific.

Robinson and Dornan (2017) postulated that SIDS policymakers saw regional organizations as drivers of SIDS' access to international adaptation financing, especially for smaller SIDS with limited resources. Regional organizations should provide capacity building and technical support by guiding SIDS in planning, implementing, and managing their policies.

Organizational Effectiveness, National Participation, and Commitments

Sowa, Selden, and Sandfort (2004) depicted regional effectiveness as encompassing program and management effectiveness, which subsequently relate to outcomes and capacities in the form of processes and structures. Literature on organizational effectiveness covers four types of effectiveness models, namely process-oriented, strategic constituency, goal-oriented, and resource-oriented models: (1) the process-oriented model emphasized the effective and efficient use of resources (Daft, 2012); (2) the strategic constituency model investigated the relationship between the organization and its key stakeholders (Connolly et al., 1980); (3) the goal-oriented model centered around outputs (Button et al., 1996; Etzioni, 1960); and (4) the resource-oriented model examined the organization's capability to procure essential resources (Wolfe & Putler,

2002).

Robinson (2017b) explained several mainstreaming theories as seen by policymakers, on the one hand as integrating adaptation and mitigation, and on the other hand, as integrating adaptation and disaster risk reduction. Policymakers argued that before adaptation could be addressed, they had to confront them along with other significant development challenges.

Bearing this in mind, the NCs to the UNFCCC and national policies and strategies, which

57 account for the national SIDS' efforts and the momentum they generate in the international fora, are then disregarded as their implementation is secondary to meeting the national needs of the

SIDS countries.

Ng, Lwin, and Pang (2017) examined possible policy levers that should be included in

Singapore's climate change ratification plan for the Paris Agreement. The research analyzed online policy documents published by 11 organizations to recognize policy levers as theoretical constructs to form a framework for studying climate change policies. Using NVivo 10 qualitative data analysis software and theoretical concepts from the pro-environmental behavior model, the outcomes of this study offered insights towards constructing a new contextual influence framework, which could help consolidate policy development and outcome measurement (Ng et al., 2017).

Ourbak and Magnan (2018) explored the role of SIDS, particularly through the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS), in raising awareness for climate change in the international fora and advocating for strong climate change action. The role of SIDS and their participation in the

Paris Agreement ratification process was also exhibited in this study. The authors analyzed

AOSIS achievements by illustrating the group's role in securing SIDS special conditions as vulnerable countries and underscored AOSIS leadership in urging greenhouse gas emissions reductions by setting an ambitious long-term temperature goal, the below 1.5ºC warming target.

The authors discussed future major challenges for AOSIS in advancing its global leadership further, particularly in the immediate actions for those countries indisputably affected by climate change and how to increase SIDS influence around climate change negotiations. The study found the importance of gaps between international political discourses and practical challenges on the ground, such as rapid, international, and national migration of island communities or the

58 fortification of islands to prevent coastal risks. The participation and commitment of SIDS could bolster the development and implementation of their long-term low carbon strategies, which are integral to the Paris Agreement (Ourbak and Tubiana, 2017).

Betzold, Castro, and Weiler (2012) studied the effectiveness of the AOSIS, a coalition of small island states, in climate change negotiations to trace how AOSIS has managed the climate change regime and the comparison of collective and individual AOSIS members endeavors and positions. The study covered three time periods, namely 1995 to 2000, 2001 to 2005, and 2006 to

2011. The research observed that AOSIS activity has declined though it has remained a closely coordinated and cohesive alliance with a stronghold in international climate policy. While there is general consensus concerning mitigation and adaptation, there is less agreement regarding forestry issues (Betzold et al., 2012).

Mackay, Brown, Gonelevu, Pelesikoti, Kocovanua, Iaken, Iautu, Tuiafitu-Malolo,

Fulivai, Lepa, and Mackey (2019) offered some key lessons and insights into climate change information and knowledge management (IKM) in SIDS from the perspective of Pacific SIDS.

The study conducted a situation analysis of current climate change IKM practices in Fiji, Tonga, and Vanuatu, identified critical barriers to effective climate change IKM, and prescribed policy considerations to overcome common barriers to climate change IKM the Pacific. This research could be inferred and applied to the SIDS from other regions.

Atteridge, Verkuijl, and Dzebo (2020) saw the NDCs under the Paris Agreement as an opportunity for countries to synergize climate action with other development priorities. From an incentives perspective, the authors hypothesized that developing countries would have used their

NDCs strategically to raise the profile of essential pieces of their national development agendas.

The research found that the sectors most highlighted in SIDS development plans were likely not included in national NDCs, such as governance and institutions, economic management, education, health, transport, and land use planning. The authors posited that these trends could result from normative or material biases that outline the identification of climate-relevant sectors.

Ebi, Kovats, and Menne (2006) developed methods for country-level assessments to help policymakers make evidence-based decisions to increase resilience to current and future climates and provide information for NCs to the UNFCCC. The assessments of potential human health impacts of climate change are needed to inform the development of adaptation strategies, policies, and measures to lessen projected adverse impacts. The relevance of the assessment emphasizes stakeholder involvement, an adequate management structure, and a communication strategy. The authors determined that the steps in an assessment should be comprised of (a) the determination of the scope of the assessment; (b) description of the current distribution and burden of climate-sensitive health determinants and outcomes; (c) identification and description of current strategies, policies, and measures designed to diminish the burden of climate-sensitive health determinants and outcomes; (d) review of the health implications of the potential impacts of climate variability and change in other sectors; (e) estimation of the future potential health impacts using scenarios of future changes in climate, socioeconomic, and other factors; (f) synthesization of the results; and (g) the identification of additional adaptation policies and measures to reduce potentially adverse health impacts.

Related Research Studies

Rohling, Wandersee, Baker, and Tomlinson (2016) determined how education and communication professionals involved in climate change communications are framing the

60 discussions about climate change with agricultural producers in the United States. The research conducted 16 semi-structured phone interviews to investigate terminology usage, challenges encountered, overcoming challenges, and utilization of social media when educating and communicating about climate change. The study concluded that practitioners should frame conversations contingent on the audience and avoid using terminology not accepted by the target audience (Rohling et al., 2016).

Smit (2003) examined the experiences of primary (elementary) school teachers with education policy in South Africa. The study discussed the possibilities of qualitative research for education policy implementation, and the author posited that qualitative research for education policy offers substance and a more profound distinction of understanding of the complexities at the level of policy implementation. An emotional theme emerged from the empirical interview data, namely resistant behavior and teachers' experienced behavior, that was important to understand how teachers might impact the policy implementation or non-implementation process.

Kohl, Mclaughlin, and Nagle (2006) studied states' definition and execution of alternate assessments since the implementation of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. A random selection was made from a subset of 16 American states to determine how each state was fulfilling alternate assessments and achievement standards for students with the most significant cognitive disabilities. From January to August 2005, telephone interviews were conducted, and a

32-item questionnaire was used to collect information on alternate assessment procedures.

Furney, Hasazi, and Destefano (1997) investigated how three states implemented transition services for youth with disabilities from 1992 to 1994, where the American states were

61 recognized as exemplary in their achievements of designing and executing transition policies and services. The authors reviewed relevant documents and conducted approximately 74 interviews with key policymakers and implementers. Then qualitative data procedures were used to develop a case study report for each site and a cross-case analysis that compared policies and practices across the three states. The analysis found seven themes that contributed to the successful initiation and continuation of transition policies, practices, and services. These themes were: the role of shared values and beliefs in creating an environment conducive to the implementation of transition policies and practices; using direct policy approaches to create changes related to transition; paving the way for change by uniting leadership and advocacy; building collaborative structures to promote systemic change; using the results of research and evaluation to inform change efforts; building the capacity for long-lasting change; and looking ahead: linking transitions to other restructuring efforts.

Ranson and Bennett (2009) examined health policy and systems research (HPSR) which has been recognized as significant to increase interventions to achieve the Millennium

Development Goals (MDGs) and acknowledged that research priority setting applications usually do not adopt HPSR adequately. The study assessed current priority setting methods and their inclusion of HPSR. It looked at best practices for how HPSR priority setting can be enhanced to promote relevant HPSR, which could consolidate developing country leadership of research agendas.

Bierstekar, Eckert, Tourinho, and Hudáková (2018) introduced the Targeted Sanctions

Committee (TSC) quantitative and qualitative datasets, including all UN targeted sanctions imposed between 1991 and 2013, 23 different country regimes broken into 63 case episodes for comparative analysis. The TSC datasets added on to Hufbauer, Schott, and Elliott (HSE) dataset

62 and the Threat and Imposition of Economic Sanctions (TIES) dataset on sanctions and permitted scholars to use quantitative and qualitative methods to differentiate among various purposes, types of sanctions, and target populations; assess the scope of different combinations of targeted measures; access extensive details about UN sanctions applied since the end of the Cold War; and analyze changing dynamics within sanctions regimes over time (Hufbauer et al., 2007; and

Morgan et al., 2013). The research concluded that the UN targeted sanctions were effective 22% of the time and explained significant aspects of UN targeted sanctions regimes which included: the types of sanctions, their intent and objectives, impacts, relationships with other institutions, sanctions regimes, and policy instruments, mechanisms of coping and evasion, and unintended consequences.

A qualitative and expository study by Kim and Martin-Hermosillo (2013) explored the effectiveness of economic sanctions against North Korea, bearing in mind the tougher sanctions imposed by the United States, its allies, and the United Nations. The authors consulted area studies, social science, and journalism while observing recent, past, and current geopolitical events and suggested informed policy options. The research found that UN economic sanctions against outlaw countries have usually generated high costs for the target countries. However, they have failed to change the political behavior of their leaders.

Kok, Rodrigues, Silva, and de Haan (2012) evaluated how the health research systems

(HRS) in Guinea Bissau have emerged and evolved and how the current system operates, using a qualitative case study methodology. Understanding how health research systems develop is essential for formulating adequately effective National Health Research Systems (NHRS). The research explored the emergence and current performance of the HRS, using the NHRS

63 framework through document review and conducting 39 in-depth interviews with individuals from health research to policy and practice stakeholders. The authors posited that Guinea Bissau has a de facto research system exemplified through research practices and co-evolving national and international research and development dynamics. They added that to influence national decision-making, the system would have to be adjusted by identifying the country's research priorities, aligning funding, building local research capacity, and associating research to decision-making processes.

Priyadarshini, Kumar, and Jha (2017) observed job seekers' perception of social media recruitment and selection. The authors used interpretive phenomenological analysis and group interviews to emphasize candidates' perceptions of organizations grounded on their rating of the company's social media site. The study found that individuals were more likely to explore company websites with more beneficial information to them.

Table 2 summarizes the empirical studies conducted in climate change and international environmental policy in Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and research relating to policy analysis and policy implementation.

Table 2

Summary of Studies Included in Empirical Literature Review

Author(s) Year Countries Aspects Studied Studied

Small Island Developing States (SIDS)-Related Studies

Atteridge, Verkuijl and 2020 Belize, Fiji, Nationally determined contributions Dzebo Jamaica, the (NDCs) and national development Republic of the plans for seven SIDS. Marshall Islands Countries could use NDCs under the (RMI), Paris Agreement to synergize climate Seychelles, and action with other development St. Lucia priorities. Betzold, Castro and 2012 Alliance of The effectiveness of AOSIS in Weiler Small Island climate change negotiations to trace States (AOSIS) how the coalition managed in the climate change regime and the comparison of collective and individual AOSIS endeavors and positions. Ebi, Kovats, and Menne 2006 Not specified Methods for country-level assessments to help policymakers make evidence-based decisions to increase resilience to current and future climates and provide information for national communications (NCs) to the UNFCCC. Mackay, Brown, 2019 Pacific SIDS - Key lessons and insights into climate Gonelevu, Pelesikoti, Fiji, Tonga, and change information and knowledge Kocovanua, Iaken, Iautu, Vanuatu management (IKM) in SIDS. Tuiafitu-Malolo, Fulivai, Lepa, and Mackey Ng, Lwin, and Pang 2017 Singapore Analyzed online policy documents published by 11 organizations to recognize policy levers as theoretical constructs to form a framework for studying climate change policies. Ourbak and Magnan 2018 Alliance of Role and participation of SIDS in the Small Island Paris Agreement ratification process. States (AOSIS) Analysis of AOSIS achievements. Future major challenges for AOSIS in advancing global leadership.

Author(s) Year Countries Aspects Studied Studied Robinson 2017a 16 SIDS National Communications (NCs) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) of 16 SIDS. Adaptation, implementation, management, and mainstreaming. Robinson 2017b Caribbean and Mainstreaming theories by Pacific SIDS policymakers as integrating adaptation and mitigation and integrating adaptation and disaster risk reduction. Robinson 2018 19 SIDS Impact of institutional deficiencies on adaptation actions in SIDS. Robinson and Dornan 2017 50 SIDS Organisation for Economic Co- operation and Development (OECD) adaptation financing trends from 2010 to 2014. Role of regional organizations as a facilitator of SIDS access to international adaptation financing. Robinson and Gilfillan 2017 Three Regional Regional organization effectiveness Organizations: in adaptation coordination across Caribbean SIDS. Community Climate Change Centre (CCCCC), Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC), and Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) Saxena, Qui and 2018 Caribbean SIDS Translation of Paris Agreement Robinson targets into local adaptation project designs. Sowa, Selden and 2004 Not specified Regional effectiveness in the form of Sandfort program and management effectiveness, which relate to processes and structures.

Author(s) Year Countries Aspects Studied Studied

Related Research Studies - Policy Analysis and Policy Implementation

Bierstekar, Eckert, 2018 23 country Targeted Sanctions Committee (TSC) Tourinho and Hudáková regimes included all United Nations (UN) targeted sanctions imposed between 1991 and 2013. Used quantitative and qualitative methods to differentiate among different purposes, types of sanctions, and target populations; assess the scope of different combinations of targeted measures; access extensive details about UN sanctions applied since the end of the Cold War; and analyze changing dynamics within sanctions regimes over time. Furney, Hasazi and 1997 Three American Implementation of transitions Destefano states services for youth with disabilities from 1992 to 1994, where the states were exemplary in designing and executing transition policies and services. Kim and Martin- 2013 North Korea, Effectiveness of economic sanctions Hermosillo United States, against North Korea, bearing in mind and United the tougher sanctions imposed by the Nations United States, its allies, and the UN. Kohl, Mclaughlin, and 2006 16 American United States (US) states' definition Nagle states and execution of alternate assessments since the implementation of the No Child Left Behind Act (2001). Fulfillment of alternate assessments and achievement standards for students with the most significant cognitive disabilities. Kok, Rodrigues, Silva 2012 Guinea Bissau Evaluated how the health research and de Hann systems (HRS) in Guinea Bissau have emerged and evolved and how the current system operates, using a qualitative case study methodology. Understanding the development of health research systems is vital for formulating an effective national health research system (NHRS).

Author(s) Year Countries Aspects Studied Studied Priyadarshini, Kumar, 2017 India Perception of job seekers about social and Jha media recruitment and selection process, through interpretive phenomenological analysis and group interviews, to emphasize candidates' perceptions of organizations grounded on their rating of the company's social media site. Ranson and Bennett 2009 Not specified Current priority setting methods and their inclusion of health policy and systems research (HPSR) which is significant to increase interventions to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). Also looked at best practices for how HPSR priority setting can be enhanced, which could consolidate developing country leadership of research agendas. Rohling, Wandersee, 2016 United States The determination of how education Baker and Tomlinson and communication professionals involved in climate change communications are framing the discussions about climate change with agricultural producers. Smit 2003 South Africa Experiences of primary (elementary) school teachers with education policy in South Africa. Possibilities of qualitative research for education policy implementation, as it offered substance and a more profound distinction of understanding of the complexities at the level of policy implementation.

Summary

The study has added to the current body of knowledge on SIDS that is adaptation-centric literature and addressed the gaps in current research with the new methods of data presentation to highlight the findings. Peer-reviewed scholarship and policy-related documents from Singapore

68 government ministry websites and UN websites have identified four themes for this research.

The themes are: (a) adaptation; (b) regional organizations; (c) organizational effectiveness, national participation and commitments; and (d) related research studies. The relationship between participation and lobbying of Singapore or SIDS and their implementation of international environmental policy had not been studied extensively, and this research integrated behavioral studies with compliance, adaptation, and implementation aspects of environmental policy.

Chapter 3: Research Methodology

The research contributed to expanding environmental policy literature, especially regarding national policy inclusion and implementation of international environmental policy.

Singapore has up-to-date and comprehensive documents, legislation, policies, and assessments that allow the country to be a suitable case study for Small Island Developing States (SIDS) in policy making and international environmental policy implementation.

Chapter 3 outlines the methodology used in the collection of data for the qualitative research through the conducting of open-ended semi-structured interviews with Singapore representatives, academia and climate change experts, as well as relevant policy documents for

Singapore and SIDS relating to international environmental policy and its national policy inclusion and implementation. The qualitative data and subsequent results enlightened relevant stakeholders and policymakers both at the national and international level on the efficiency of

Singapore as a SIDS country, influence in international environmental policy, and allow for mutual benefit in the national implementation and compliance of climate change and environmental regulations.

Research Design and Rationale

According to Carol Grbich (2013), qualitative research provides detailed information that does the following: progresses knowledge in a variety of areas, assesses the impact of policies on a population, give insight into people's individual experiences, evaluates service provision, and enables the exploration of little-known behaviors, attitudes, and values. In contrast to quantitative research that focuses on numbers, qualitative research generally emphasizes words

70 in the collection and analysis of data. As a research strategy, it is inductivist, constructionist, and interpretivist (Bryman, 2016).

Timilsina and Shah (2016) researched the energy policy landscape in SIDS countries, including Singapore, that requires addressing in order to scale up renewable energy technologies necessary to stimulate low carbon economic growth. Timilsina and Shah's 2016 study influenced the research, particularly in the investigation of a national and regional effort, and impacted the implementation of the policy by studying the behavior of the SIDS grouping.

Research by Furney, Hasazi, and Destefano (1997) was related to the contribution to the successful initiation and continuation of transition policies, practices, and services. The study investigated how three American states implemented transitions services for youth with disabilities from 1992 to 1994; through document review, about 74 interviews with key policymakers and implementers, and qualitative data procedures to develop a case study report for each site, and cross-case analysis that compared policies and practices across the three states

(Furney et al., 1997).

The research will follow Hall (1993) and Cashore and Howlett (2007) consolidated hierarchy of policy design characteristics that proposes classifying policies into levels of abstraction and policy foci, namely policy aims and policy means. Kok, Rodrigues, Silva, and de

Haan (2012) looked at the priorities in influencing national decision-making. The study evaluated how the health research systems (HRS) in Guinea Bissau have emerged and evolved and how the current system operates, using a qualitative case study methodology (Kok et al.,

2012). The research explored the emergence and current performance of the HRS, using the

NHRS framework through document review and conducting 39 interviews with individuals from health research to policy and practice stakeholders.

Methodology

The qualitative approach applies a hermeneutic phenomenological method for a specific case study that is Singapore, based on desk-based research and document review. Also, the transferability of data and analysis about the role of SIDS in influencing international environmental policy was essential and applicable due to the similar context and setting in these countries (Bloomberg & Volpe, 2012). The two approaches undertaken by this climate change study were instrumental and collective (Stake, 2005).

A combination of multiple perspectives and several layers of analysis are needed to understand the phenomena surrounding environmental policy in Singapore. The case study method proved suitable for this research because it copes with the situation in which multiple variables of interest are entrenched in the investigative context, and it relies on multiple sources of evidence, with data needing to converge through the process of triangulation (Yin, 2003). An operationalized exploratory case study understands how a phenomenon such as environmental policy occurs and how the organizational dynamics or social processes related to the international, regional and Singaporean policymaking fora work (de Massis & Kotlar, 2014; Yin,

2003). The case study research method applied in this research is grounded in interpretivism

(Stake, 2005; Miles & Huberman, 2020, Denzin, 2001) and takes an inductive research approach.

This approach intends to interpret the human experience (Stake, 1995) and builds theory from case study data (Glaser & Strauss, 1967; Strauss & Corbin, 1998).

The hermeneutic phenomenological approach utilized for the research identified and explained the processes needed to draft and influence policy at a scientific, national and international level, and investigated whether there were trends that contributed to the success or failure of Singapore as a SIDS country's influence on international environmental policy. This approach was operationalized through conducting interviews with relevant Singaporean representatives or international environmental policymakers or subject experts and analyzing readily available lobbying and participation of SIDS at the UN and other international platforms that discussed international environmental policy.

In line with van Manen's work (1990) in Researching lived experience: Human science for an action sensitive pedagogy, the research relied on the reflective nature of hermeneutic phenomenology through the lens of personal experience and interpretation in order to understand the central phenomenon. The author postulated that hermeneutical phenomenology exemplified the lived experiences of research participants and the interpretation of their involvement (van

Manen, 1990). The study is guided by the methodological research structure as introduced by van Manen (1990), namely turning to the nature of lived experience; investigating experience as we live it; reflecting on essential themes; the art of writing and re-writing; maintaining a strong and oriented relation to lived experience; and balancing the research context by considering parts and whole (Magrini, 2012).

The research was a single SIDS case study of Singapore that looked at three time periods spanning the duration of three landmark international environmental documents, namely the

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) (1992b) from 1992 to

1998, Kyoto Protocol (1998) from 1998 to 2015, and Paris Agreement (2015) from 2015 to

2019. The intervals chosen ensure that a determination could be reached regarding whether there

73 was a decisive moment between international environmental conventions and agreements where there was a change in policy area emphasis. Furthermore, one of the questions posed during the open-ended semi-structured interviews addressed this. The research compared a sequence within a singular case study to trace the emergence of themes. Singapore was chosen as the case study because the policy documents, the national strategies, the domestic reviews and reporting for previous strategies and policies are readily available on the government websites and other external resources.

The research took an interpretivist approach to knowledge creation (Bernstein, 1995) based on the claim that interpretation is needed to understand the social world (Johnson, 1987).

According to Johnson, Buehrig, Cassell, and Symon (2006), in the study of social sciences, the interpretivist approach demonstrates a shift from erkläken to verstehen. Erkläken involves establishing causal relationships between variables to provide a deterministic explanation of human behavior. Verstehen entails the capture of actual meanings and interpretations that actors subjectively ascribe to phenomena in order to describe and explain their behavior (Johnson et al.,

2006).

A hermeneutic approach embraces the analysis of policy-relevant texts and allows researchers to isolate themes in the texts to make sense of the collected data (Sloan & Bowe,

2014). Hermeneutic phenomenologists use culture in the form of symbols, myth, religion, art, and language, as well as poetry and art in their interpretations (Richards & Morse, 2013). The research analysis demonstrated the use of culture in the personal interpretations of the interview participants that represent policy experts in government, academia, and the international fora.

For climate change text and debates, there is the technical language that is specific to this policy area.

The qualitative study employed an interpretivist worldview, a philosophical perspective derived from Martin Heidegger (1962). Heidegger's interpretive process, which is also known as

Heideggerian hermeneutics, concerns human beings and the integral nature of being and time

(temporality) and intends to illustrate common meanings and practices of everyday experiences

(Diekelmann, 2001). The rational process of examining data from the perspective of part-whole and whole-part constitutes a hermeneutic circle (Cohen et al., 2000) of settling with data through the interpretation process, resulting in synthesis to capture the meaning of the phenomenon

(Willis et al., 2016). This interpretive procedure would be undertaken in the study when the data analysis is interchangeable between the whole, which is the situation, and the parts, which is what the Singaporean government ministries are doing about the situation.

The research took an interpretivist approach based on naturalistic data collection methods, in particular interviews with Singapore and UN representatives, as well as observations gathered from documents and data analysis. The interview questions were open-ended, to allow the researcher to listen carefully to what people say or do in their life settings (Creswell &

Creswell, 2018). These procedures resulted in the understanding of international and national environmental policymaking, specifically from the viewpoint of the policymaking interviewees.

The interpretive procedure also looked at the formulation, implementation, and evaluation of environmental policy from a national perspective (an individual country), a regional perspective

(a group of countries), and an international perspective (all countries that are members of the

Non-Governmental Organizations such as the UN).

Positivism was a philosophical ideology introduced by Auguste Comte (1865) and was an extension of the relations of ideas recognized by David Hume (2007). Positivism suggested that all knowledge regarding matters of fact has basis in the positive data experience and that pure

75 logic and pure mathematics were situated beyond the realm of fact. A positivist perspective would be purely fact-based and investigate empirically-based environmental changes. The legal perspective would describe the objective reality of how countries looked at international environmental law. The research examined and considered the complexity of the interpretation of international environmental law on the domestic front.

Pizam and Mansfeld (2009) looked at six assumptions that differentiated positivist from interpretivist theoretical frameworks: the focus of interest, generation of knowledge, subject- researcher relationship, nature of reality, research goals, and desired information. The assumptions for positivist research are general, average, and representative in their interest focus; with a rigid separation in the subject-researcher relationship and the aim to explain the research and provide a strong prediction; and fundamental laws that are unrestricted in time context and value are generated (Pizam & Mansfeld, 2009). The nature of positivist reality is objective, tangible, and single, and the anticipated conclusions are how people reason and perform a particular action or experience a specific problem. For interpretivist research, the assumptions of interest emphasis are specific, unique, and deviant; with an interactive, cooperative, and participative subject-researcher relationship and the aim to understand the research and provide a weak prediction; and relative meaning that is bound by time, context, culture and value (Pizam &

Mansfeld, 2009). The nature of interpretivist reality is multiple and socially constructed, and the anticipated conclusions are what some people think and do, what kind of problems they encounter, and how they manage them.

For example, with the objective of the reality of policymakers in Singapore in mind, the research took into account international environmental policy interpretation within policy changes domestically in Singapore. With this, the study took an interpretivist and not a positivist

76 approach. Although the language seems more important than actions at the outset, this is only the case until the interpretations are observed and decisions are made related to these laws and policies.

Data collection performed through document analysis investigated UN Member State

(UNMS) lobbying and participation trends that led to the adoption of environmental policy documents and determined and identified the impact of Singapore as a SIDS country on international environmental policy for the duration from 1992 to 2019. The research traced how these lobbying and participation trends, policy documents, and outcomes have changed over time and allow for the exploration of a broad complex set of factors surrounding the central phenomenon (Creswell & Creswell, 2018). An interview guide containing open-ended semi- structured questions is included in Appendix D.

The research data along with interviews that were held with several Singapore and UN representatives reinforced the determination of their understanding of SIDS, whether they classified themselves as SIDS, and to identify what they deemed as successful environmental policy. The coding of transcripts from the interviews and document analysis was done through

Microsoft Word and Nvivo software then again manually. This process identified emerging trends within the research and allowed for understanding the environmental policy process, national procedure, and rationale on environmental policy.

Theoretical or purposive sampling was used to answer the research questions (Miles et al., 2020). While initially the sample population was all of the SIDS countries, the population size was reduced by determining defined parameters and criteria for the participating SIDS that would be investigated. These criteria were based on current published studies and included

77 additional ones introduced specifically for this research. The population sample was 38 out of the

58 countries as they are member states of the UN. The qualitative study eventually utilized

Singapore as a member of the AIS region of SIDS and tested to see if there were observable generalizations and trends between national policy and implementation.

Martyn Denscombe (2007) described that public policy documents have three levels of disclosure: public domain, restricted access, and secret. The research looked at the necessity of including relevant policy-relevant texts on a national and international level in the form of policy documents and outcomes. Some of the documents included the Organisation of International

Standards (ISO) Guidelines, national and congressional reports, national legislation, NGO reports, case studies, and peer-reviewed articles and journals. Most of the research study's documents are retrievable from the public domain. However, restricted access and secret documents would have to undergo stringent procedures, requiring Institutional Review Board

(IRB) approval. A draft email to the relevant Singapore Ministry or United Nations Department requesting permission to release the documents for the research is included in Appendix E.

Positionality Statement

Having worked in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Brunei for the last 14 years, I have been exposed to policymaking's national and international mechanisms. Most of my work entails national and international policy deliberation and formulation pertaining to human rights, such as women, children, and persons with disabilities. Although I am cognizant of the mechanisms and processes responsible for national and international policy formulation, the bias for this research was reduced with the selection of this qualitative study investigating the impact of Small Island

Developing States (SIDS) on international environmental policy.

It should be noted that my country, Brunei, is not considered a member of the SIDS grouping of countries, though as an island nation, the country may in the future be vulnerable to the effects of climate change. My experience at international meetings, such as the UN, for this research and relatively close working rapport with Singapore government officials both past and present, has resulted in the positive reception to conduct interviews with the Singaporean and

UN representatives knowledgeable in international environmental policy. The intimate nature of

Brunei and Singapore relations, brought about by both countries being members of the

Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), will ensure the sharing of the results of this study to relevant government officials and academia that I am personally acquainted with through my occupation. Furthermore, with the dynamic nature of the categorization of countries within the international community, there might be a future possibility that Brunei could be regarded as a SIDS country. Even if this idea does not become a reality, there are traits that

Brunei shares with SIDS countries, and this study could help enlighten the environmental policy in my own country.

Positionality influences how researchers choose processes and interpret results (Holmes,

2014). With this, I understand that my experiences have shaped how the research was conducted and how this may have affected how I translated the results. This positionality was important to recognize so I could counteract the material bias that could have arisen during the study.

According to Rebecca Sarniak (2015), bias can be minimized if you know what to look for and how to manage it. Additionally, by asking quality questions at the right time and remaining aware and focused on sources of bias, researchers can enable the most authentic respondent perspectives and ensure that the resulting research lives up to the highest standards. It

79 was essential to maintain objectivity and eliminate bias throughout this qualitative hermeneutic phenomenological case study research and desk-based research and document review. These objectives were achieved by selecting the population sample, developing of the interview questions, analyzing the data, and developing conclusions.

Participant Selection

Small Island Developing States (SIDS), comprising a group of 58 countries, first determined in international policy documents such as the UN Framework Convention on Climate

Change (UNFCCC), regional outcomes such as the United Nations Barbados Programme of

Action for the Sustainable Development of SIDS (1994), and as determined by the United

Nations Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked

Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States (UN-OHRLLS) (United Nations

Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing

Countries and Small Island Developing States, 2011). A list of these countries is included in

Appendix C.

Mysiak, Calliari, and Amadio (2015) argue that the registered SIDS may not be small or developing or even islands. However, for the purpose of this research, SIDS followed the UN-

OHRLLS definition whereby the countries have small but growing populations, limited resources, remoteness, fragile environments, susceptibility to disasters, vulnerability to external shocks, and dependence on international trade (United Nations Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island

Developing States, 2011).

The population sample determined for this research was initially 38 out of the 58 countries that are member states of the United Nations. These countries situate across three regions: the Atlantic, Indian Ocean, and South China Sea (AIS) with 9 members; the Caribbean with 16 members; and the Pacific with 13 members. The type of sampling used for addressing the research questions were theoretical or purposive (Miles et al., 2020). While the sample population was initially all of the SIDS countries, the population size was reduced to Singapore by determining defined parameters and criteria for this research. The criteria were based on current published studies and included additional ones introduced specifically for this research.

For the purpose of this research, Singapore was investigated as a case study, and this research is replicable for other SIDS countries in future studies. The data collected was in the form of interviews and documents. Singapore's national policies, regional agreements, and international agreements and standards influence international environmental policy, as with other SIDS countries. Desk-based research and document review of these policies and agreements are compiled from Singapore government-related websites and the UN-affiliated websites.

Furthermore, the researcher reached out to Singaporean and UN representatives in three different periods to request interviews that would be analyzed for the research. The three time periods were 1992 to 1998, corresponding with the United Nations Framework Convention on

Climate Change (1992b), 1998 to 2015 corresponding with the Kyoto Protocol (1998), and 2015 to 2019 corresponding with the commencement of the Paris Agreement (2015). The point of connection was that they had experience with environmental treaties, in drafting, and implementation during this time frame. The criteria for the selection of participants for the interviews were as follows:

a) Individuals with experience in drafting and formulation of at least one international

environmental treaty or convention and/or national environmental policy from the

period of 1992 to 2019 at the UN or in the Singapore government;

b) Individuals in high-ranking policymaking positions in the Singapore government; or

c) Individuals informed either academically or on the policy side with international

environmental policy related to the UN.

The researcher initially proposed for 5 interviews from each period, where there would be a total of 15 interviews. Two interviewees were from the Singapore government, specifically from relevant government ministries, from the Singapore Missions based in New York, United

States of America, or Geneva, Switzerland. Two interviewees from each period should be United

Nations representatives knowledgeable about international environmental policy and the plight of SIDS at the international fora. The final interviewee from each period should be an academic or expert on international environmental policy, and they could affiliate with the United Nations or other reputable institutions. In the end, the research recruited 16 interviewees that were not period-specific, since some of them were knowledgeable of more than one period and were able to answer for several periods.

Procedures for Recruitment and Participation or Access to Data

This research aims to see how United Nations Member States (UNMS) adopt and implement international environmental policy documents in their own countries. The qualitative research used Singapore as a case study, though it is replicable for other countries, particularly

SIDS countries. The research attempted to determine the past, current, and future trends in

Singapore's environmental policy through text and legal analysis and the experience and expert opinion of political practitioners, representatives of Singapore and the UN.

David B. Resnik (2015) elucidated that many professional associations, government agencies, and universities, regarding the importance of ethical considerations in research, have adopted codes, rules, and policies related to research ethics. Northeastern University's code of conduct in research and the "Singapore Statement on Research Integrity" influenced the research ethics guidelines followed for this research (World Conferences on Research Integrity, 2010).

Potential subjects were identified during the document analysis process, where names of persons of interest for the research were available as they appeared in the UN and Singapore government documents. Through social and professional networks, the researcher also reached out to potential subjects and asked them if they would participate in the research. Through snowball sampling, the prospective subjects also introduced and nominated other participants who met the eligibility criteria established for the study and could potentially contribute to the research.

The participants were recruited through an introductory recruitment email included as

Appendix F. A follow-up telephone conversation ensued this and is attached as Appendix G. The

Informed Consent form was drafted to suit the specific research undertaken. All the prospective participants speak and understand the English language, so there was no need for additionally translated versions of the Informed Consent form. The process of obtaining informed consent for the research is as follows:

• The researcher sent each participant the informed consent form before the interview. An

example of the informed consent form is included in Appendix H.

• Each participant read through and signed the informed consent form.

• Before the interview, the researcher gave a detailed oral explanation of the study and

answered all questions from the participant.

Complete disclosure of the research goals was conveyed to participants during the initial consent process, and the written debriefing statement followed.

Participants were not offered any incentives or remunerations for their contribution to this research. Upon acceptance of partaking, the participants were contacted by the researcher and informed of the essence and scope of the study. The following activities were then undertaken when the participant agreed to contribute to take part in the study:

• Scheduled a mutual time for the interview to take place.

• Shared the Informed Consent form and allowed the participant to read it before signing. The

interview only took place once the participant had consented to partake in the research.

• Attended the online or virtual interview.

• For the recorded interview, questions were asked by the researcher, with the participant

answering the questions. The duration of the interviews was between 45 minutes to 60

minutes.

• Some interviews had a follow-up session between three weeks to four weeks later. The

researcher confirmed this session after the interview.

The researcher implemented the following safeguards to protect the anonymity of the participants throughout the following stages of the research cycle:

• Recruitment;

• Initial collection of information;

• Use of and analysis of the information collected;

• Dissemination of the findings from the study;

• Storage and retention of information; and

• Disposal of records or devices where the information is stored.

The research also abided by safeguards to help protect the confidentiality and privacy of research participants, namely physical safeguards, administrative safeguards, technical safeguards, and research design safeguards. These safeguards ensured that the participants were in control of the disclosure of their identity and their contribution. Physical safeguards are measures that secure the location of private and sensitive information from unauthorized personnel. These include locked filing cabinets, secluded interview rooms, private offices, storing information away from the public, and easily accessible areas. Administrative safeguards protect participants' privacy by clearly delineating who does and who does not have access to participants' information and in what ways. Only the principal investigator and the researcher has access to the data.

Technical safeguards are technological measures that protect the privacy of participants.

These include the proper use of computer passwords, firewalls, anti-virus software, encryption, and other measures that protect data from unauthorized individuals, loss, theft, or modification.

All electronic data was password protected and encrypted, based on the sensitivity of the information. Research design safeguards are measures intrinsic to the research design of a project that helps protect the privacy of study participants. These include anonymizing information,

85 transcribing raw data as soon as possible, storing de-identified data separately from coding lists, shredding all hard copies with sensitive information as soon as feasible.

For this research, data was stored in Apple iCloud, which supports encryption for data in transit and data at rest. For data in transit, TLS 1.2 or higher was employed. For data at rest, 128-

AES Encryption was used by secure tokens for authentication. Two-factor authentication is enabled and associated with the associated Apple ID. A copy of the data is also synchronized to a local laptop, encrypted with AES-128 encryption, and locked. Regarding data destruction on the local laptop, information was erased when not needed before the thesis defense. It would be cleared following the publishing and defense of the thesis.

Erasure is described as the deletion process performed against a file by the operating system, which does not necessarily delete all the information from the media. However, it destroys the file directory or catalog that links the filename to the file. The clearing is similar to overwriting, preparing media for reuse and assuring data cannot be recovered by employing traditional means. However, signed consent forms will be retained within the iCloud repository for three years following the study as per the requirement.

Data Collection

Two data sets were collected for this research, namely document analysis, and semi- structured interviews, and both sets of coded data were triangulated to bring about alternative perspectives, backgrounds, and social characteristics (Neuman, 2011). The document analysis entailed policy documents, agreements, outcomes, and legal texts relating to Singapore, and the country's contribution to incorporating international environmental policy formulation, inclusion, implementation, compliance, and evaluation into national environmental policy. These

86 documents were retrieved from the Singapore government's websites, the UN's websites and a pdf copy was obtained from one interview participant since the Singapore Green Plan (1992) publication was not available online. Table 3 presents the 18 policy documents that have been analyzed for this research and their scope.

Table 3

Policy Documents Included in Research

No. Policy Document Name Year Scope

1 Singapore Green Plan 1992 National 2 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change 1992 International (UNFCCC) 3 Barbados Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development 1994 Regional of Small Island Developing States 4 Kyoto Protocol 1998 International 5 Mauritius Strategy 2005 Regional 6 Singapore Green Plan 2012 2006 National 7 Climate Change & Singapore: Challenges. Opportunities. 2012 National Partnerships. 8 SIDS Accelerated Modalities of Action (SAMOA) Pathway 2014 Regional 9 Sustainable Singapore Blueprint 2015 National 10 Paris Agreement 2015 International 11 Singapore's Intended Nationally Determined Contribution 2016 National (INDC) and Accompanying Information 12 Climate Action Plan: Take Action Today for a Carbon-Efficient 2016 National Singapore 13 Climate Action Plan: A Climate-Resilient Singapore for a 2016 National Sustainable Future 14 Towards a Sustainable and Resilient Singapore - Singapore's 2018 National Voluntary National Review Report to the 2018 UN High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development 15 ISO 14090: Adaptation to Climate Change - Principles, 2019 International Requirements and Guidelines 16 Singapore's Update of its First Nationally Determined 2020 National Contribution (NDC) and Accompanying Information 17 Charting Singapore's Low-Carbon and Climate Resilient Future 2020 National 18 Singapore Green Plan 2030 2021 National

The interviews were conducted virtually on online platforms such as Zoom audio and video and Whatsapp audio and video for all participants. The researcher utilized two backup devices to support the primary Apple MacBook Pro laptop, namely the Voice Memo application on the iPad and audio recording from the Sony UX Series Digital Voice Recorder. The interview guide with the open-ended semi-structured questions is included as Appendix D. The questions touched upon information regarding international, regional, and Singapore's environmental policy from the interview participants' perspective. The collection of data from these interviews conducted began on 2nd March 2021 and continued until 7th June 2021. The researcher conducted

16 interviews comprised of individuals from Singapore policymaking positions, researchers, and those familiar with the UN environmental framework.

Data Analysis Plan

The qualitative study conducted text and legal analysis and interviews as a means to collect data that would be used to answer the research questions. The research sought to determine and identify the impact of Singapore as a SIDS country on international environmental policy from

1992 to 2019. The central premise of the study was whether there is a relationship between the resolutions, agreements, and regional outcomes sponsored and introduced by Singapore as a SIDS country, in the form of participation and lobbying of SIDS in relation to the successful implementation of international environmental policy from 1992 to 2019.

After the qualitative research design was determined, the relevant information was gathered, and additional research was carried out to collect data for legal and text analysis, where there were no human subjects involved. Hancock and Algozzine (2017) refer to this phase as

88 information gathering, usually collected from documents, interviews, and observations. Interviews are an unpredictable way of gathering information. While the questions that guide the interview session may be similar in form, they can evoke different answers from different individuals, such as those that worked in different periods. The interviewer should ensure that the questions do not allow the interviewee to introduce irrelevant or personally biased information. This inappropriate information may invalidate the reliability of the qualitative data and confuse the researcher collating the interview data.

Potential subjects for the interviews were identified during the document analysis process, where names of persons of interest for the research were evidenced as they appeared in the UN and Singapore government documents. The researcher also reached out to prospective subjects through her social networks and asked them if they wanted to participate in the research. Through snowball sampling, the prospective subjects were introduced from their social and professional networks, other participants who meet the eligibility criteria and could potentially contribute to the research. The prospective participants were recruited through an introductory email, and follow- up conversations were held subsequently.

Text and legal analysis were conducted on the national policies, regional agreements, and international agreements and standards signed onto and adhered to by Singapore that influence international environmental policy in the SIDS. These documents are available on the Singapore government websites and UN-affiliated websites. The data was compiled in Microsoft Word, with the possibility of further analysis and data visualization representation through NVivo. Margarete

J. Sandelowski (2009) determined that sample selection and the necessity of researcher analysis and interpretation allow for the achievement of valid defendable results. The research would utilize

89 hermeneutic phenomenology research methodology to analyze national communications of

Singapore as a SIDS country and adaptation-related policy documents (Yanow, 2007).

According to Alase (2016), the data coding procedure for the research necessitates three generic cycles. First, lengthy interview responses are coded into consequential segmented statements that are more condensed and manageable. The repetition of specific phrases accentuates the essence of the lived experience of the participants as it relates to the phenomenon being studied.

Second, the segmented statements are reduced in length to align closer to the essence of the expression of the participant's lived experience. Third, the category phase further condenses the interview participant's thoughts which are summarized into few words. Alase (2016) affirmed that

"utilizing the generic coding method allows the researcher to meticulously and methodologically break down the participants' responses without diminishing or misrepresenting the core meaning of their responses or lived experiences."

Data collection conducted primarily pertained to desk-based research, including data derived from national communications (NCs) to the international environmental agreements and other adaptation policy-relevant documents such as the ISO Guidelines (Lesnikowski et al., 2015).

The data collected was analyzed manually and through the algorithms and formulas accessible through NVivo or Microsoft Word. The information was collected, individually coded, and clustered into themes. For the policy documents, the information was arranged into Microsoft

Word and divided into international and environmental policy documents and Singaporean environmental policy documents in a codebook.

A challenge to data collection was the standardization of the data accumulated by document review and interviews. Also, not all countries and organizations produced the same information, metrics, and data quality in their reports. The research managed to overcome these challenges by only collecting data for Singapore. The researcher organized the data manually by keeping a codebook and writing code-words and themes down throughout the research process

(Hakimdavar, 2019).

The analysis and coding of interviews and data compiled allowed the researcher to determine whether the outcomes were as expected or otherwise. In addition, the interpretation of the data and interviews would be made by a particular researcher who has their attitude, feelings, and opinions on the subject.

Text analysis and legal analysis was conducted on the interviews and archival work on provisions and policy development. The transcribed interviews was coded manually and electronically through software, where relevant categories and themes emerged among the collected data. Since the research had an ontological nature and looked at the experiences and expert opinions of the participants on international environmental policy, holistic and pattern coding strategies were utilized (Saldaña, 2016; Vasilachis de Gialdino, 2009).

Figure 5 depicts the flowchart of data collection and analysis procedures for the research on international environmental policy and Singapore from a Small Island Developing States

(SIDS) context.

Figure 5

Flowchart of Data Collection and Analysis Procedures for the Research

*The introductory recruitment email is included as Appendix F. ** The follow-up telephone conversation is attached as Appendix G.

Trustworthiness

Prpich, Evans, Irving, Dagonneau, Hutchinson, Rocks, Black, Pollard (2011) introduced a policy-level framework intended to support strategic decision processes concerning environmental risks within the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) in the United Kingdom (UK). The framework stipulated the structure by which risk-based evidence could be compiled by assessing the value of harm expressed by different environmental policy areas against a consistent objective like sustainable development, a basis for relative comparison forms. The framework's success and its similarity to the SIDS research in qualitative assessment verify the possibility of adopting this framework, primarily its best practices to the research.

According to John W. Creswell and J. David Creswell (2018), deficiencies may indicate a lack of exploration of the specified topic of research, in general, or within a group of the population; the literature may indicate the need for replication or repetition or suggested the inclusion of a formerly underrepresented group. A thorough evaluation of previous methodologies identified each approach's advantages and disadvantages (Boote & Beile, 2005).

In collaboration with significant stakeholders, the research explored the opinions and experiences of researchers, policy practitioners, and policymakers concurrently with relevant policy documents to put the study's findings into practice (Nowell et al., 2017). Lincoln and

Guba (1985) postulated that trustworthiness highlights the importance of the research outcomes and ascertained four criteria to fulfill trustworthiness within a study. These criteria are credibility, transferability, dependability, and confirmability.

Credibility

The credibility of the research is verified when coresearchers and readers encounter the experience and are able to identify it (Lincoln & Guba, 1985), and addresses the appropriateness of the participant's opinions and the researcher's representation of them (Tobin & Begley, 2004).

To strengthen the truth value of the study, the triangulation procedure was performed on clustered themes of data and then used to develop superordinate themes and demonstrate the convergence of themes and associated data (Elo et al., 2014). W. Lawrence Neuman (2011) posited four types of triangulation that would improve the accuracy of the research, namely triangulation of measure, triangulation of observers, triangulation of theory, and triangulation of method. When applied to the research on Singapore, the triangulation of measure is the multiple measuring of the same phenomena, which in this case is environmental policy through document

93 analysis and interviews. Weyers, Strydom, and Huisamen (2008) classified this triangulation as that of procedures and identified the advantage of this triangulation as the flaws of one type of procedure often are the strengths of the other.

Triangulation of observers or investigator triangulation is the introduction of multiple observers besides the researcher to bring about alternative perspectives, backgrounds

(Singaporean), and social characteristics to the research (Neuman, 2011; Weyers et al., 2008).

The researcher had the tutelage of the principal investigator and peer review to counter the bias that often comes from one individual doing all the data collection and data interpretation

(Denzin, 1989). Both the researcher and the principal investigator would be knowledgeable in the research design flow throughout the research (Creswell & Creswell, 2018).

Triangulation of theory required the use of multiple theoretical perspectives to plan a study or interpret the data (Neuman, 2011). For the research, case study and hermeneutic phenomenological interpretive process were employed to ensure the accuracy of the data.

Triangulation of methods is the only type of triangulation not used in the research, as the study only uses qualitative methods. Weyers, Strydom, and Huisamen (2008) also introduced the concept of triangulation of data which posited that strong similarities validated the data or conclusions. In contrast, incongruencies indicated either one or more faulty procedures or datasets. As shown in Figure 5, data coded and transcribed from interviews was crosschecked with data coded and transcribed from document analysis to provide scope for further data analysis or additional exploration and research. The level of trustworthiness was increased because crosschecking between more than one independent measure portrays a more comprehensive image of the phenomena being observed.

Transferability

In qualitative research and applicable to this study, transferability denotes the simplification of inquiry, especially relating to case-to-case transference to other groups (Tobin

& Begley, 2004). The theoretical and analytical generalizations could apply beyond the

Singapore case study to countries with similar situations, questions, and problems, such as other

SIDS countries. The validity of the research was optimized by bringing into context the rich, meaningful, and thick description from the participant interviews to convey the findings of the research (Creswell & Creswell, 2018). Tuffour (2017) distinguished potential threats to the validity of qualitative phenomenological research, including ambiguity, subjectivity, and the possibility of low generalizability to other similar phenomena.

Dependability

Dependability represents the researcher's ability to account for the consistent development of the central phenomenon, for both the communication with participants and the evolutionary design of the entire research process, which should be logical, traceable, and clearly documented (Tobin & Begley, 2004). The researcher used audit trails to judge the study's dependability and explain the clear justification for decisions and choices made pertaining to theoretical and methodological concerns during the investigative process (Koch, 1994). The study created a well-defined audit trail to alleviate the reporting of the research process by compiling raw data records, field and observation notes, transcripts, and a reflexive journal to help ensure the systemization, relation, and cross-referencing of data (Halpern, 1983).

Confirmability

Confirmability elucidates the neutrality of the data rather than the neutrality of the researcher, whereby the researcher's interpretations and conclusions originated from the data, with the researcher necessitated to show how they have been reached (Tobin & Begley, 2004).

Personal memos included in the audit trail, which is in the form of views and decisions made during the duration of the research process, are significant to ensure the confirmability of the study. Explanations for theoretical, methodological, and analytical decisions made throughout the study allow for others to understand the rationale of how and why those choices were made

(Koch, 1994).

Ethical Procedures

The Warwick Institute for Employment Research (2014) highlighted that ethical considerations in research tend to be misunderstood when a study commences, in some instances caused by the varying interpretations of ethical standards. In essence, the concept of ethics is readily visualized, though its application needs more academic support and well-established guidelines that frame the different research areas of focus that student practitioners embark on.

Several ethical considerations were considered for the research, and some were initially addressed in the Institutional Review Board (IRB) forms. Firstly, the approval was submitted to the NU IRB before the research could begin and had sections to address the recruitment, informed consent, debriefing, and interview guide for the study. Secondly, the research proposal identified the potential bias of the researcher in the positionality statement. Thirdly, the data storage and data protection measures were also addressed in the proposal.

Fourthly, the research also addressed the possible risks associated with the research and how they would be minimized. There is a low probability that these nonphysical harms would occur since the research would center upon the oral collection of data. The participants are secure in their occupation status and aware of their authority to disclose their participation in the research. The research was identified to possibly have the following risks to the participant due to the research, namely psychological effects, social harms, economic harms, legal harms, and dignitary harms. The research utilized the following safeguards that should minimize risks in the following ways:

• Assuring that the research design is valid;

• The principal investigator and researcher are qualified;

• Necessary infrastructure is in place to conduct the research and deal with any harmful

effects;

• Participant privacy and confidentiality are adequately protected;

• Participants are properly monitored;

• Criteria for participant enrollment and withdrawal are appropriate;

• A timely treatment plan is in place; and

• Prospective participants at undue risk of harm are excluded.

Fifthly, the research also ensured the confidentiality and privacy of the research participants. The researcher implemented safeguards to protect the anonymity of the participants throughout the research cycle. The research abided by the following safeguards to help protect the confidentiality and privacy of research participants, namely physical safeguards, administrative safeguards, technical safeguards, and research design safeguards. According to

Grinyer's (2002) article, for anonymity in some research contexts such as oral history,

97 participants may be eager to allow for their voices to be acknowledged, and in this case, consent to have their identity revealed alongside their contribution to the research. These participants need to be in control of the disclosure of their identity and their contribution.

For the research, not all interviewees addressed the interview questions posed the same way, and so there would be the possibility of incomplete interview data. For reference, see case 1 as explained by Resnik in What is Ethics in Research and Why is it Important? (Resnik, 2015).

The researcher did not fabricate or manufacture data for these incomplete interviews. Instead, the interviewees verified that the interview transcripts transcribed by the researcher conveyed their depiction of experiences and views and their understanding of policies and legislation. The participants would be notified of these discrepancies to allow for subsequent additions and corrections to be made. This feedback loop ensured that the data collected was not fabricated, falsified, or plagiarized in all steps of this research.

Table 4 summarizes a protocol for data management and safeguard and manage the data appropriately. The protocol covers the ethical and legal concerns related to the storing of data, specifically the management of hardcopy and softcopy forms of the data. The naming scheme of the research files and the utilized technology resources are also identified in the protocol.

Table 4

Data Management Protocol

Data Management Methods Ethical and Legal File Naming Technology Organization, Storage, and Considerations for Protocols Resources Management of Data Data Management Needed (Hard and Soft Copies)

Ensuring that no Master Folder titled Personal The organization of semi- classified material, "STUDENT NAME laptop. structured interview and determined by the thesis." document analysis data were interviewer and - Subfolder titled Backup iPad. easily navigable and interviewee, was "STUDENT NAME referenceable. collected during the Thesis Data." Personal interview. • Subfolder titled phone All electronic data (soft "Semi-Structured (iPhone). copies) was stored in a Ensuring that Interviews." password-protected confidentiality and • Subfolder titled LaCie computer. anonymity of "Document Mobile interviewees are Analysis." External All physical data (hard maintained throughout Hard Drive copies) was stored in a the research. Files of transcripts (4TB locked cabinet, in a locked from semi-structured Encrypted). room (home office), in an The risk of interviews were stored always locked security- interviewees in the "Semi- Visual/Audio alarmed home. experiencing Structured Interviews" Recording psychological harms, subfolder and were Device. A robust yet efficient File social harms, titled starting from - Sony UX Naming Protocol system economic harms, legal "Transcript_Interview Series was utilized that contained harms, dignitary ee1" to be followed by Digital all thesis-related data. harms, or other the subsequent Voice emotions due to the number, Recorder. All electronic data was context of the "Transcript_Interview - Voice stored and saved with bi- questions. ee2" and so forth. Memos on weekly updates on the LaCie iPhone. Mobile External Hard Drive, Ensuring that all - Audio or which is encrypted and electronic data was Video password-protected. stored on a password- Recording protected computer feature on All electronic data was (AES-128 Encryption) Zoom. stored and saved with bi- and in Apple iCloud, weekly updates on iCloud, a which supports two- password-protected cloud- factor authentication based storage medium. associated with the Apple ID.

Ethical and Legal File Naming Technology Organization, Storage, and Considerations for Protocols Resources Management of Data Data Management Needed (Hard and Soft Copies)

Ensuring that all Documents were Software. All physical data was stored physical data was stored in the - Adobe in folders with the same stored in a locked "Document Analysis" Systems. name as the electronic file filing cabinet located subfolder ordinally, - Microsoft with that data. This data was in a locked room alphabetically by the Office – clearly be labeled with the designated to keep the document title name, Excel and "as of – (date)" version of files. and arranged Word. that file. according to three - Zoom Ensuring that only the categories as follows: (For audio Principal Investigator - “National_Document and video and the Researcher had _A”, calls). access to the data “National_Document - FaceTime collected and analyzed _B”, etc; on iPhone for the study (limited - “Regional_Documen (For personnel t_A”, calls). authorization to access “Regional_Documen - NVivo 12 data). t_B”, etc; and (For - “International_Docu qualitative ment_A”, analysis). “International_Docu - Whatsapp ment_B”, etc. (For audio and video All physical data was calls). stored with the same name as the electronic file associated with that data. For example, “National_Document_ A”/ “Transcript_Interview ee1”.

Summary

The results of this study provide a framework for future researchers of Singapore or other Small Island Developing States (SIDS) and environmental policy formulation and implementation. The research has provided a strong foundation for establishing a best practice

100 guide for a country's formulation, integration, and implementation of environmental policy to help Singapore civil servants and researchers going forward. More importantly, the research can be replicated with other SIDS, specifically the 38 countries that are also members of the UN. The research serves as a valuable resource to expand on the adaptation-centric literature available in

SIDS countries. The gaps in current research are filled with the introduction of new methods of data presentation to highlight the findings. For the law and policy section, text and legal analysis were conducted on archival work on provisions and policy development.

Numbers work exactly like metaphors, whereby categorizing in counting or analogizing in metaphors is to select one feature or something, assert a likeness based on that feature, and ignore all other features (Stone, 2012). In the climate change agenda, there are wrongful- exclusion challenges that emerge because clear rules are needed to allow policymakers to determine thresholds to award benefits or penalties. The Singapore Government has to, from the numbers provided, decide who receives benefits, loans, contracts, budget increases, jobs, fines, and penalties, bearing in mind who has achieved targets and stayed well under the accepted levels.

Chapter Three reviewed the qualitative methodology used in this research study and highlighted the qualitative document analysis performed and the qualitative inquiry conducted in the form of interviews. Sixteen open-ended semi-structured interviews were conducted to explore the relationship between the participation and implementation of the environmental policy of Singapore through the experience and expert opinion of political practitioners, representatives of Singapore, and the UN. The investigation also looked at Singapore's participation and contribution to language that led to the adoption of these policy documents; and will determine and identify the impact of Singapore on international environmental policy for the

101 duration from 1992 to 2019. Data analysis and data presentation procedures were also considered in this chapter.

102

Chapter 4: Results

This qualitative study examines Singapore's impact as a Small Island Developing States

(SIDS) country on international environmental policy from 1992 to 2019. The research investigated how policy formulators and evaluators understand the influence of Singapore within a particular regional grouping and how the country translates the international to national environmental policy. The data collected includes the participants' demographic information, and the analysis was an in-depth look at the interviews from diagrams and words where applicable and extracted from policy documents. These national policies, regional agreements, international agreements, and standards are significant to the qualitative research as they added value through the analysis that demonstrated expected and emerging trends within the international environmental policy research.

Three forms of recording overcame any technical issues for the interviews: the Zoom recording tool for the main computer, the Voice Memos recording tool on an iPad, and the Sony

UX Series Digital Voice Recorder. These multiple recording methods ensured that there would be an additional backup if one device had technical issues. The study's 16 interviews yielded a total of 202 pages of transcript, with each interview ranging from 7 to 17 pages of rich data that was reviewed and analyzed. In addition to the interviews, policy documents such as reports, plans, and speeches related to SIDS countries, particularly Singapore, and environmental policy were collected and reviewed. Table 5 shows the study's overall data elements.

103

Table 5

Data Source Characteristics

Data Source Number of Items Type of Data Obtained

Interviews 16 Transcribed Text

Policy Documents 18 Text

Response Rate

The study's response rate is the total number of completed interviews divided by the total number of participants contacted or the number of all possible interviews (American Association for Public Opinion Research, 2011; Morton et al., 2012). The recruitment process for this research commenced through the transmitting of introductory recruitment emails, attached in

Appendix F, to prospective participants for the research interviews. Out of the 34 prospective participants identified, 16 participants responded and consented to participate in the research, for a response rate of 47.06%. The interviews were conducted from 2nd March 2021 until 7th June

2021.

Data Collection Procedure

The participants interviewed for this qualitative research were chosen based on Table 6, which illustrates the description of criteria for interview participants. Each participant fulfilled at least one of the identified criteria.

104

Table 6

Criteria for Research Participants

Description of Criteria for Interview Participants a) Individuals with experience in drafting and formulation of at least one international environmental treaty and/or national environmental policy from 1992 to 2019 at the United Nations or in the Singapore government. b) Individuals in high policymaking positions in the Singapore government. c) Individuals informed either academically or on the policy side with international environmental policy related to the UN.

The research initially intended on selecting five individuals from each period for the landmark international environmental policies: the United Nations Framework Convention on

Climate Change (UNFCCC)(1992b) from 1992 to 1998; the Kyoto Protocol (1998) from 1998 to

2015; and the Paris Agreement (2015) from 2015 to 2019, who met at least one criterion from

Table 6. For this research, 16 participants were recruited for the research since some participants were active in environmental policy with overlapping roles through the intended period. The participants were sufficient for reaching the saturation point in the qualitative research to answer the research questions, and the depth of the data emphasized more than the interview quantity

(Bowen, 2008; Burmeister & Aitken, 2012). Fusch and Ness (2015) explained that the data maintained rich and thick characteristics through thick quantity and several rich qualities whereby the information is layered, intricate, detailed, and nuanced.

One of the limitations of this research was the accessibility to individuals in high-level policymaking positions. However, some of the final participants recruited had general policymaking positions. As a result, the participants' level of knowledge was not compromised with the change in position since the information shared was from a policy expert's perspective.

105

The interviewees who were not in high-ranking positions were subject experts who advised and were influential in recommending environmental policy positions.

A recruitment process explained by Naderifar, Goli, and Ghaljaie (2017) was used for this research to identify a snowball sample whereby participants introduce additional names of prospective participants. This research also relied on extensive introductory emails through contacts and former colleagues for identifying the appropriate subjects for this study. This process of snowball sampling continued until data saturation was reached (Burns et al., 2012).

These linkages in recruitment shown in Table 7 illustrates the demographic composition of the interview participants arranged in the order of occurrence, based on the schedule availability of each participant. To explain, (*Con) means the researcher's primary contact, (*interviewee number) means the participant was introduced through snowball sampling by that interviewee, and where there is no reference, the researcher sent out the introductory recruitment email with no prior contact or relationship with this participant. Table 7 includes demographic information such as gender, nationality, years of experience in environmental policy, applicability to participation criteria, and whether they responded to the preliminary questions included in the introductory recruitment email.

106

Table 7

Demographic Composition of Interview Participants

Participant Gender Singaporean Years of Applicable Replied to Experience Participation Preliminary (Range) Criteria Questions for Interview 1 (*Con) M Y 15 (11-20) a, b, c Y 2 F Y 8 (1-10) a, c Y 3 (*Con) M Y 19 (11-20) a, b, c Y 4 (*2) M N 18 (11-20) c N 5 M Y 20 (11-20) a, b, c N 6 F Y 10 (1-10) c N 7 (*2) M N 25 (21-30) a, c N 8 (*6) M Y 5 (1-10) c N 9 (*1) F Y 2 (1-10) a, c N 10 (*6) M Y 4 (1-10) c N 11 (*Con) M Y 36 (31-40) a, b, c N 12 (*8) M Y 23 (21-30) b, c N 13 (*Con) F N 6 (1-10) a, c N 14 (*8) M Y 29 (21-30) a, c N 15 (*Con) F Y 26 (21-30) c N 16 M N 10 (1-10) c N

The study participant demographics portray an experienced group of individuals active in

Singapore or international environmental policy, averaging 16 years of experience. The number of men and women in this study represent 31.25% and 68.73% of the participants, respectively.

The percentage of Singaporean nationals represent 75% of the interview participants. As for the participant's years of experience, there are seven participants in the 1-10 year range, four participants in the 11-20 year range, four participants in the 21-30 year range, and one participant in the 31-40 year range.

Upon receipt of the introductory email, the prospective participants would have to reply with their consent to participate in the interviews for the research and answer the three questions related to the research and the additional question regarding how long they have been involved in

107 environmental policy. Of the 16 participants, only 3 followed this procedure entirely. However, all participants replied their intent to participate in the research and affirmed how many years of experience they had in environmental policy. Upon consent, the participants were sent a Zoom meeting link for the mutually agreed session that took place between 2nd March 2021 until 7th

June 2021. Two of the Zoom interviews were audio-only due to the unstable internet connection caused by inclement weather.

Each individual who participated in the open-ended semi-structured interviews was asked questions from the interview guide attached as Appendix D, depending on their participation criteria as identified in Table 6 and further guided by subset questions based on interviewee responses. These interviews were recorded through Zoom, with a few of them having the Zoom transcription function enabled so the session would be simultaneously recorded and transcribed.

However, the quality and precision of the Zoom transcription service were unsatisfactory, so the interviews had to be transcribed again. Three of the interviews were transcribed manually by the researcher, listening to the recorded Zoom video or audio and typed into a Microsoft Word document. The 13 interviews were transcribed through an online transcription service known as

Temi. After the initial transcription stage, the interview transcripts were reviewed for high-level errors in transcription for all interviews. Then when more clarification was needed, follow-up communication was made with the relevant interview participant so they could provide further explanation. High-level errors include misspelled or misheard words, where some were technical language understood by those in the policy area.

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Policy Document Data Analysis

In addition to data collected from policymakers and policy academics, international and

Singaporean environmental policies, follow-up reports and speeches were sourced from the

Singapore government-affiliated and United Nations-affiliated websites. Alternatively, the sources were requested during the interview process for the original version of dated sources that were not available in portable document format (PDF). National and international policy documents were analyzed to enlighten the Singapore government's consolidated environmental policies and register whether they have achieved their targets. Policies, follow-up reports, and speeches were further reviewed to assess the evolution of Singaporean environmental policy against an international context as a SIDS country.

The purpose of this data collection and analysis was to comprehend further the environmental policies of a country that is a SIDS member and how the country maneuvers the implementation of these policies on an international, regional and national level. What these policies assert and omit can reveal a lot about how the country addresses these critical environmental issues (Ragan & McMillan, 1989). Analyzing both policy documents and side-by- side interview transcripts ensures that the information provided was accurate; in other words, the information articulated in the interviews supports official documents and speeches. The different data sources allowed for the closing of gaps, consolidating and solidifying their thoughts while addressing the gaps in understanding of the interviewees. Several interviewees mentioned various titles of the policy documents as a point of reference for explaining what initiatives were introduced and what targets had been set or achieved. This indication of initiatives and targets also allowed for the confirmation of environmental areas that were priorities for Singapore

109 versus their commitment to other regional groupings to be part of a more prominent voice or the communicator of this voice.

The saturation point was reached for both the interviews and policy documents since the same evidence was presented for both data sources. For the interviews, the saturation point was reached after the 12th participant. The triangulation of three different facets, namely data, theory, and process, shaped the research. Analysis of the collected information depicts that the same results were acquired from the documents, while triangulating the data, the method, and the theory.

The inclusion criteria of the national policy documents analyzed for the research was that they were introduced or announced through speeches by high-ranking government officials at national events in Singapore or international platforms relevant to environmental policy. As an example, the Singapore Green Plan 2030 was unveiled through a media release, with subsequent social media posts by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee

Keat (Singapore Green Plan 2030, 2021; Ang & Mohan, 2021). More conventional practices are the announcement of reports at national and international meetings such as: the Singapore

Climate Action Plan (2016) at the World Cities Summit, Singapore International Water Week and CleanEnviro Summit Singapore event (Teng, 2016); as well as the Long-Term Low-

Emissions Development Strategy (LEDS) (2020) and the submission of Singapore First

Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) at the Singapore Parliament before being submitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)

(Strategy Group Singapore - Prime Minister's Office, 2020). A codebook for policy documents analyzed for this research identified the environmental policy themes within the international,

110 regional, and Singaporean sources and the description of the clauses, explanation of the targets, and the initiatives and institutions created as mentioned in these documents.

The policy analysis of 18 policy documents and accompanying speeches and press releases disclosed that Singapore had incorporated most of the areas and agendas called for in international and regional conventions and agreements into national policies. These are shown in

Figure 6, which underscored the areas covered in the landmark national environmental policy documents. The research evaluated the Singapore Green Plan (1992, 2010, and 2021), which has three versions, and charted the evolution of environmental policies for Singapore. Figure 6 has highlighted these policies, and resource conservation, clean technologies, and nature conservation are issues that have carried on from the first plan to the third plan. In the 2012 version, only 50% of environmental issues were carried forward from the first edition, with environmental education, environmental noise, and environmental technologies not incorporated in the following plan. In the 2021 version, only three out of the four new environmental issues had targets present in earlier versions of the Green Plan: conserving nature, resource conservation, waste management, water, international environmental relations, and clean air and climate change. Singapore's environmental priorities have shifted within the three iterations of the Green Plan. Currently, Singaporean environmental policy is more consolidated, especially in green economy and sustainable living.

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Figure 6

Environmental Issues Covered In Singapore's Green Plan (1992, 2006, 2021)

•Educational Education Singapore •Environmental Noise •Environmental Technologies Green Plan •Resource Conservation 1992 •Clean Technologies •Nature Conservation

•Conserving Nature (Related to Resource Conservation) •Clean Air and Climate Change (Related to Clean Singapore Technologies) Green Plan •Waste Management (Related to Resource Conservation) •Water 2012 •Public Health •International Environmental Relations

•City in Nature (Related to Conserving Nature and Resource Conservation) •Sustainable Living (Some aspects related to Waste Singapore Management, Resource Conservation, and Water. Other aspects are new) Green Plan •Energy Reset (Some aspects related to International Environmental Relations. Other aspects are new) 2030 •Green Economy (Some aspects are related to Clean Air and Climate Change. Other aspects are new) •Resilient Future

Key Description Blue Discontinued Issues Green New Issues Red New Issues with Elements of Older Issues

Singapore has also identified in the policy documents targets for the country that have been tracked and reported. For Singapore's Voluntary National Review Report to the 2018 UN

High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2018),

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152 goals were identified out of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and classified into three categories: target achieved, target in progress, and target indicator not applicable. The

Report elucidated that 59 targets were achieved or 38.82% of the targets; 68 targets were in progress or 44.73%, and 25 targets indicators were not applicable or 16.45%.

Another document, the Sustainable Singapore Blueprint (2015), explained the environmental initiatives undertaken in Singapore in the form of case studies and outlined targets that the country expects to achieve by 2030. These targets are in line with the international standards and obligations, and as an example, in the area of air quality, Singapore has already performed better than the 2030 target (Singapore Ministry of the Environment and Water

Resources, and Ministry of National Development, 2015). In conclusion, Singapore has been consistent in its environmental targets and goals.

International and regional obligations, targets, and progress in policy documents were examined for this research. The importance of partnerships emerged from national, regional, and international documents. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has run the Singapore Cooperation

Programme since 1992 in partnership with other SIDS or developing countries to: provide technical assistance and share their development experience (Singapore Ministry of the

Environment, 1992; Singapore Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, and Ministry of National Development, 2015; Interviewee 5 and 11). The SAMOA Pathway (2014) highlighted the importance of partnerships and formed a partnership framework where SIDS priorities are monitored and their pledges and commitments implemented.

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Interview Analysis

The collected data from the interviews were cleaned, and two types of issues were encountered in data collection that frequently results from missing data and errors in the data.

The transcripts, which had followed the checking for errors such as misheard or misspelled words, were disseminated to the respective participants to allow for them the opportunity to review the transcribed data for anomalies and incorrect information and correct such issues before coding and analysis. The checking for errors was an essential step because some of the words used during the interviews were specialized in nature pertaining to environmental policy and some interviewees mentioned names and locations that were unique to Singapore. The participants were also asked to clarify incomplete responses immediately following their interview and again after returning the reviewed transcripts. This information gathering loop ensures that these individuals were permitted to fill in the missing data and correct errors immediately after the data was collected or soon after the interviews, instead of allowing a more extended passage of time (Salkind, 2010). Data is best cleaned while the research was underway, especially as the recorded interviews were transcribed immediately following the interview and then cleaned immediately after this process was complete, rather than waiting until the completion of the data collection process when it is not as fresh in the participant and researcher's mind (Salkind, 2010).

Figure 7 depicts the word cloud for the 16 open-ended semi-structured interviews generated from NVivo. The results of the word cloud validate the themes that have been identified for the research. The words associated with the emergent themes are as follows:

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• Singapore mindset: international, regional, national, global, domestic, environmental,

developing, experience.

• Building on international reputation: role, policy, countries, SIDS, AOSIS, ASEAN.

• National institutional structure: government, private, sector, companies, formulation.

• Priority areas for environmental policy: policy, climate, change, energy, sustainability,

development, green, carbon, Paris.

Figure 7

Word Cloud for 16 Open-Ended Semi-Structured Interviews

The triangulation method applied to the data collected from the interviews and policy documents allowed for the development of a comprehensive understanding of phenomena

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(Patton, 1999). When applied to qualitative research, triangulation tests the validity or reinforces the conclusions through the convergence of information from different sources (Carter et al.,

2014).

Themes Derived From The Data Analysis

The researcher individually coded the semi-structured open-ended interview transcripts and policy documents and recorded the data in two separate codebooks. After coding the relevant sections of the data by hand using holistic and initial coding methods, the researcher compiled significant chunks of data in Microsoft Word and NVivo in order to see the emergent recurring themes. The individual transcripts were initially pre-coded, where meaningful quotes were identified as codable moments that warranted future attention (Saldaña, 2016). After the pre- coding process, preliminary codes were expounded from emerging themes. Those codes were then narrowed down to final codes and passages to be incorporated as themes and findings of the research. Miles, Huberman, and Saldaña (2020) defined data condensation as the refinement of data into pattern and theme codes, and this was done in the NVivo and Microsoft Word programs. These multiple levels of coding allowed for further insights into the data, including the understanding of the inner workings and domestic machinations of Singaporean environmental policy. The NVivo generated word cloud, as shown in Figure 7, helped the researcher classify the keywords into the four themes.

Triangulation was conducted on both the policy documents and the interviews to see if the same materials or themes emerged from these data sources. Themes derived from the interviews indicated a correlation with the policy documents because the interviewees mentioned the policies within these documents, showing that these guiding principles are kept in the

116 policymaker's mind when crafting the regional or international, or even the national policy processes in the country.

Theme 1: The Singaporean Mindset

The Singapore mindset theme captures the attributes of how the interviewees outlined the mentality of the Singaporean negotiators, policymakers, and other relevant stakeholders when framing their environmental policy positions. Interviewee 2 mentions the negotiators' mindset going into negotiations,

"Because we shouldn't emphasize on the divide, the differences between the rich and the

poor, developed and developing. In fact, we have to find ways to bring everyone to the

table so that we can move together, leave no one behind. And the worst thing that you

would get if you couldn't meet your targets for whatever reason is support and help to

implement those rules and obligations" [Interviewee 2].

Subordinate Theme 1: Situation of Singapore on the Development Spectrum. Within the UN system, countries are classified under one of the three categories of developed economies, economies in transition, and developing economies (United Nations, 2014). This designation implies that an economic component determines the development status of the countries. According to the UN, there is no established convention for classifying developed or developing countries or areas (UN Statistical Division, 2003). According to United Nations

Statistical Division's (UNSD) M49 standards (1999), the designations of developed and developing countries are intended for statistical convenience and do not necessarily express a judgment about the stage reached by a particular country or area in the development process. The discrepancy in the definition for developing and developed countries in the UN system has

117 allowed countries to determine how they would like to be designated. These are predominantly based on sovereign motives to maintain leverage for Singapore, though in environmental policy, especially with the Kyoto Protocol, the country considered a developing country meant that it did not have mandatory obligations under the Protocol. The interviewees mentioned Singapore as positioned either as a developed or developing country.

Some interviewees identified Singapore as a developed country and comfortable in the developed country space,

"It's really understanding that as a developed small country, we are criticized because

per capita carbon is high; a lot of this has to do with our oil refinery" [Interviewee 3].

"Singapore is definitely more welcome in a developed country room ... that has a higher

proportion of developed countries because Singapore is seen as having a good idea of

what it's doing - its developed economy, it kind of has built a good reputation for being

quite neutral. But within the SIDS itself, its position has always been very controversial"

[Interviewee 10].

Some interviewees mentioned the blurred line between developed and developing countries,

"Some have criticized that we do not provide climate finance, despite our status as a

fairly rich advanced developing country, or even a developed country" [Interviewee 2].

"I think it's harder to convince people that we are still a developing country, but yet we

still are. At least under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. But I think

Singapore increasingly recognizes that that differentiating line is being blurred. So when

I mean differentiation, I would specifically pull up the principle of "common but

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differentiated responsibilities" that exists, both in the convention, as well as I believe the

Kyoto Protocol" [Interviewee 2].

While some interviewees used logic to support their postulation, such as Singapore is a

Small State that is developing, others mentioned that Singapore only identified with the developing countries because they were exempt from obligations such as those entrenched in the

Kyoto Protocol,

"I think Singapore really is in line with other countries, but one thing for sure though

Singapore is a developing country in the UNFCCC process, but if you look from a GDP

point of view, Singapore is a developed country" [Interviewee 4].

"We increasingly see that in the environmental or climate discussions while we are still

under the UN categorization ... a developing country, but in actual fact, we're highly

urbanized. We face certain challenges that the other developing countries don't face. We

face issues that developed countries face" [Interviewee 9].

"Some rather informal coalitions that pop up time after time as a representative of the

developing world, which the way Singapore puts it is that it is able to put itself as a

developing country because it has only experienced one generation as a developed

economy. And therefore, there might still be more room to grow, so it is in this sense

developing. But at the same time, it is very much pro-developed country position in many

issues" [Interviewee 10].

"Many developing countries believe that Singapore is not aligned with developing

country needs and wants. Some would say it's pretending to be a developing country in

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order to avoid the most stringent environmental regulations in, say the Kyoto Protocol"

[Interviewee 10].

"But that's to my knowledge of what's sort of the concern around climate finance. And

also, the status as a developed country also has something to do with it right, so

Singapore is still considered a developing country that's our sovereign right to decide

that we are a developing country and so that in itself has implications on whether we

ought to give finance and other things" [Interviewee 2].

Subordinate Theme 2: The Historical Environmental Challenges to Singapore.

Some interviewees provided a background of Singapore's challenges since independence and how they played a part in guiding national environmental policy. These issues include water security, environmental public health, and land management. Table 8 exhibits the comments on the historical environmental challenges to Singapore. The handling of these challenges has shown resilience to the point where environmental public health is no longer an issue and does not feature in later Singaporean environmental policy documents.

Table 8

Comments on the Historical Environmental Challenges to Singapore

Participant Quotes

Water Security "So water was obviously a very important issue because historically, you know our island does not have enough water. And even during the British colonial times, water was actually imported from Malaysia. So when the country became independent, I think this was an issue that needed to have sufficient focus. So during the period of the early decades of Singapore's independence, a lot of focus on increasing the amount of water catchment, more reservoirs, and so on" [Interviewee 1].

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Environmental "Environmental public health I think the early days of Singapore was like Public Health any other developing country or should we even say less developed country. ...Things like sewage systems ...Things like littering, waste disposal was still a problem, so that leads to diseases and so on which would have been a major issue in the early days of Singapore in the 1960s and going through maybe into the early 1970s. And so there was naturally a lot of focus on that in trying to solve that problem. And I must say that was overwhelmingly successful in reducing the rate of diseases and also deaths caused by public health problems" [Interviewee 1]. Land "... for Singapore, because historically we always have had a land Management management issue and then our waste, so Singapore incinerates our waste, and then we dump all these residues in a manmade island called Pulau Semakau" [Interviewee 6].

Subordinate Theme 3: Direction from High Ranking Government Representatives.

The Singaporean mindset for policymaking is based on the direction of high-ranking government representatives such as the current and former Prime Minister, Lee Hsien Loong and Lee Kuan

Yew, respectively, and the speeches from other officials such as Foreign Minister Vivian

Balakrishnan. The interviewees mentioned the importance of the direction of these government officials, even touching on the cultural aspect of their words through symbols, myth, and language. This importance will be explained further in "Finding One: Culture was a significant factor in the interpretation of Singapore's environmental policy" in Chapter 5.

Based on their observations, the level of importance of an issue depends on the government's representation at the event. In other words, a stronger message is sent when it comes from the Prime Minister rather than a Ministry's Department Director.

"I think you know Singapore enough to know that when the PM says something, we are

all supposed to follow. And especially on this issue when the young people support it, and

even old people like me can see the logic of it. I don't think that anyone is saying the PM

is doing something stupid. ... I afford to say that in the Lee Kuan Yew time, and until

121 today it's very top-down government-centric, and the government defines what is green, what is not green" [Interviewee 3].

"... it really started because I think two years ago, the Prime Minister announced in his national day rally speech that Singapore was facing an existential threat in terms of climate change. And then, he talked about the dangers of sea-level rise and how countries in this region would be very impacted. And then there was a 100 billion dollar figure that was thrown out as set-aside to deal with the problem of climate change" [Interviewee 9].

Change (IMCCC) chaired by Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean facilitates a Whole-of-

Government policy planning framework. In certain countries, climate or environmental policy is essentially driven by the environment ministry. Such ministries may encounter challenges in urging other counterpart ministries to align positions to address climate change" [Interviewee 5].

"I think that if you can see the Singapore statements in Paris and the activity of

Singapore Ministers at the Paris negotiations, various not just the big signing off but the subsequent rules and standards set. I think Singapore has moved from a very passive or perhaps like defensive issue to really active, and I think this is, you mention SIDS, but it's much more than that" [Interviewee 3].

"It was only from 2016; there was this document called the Climate Action Plan. That was incidentally, so depending on who announces it right, I think you can see how high

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the importance. So at the time, it was our then President Tony Tan Keng Yam, who had

announced the Climate Action Plan at the World City Summit in 2016, and it was

important because this was the first time I have seen mitigation as one document and

adaptation as another document as part of a set of climate action plans" [Interviewee 2].

"...the article of the speech by our Foreign Minister on small states. So I think it's worth

reading because it really encapsulates Singapore's approach to supporting

multilateralism. As a small country, we need to rely on established international norms

and agreed multilateral rules to enable us to survive and thrive. And climate change

policy is essentially part of the multilateral framework we are working to strengthen"

[Interviewee 5].

One interviewee brought up how government representative's statements can also highlight significant up-and-coming areas such as those relating to marine issues,

"And then for Singapore, in terms of what the government was saying, Prime Minister

Lee Hsien Loong's National Day Rally where he mentioned that we're going to focus on

all these like coastal adaptation programs. ... Our Minister for National Development,

Desmond Lee, also posted something on his Facebook regarding some marine programs

that are coming up" [Interviewee 6].

Theme 2: National Institutional Structure.

The national institutional structure theme looks at the domestic procedures that handle

Singapore's environmental polcy and identifies the domestic stakeholders and their characteristics. In support of the interviews, most of the national policy documents identified in

Table 3 described the domestic procedures that are in place.

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Subordinate Theme 1: Domestic Procedures and Approaches. The national institutional structure of the formulation, evaluation, and implementation of environmental policy was explained by most interviewees. These domestic procedures and structures are also introduced in the policy documents that have been analyzed for this research. Table 9 displays the domestic procedures and approaches as explained by the interview participants.

Table 9

Comments on the Domestic Procedures and Approaches

Participant Quotes

Inter-Ministerial "... the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Climate Change (IMCCC) within Committee on Singapore, and that is chaired by the Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean, and Climate Change / concurrently he is the Coordinating Minister for National Security as well. Whole-of- And so I think it highlights how important climate change is, and the Government IMCCC actually reports to the Prime Minister of course. And then all of Approach the agencies and the ministries that are involved in the IMCCC also very important" [Interviewee 2].

"On a day to day basis, we aim to bring the agencies together, find synergies, and where necessary, we push the boundaries to secure an optimal Whole-of-Government approach to addressing climate change. Having an Inter-Ministerial Committee on Climate Change (IMCCC) chaired by a Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean facilitates a Whole-of- Government policy planning framework" [Interviewee 5].

"And I think that's quite common amongst all the countries who are parties to the Paris Agreement that the MFA will take the lead, but of course, there was an inter-ministerial set-up domestically" [Interviewee 9]. Renaming of "Of course, the Ministry of Environment and Water, now they've MEWR to MSE rebranded to become the Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment, they are also involved. ...And I think the hierarchy of importance is maybe before the rebranding of the Ministry of Sustainability and Environment. You could say that it was maybe quite clear, there was an emphasis on the economy right, but I think the messaging has softened. A little bit in the last year or so, I see more emphasis on a just transition, I see more emphasis on - yes, our economies and bottom, but we have to recover in a green way" [Interviewee 2].

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"And that is also reflected, if you've been following, the Ministry of Environment and Water Resources has now been renamed as the Ministry of Sustainability and Environment, so MSE. I think that renaming actually, it's a reflection of the new emphasis on sustainability and a renewed emphasis on the environment" [Interviewee 9].

"And in terms of like sustainability, last August I believe it was the name of the previous, the former Ministry for the Environment was renamed as Ministry for Sustainability and the Environment (MSE). So it does show that the government is putting sustainability as one of the top agenda" [Interviewee 15]. Singapore "... we have the Singapore Cooperation Programme where we provide Cooperation technical assistance to countries right. And I think I don't know the Programme number for Southeast Asia, but we do have regular meetings where you (SCP) invite officials for technical cooperation programs" [Interviewee 6].

"...we have a small technical cooperation program in Singapore run by MFA (Ministry of Foreign Affairs). We spend about $60 million a year, basically doing training courses for other countries. And we give priority to members of SIDS and AOSIS. So if they want to come to Singapore to attend a course, we invite them, sometimes we customize the training course for them because of their specific need" [Interviewee 11]. Parliamentary "So in total, if I'm not wrong, we had 12 members of parliament involved Process - Passing in this, so it was such a huge motion. ... It was a balanced agenda-setting a Motion process that made the motion possible in the way it was worded. It didn't sort of paying homage to just what the ministries have done, but also position it in such a way that there were demands made, there were expectations to be set" [Interviewee 8].

Subordinate Theme 2: Singapore Stakeholders in Environmental Policy and Their

Characteristics. Different levels of civil society undertake environmental policy formulation, negotiation, implementation, and evaluation. They are responsible for the postulating and conveying national policy to the relevant authorities, be it the international fora or the

Singaporean public. The interviewees mentioned the characteristics of the relevant stakeholders in Singaporean environmental policy. The identified stakeholders and their characteristics are shown in Table 10. Besides these stakeholders, the interviewees also recognized the role of think tanks in the environmental fora,

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"And so that meant that all countries are different and countries have a slightly different

way to do this, but people in their universities have been asked to do more, people in

think tanks have been asked to do more. In fact, many countries I've seen, not just

Singapore ... have been thinking explicitly about how do we create more of a kind of civil

society of expertise to be able to help us answer these (capacity) questions. Now that's a

much broader sociological and political question" [Interviewee 7].

Table 10

Comments on the Characteristics of Singapore Stakeholders

Stakeholders Participant Quotes

Government "I have seen so far; the Singapore delegates are the most well-prepared Negotiators delegates in the climate change negotiation process. So maybe they have capacity and resources to do so, that's a different story, but they are well prepared" [Interviewee 4].

"... it's a matter of like, people are just doing their job and for them to even be part of the ministry, they're of a certain caliber. So I trust that they know what they're doing and with their kind of position and networks that they have, like, I trust that they have had, you know, intense discussion with whoever the key stakeholders are" [Interviewee 6].

"But then, you know, when you attend a conference, attend some of the official meetings in Singapore... they seem so distant. One is because they're busy or two, you know they can't really be seen as chummy with NGOs. So I think they also have to behave in a certain way in conferences, but outside of that, they're easy people to talk to. And I think that's the beauty of the Singapore ecosystem in a way, because it's so small and people just know each other, like outside of that you can always talk to each other" [Interviewee 6]. MNCs, "So this is how businesses, I would say, have an influence and need to be Businesses consulted. It does not mean that they can veto; in no way is that the case. We and Singapore do listen a lot to companies that are badly or significantly affected. Because Based then it is important to see how we can help them make the transition" Companies [Interviewee 1].

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"So, I guess you could say that the private sector, multinational companies were certainly leading in pursuing, like, Environmental Social Governance (ESG), corporate sustainability reporting. Some even have pledged carbon- neutral neutrality" [Interviewee 2].

"So as the private sector of Singapore government-owned practices of Singapore digests how to do their business, this will help Singapore policymaking that will move a sort of constraint on it" [Interviewee 3]. The public/ "The young in Singapore take environment and climate change quite The youth instinctively as a duty, and I think that's good. They will push the governments to do it. Luckily Singapore government was willing to push also, so in a way, everyone is moving in the same direction" [Interviewee 3].

Theme 3: Building of International Reputation

The building of Singapore's reputation, whether on the national, regional, or international stage, is based on the simple notion that the founding father, the country's first Prime Minister, used to propagate, as described by Interviewee 11 when he stated that,

"The first point is a point that my first Prime Minister, Lee Kuan Yew, used to make, that

as a small country, our challenge is to be relevant and useful to the world" [Interviewee

11].

Subordinate Theme 1: The Need for Singapore to be Ahead. Most interviewees mentioned that Singapore, in order to be "relevant and useful" or, in other words, to build their international reputation, had to be a country of firsts in the areas of having policies in place and achieving targets before other countries. Table 11 expresses the quotes where there is a need for

Singapore to be ahead.

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Table 11

Comments on the Need for Singapore to be Ahead

Participant Quotes

Country "The only thing that's Singapore can do to make the whole international body of Firsts start to look at Singapore is when we do all the firsts, meaning the first to achieve zero carbon emissions, the first to rely on zero carbon emissions generation of power. And water, for instance, that we do recycle our water 100 percent. We must be the first in order for the whole entire international people to look at us and say, we have to take Singapore as an example now" [Interviewee 14].

"So when you achieve the first, you will sort of attract some attention because Singapore is also an international financial center" [Interviewee 15]. Ahead on "I think the reason if there is one where why that may not register so strongly is Having only because most of the time we are ahead. I think domestically, we try to move Policies in ahead and would have those things in place before the treaties come down into Place causing this change to come about from our side. ...If an ASEAN initiative is moving in a certain direction, then yea Singapore would have to move ahead knowing that this is coming. At least in time if not ahead of the actual thing happening" [Interviewee 1].

"And there are many, many new things that the Singapore government is taking a little bit ahead compared to the others; I would say other members within the ASEAN countries, I can say that in some cases they are a little bit pioneer and it may be in Singapore as a small country may be a benefit in terms of doing that compared to the bigger country, like say Malaysia or Indonesia, which has multiple stakeholders, or there are multiple places that they may not have been able to do a lot as they want, like the small city-state country like Singapore" [Interviewee 4].

Subordinate Theme 2: Participation in the Negotiating Blocs. Interviewees mentioned the negotiating blocs that Singapore affiliates itself with when deliberating on environmental policies. As an example, for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), an interviewee mentioned that the member states successfully worked together when there was a common interest in areas such as transboundary haze and vehicle pollution standards, though they were handled more bilaterally between Singapore, as well as Indonesia and Malaysia

128 respectively (Interviewee 1). Table 12 shows the comments by interview participants about the negotiating blocs that Singapore works with in the international environmental fora.

Table 12

Comments on the Negotiating Blocs That Singapore Associates With

Participant Quotes

Alliance of Small "So over time as members see the value of having joint statements as Island States islands in different forums and AOSIS has expanded the scope. But (AOSIS) really, its mandate is just to form consensus positions. When one country doesn't agree to a position, AOSIS can't speak on behalf of it. So on itself, it has to look at well what's the alternative? Each country negotiating on their own is very difficult, I mean coming together and we have 40 members who are like 20% of the UN, it's a huge number of countries. And so when you can speak on behalf of AOSIS, it carries far more weight than we could have at any individual intervention" [Interviewee 13]. Small Island "For SIDS grouping itself, of course, because Singapore is a part of that, Developing States our UNFCCC participation is always collectively with the SIDS (SIDS) countries, so they are if you like our community group that we will kind of work together in the bigger UN community to try and make sure that SIDS countries' interests are taken into account. There are of course commonalities between interests between ourselves and the other SIDS countries" [Interviewee 1].

"I don't mean that the Small Island Developing States doesn't have a voice, you do have even in the Kyoto Protocol, but in the Kyoto Protocol era, the Protocol was mainly driven by few selected developed countries. And developing countries, the Small Island Developing States may not have a bigger role to play, and though they are part of the Paris Agreement. ...And so the Paris Agreement really gave a space where many of the voiceless countries or voiceless bloc do have a say to talk and also contribute to the international process" [Interviewee 4]. Both Small Island "Well, I think for Singapore we are one of the members of SIDS right, Developing States the Alliance of Small Island States, so we participate in, and it serves as (SIDS) & our negotiating caucus at the UN and certainly at the UNFCCC. And I Alliance of Small think we chose to do so, the SIDS, it's because we could identify with the Island States challenges and the vulnerabilities of our small developing countries. As (AOSIS) such, the SIDS platform was an important platform that suits us in terms of articulating our constraints, our vulnerabilities and then for us to have a bigger voice. ... And I think we also do play our part in AOSIS. Not

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just to use that as a negotiating platform, but we also see how we can play our part to help build capacity with the other Small Island States as well. So we do have quite a holistic and fairly extensive technical cooperation program for developing countries, including the SIDS" [Interviewee 5].

"I think the more interesting one is how Singapore fits in the SIDS, AOSIS bloc. Now SIDS and AOSIS, one of their main common factors are that they are the most vulnerable countries because of rising sea levels. And they have been the bloc of countries that have pushed the hardest for the 1.5-degree target, because it's a matter of, it's all relative because 2 degrees, yes it will stabilize the world, the global climate, but you can save more people if you limit the global temperature to 1.5 rather than 2 degrees, but you can, of course, save even more with 1.3 degrees rather than 1.5. But there was a political decision that AOSIS/SIDS took all the way since at least Copenhagen, and they have managed to get it inscribed in the Paris Agreement" [Interviewee 10]. Both Group of 77 "So we do participate in these two developing country blocks, which is and China & G77 and China and the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS). ... Alliance of Small Because I think we still identify with this grouping when it comes to Island States obligations. And the obligations have rules around them, especially when (AOSIS) it comes to the Paris Agreement, because, like I said earlier, I think this boils down to the fact that it's okay to set obligations at a particular level right for ambition, for effectiveness. ... And the G77 and China, and AOSIS I think were two blocs of countries where maybe AOSIS could have been more stringent, and they wanted more ambition, from the developed countries, but I think ultimately they came closer to compromise" [Interviewee 2]. Association of "Regionally, I think it is a bit challenging because all countries, even in South East Asian regional blocs, are sovereign. And so I think it's fairly difficult for one Nations (ASEAN) country to tell another country to do something. Although, say in ASEAN, we have like declarations, but these are soft law policy, soft law right. So it's very hard for those declarations and targets like energy emissions intensity or energy intensity to be enforced strongly" [Interviewee 2].

"But moving back to environmental policy, there was a declaration on plastic pollution adopted in Bangkok in 2019... It's just something that countries come together, say they want to do it, but whether they actually do anything is a separate issue. So ASEAN's track record on this is pretty bad, to be honest, it's not a very successful regional bloc in terms of environmental affairs" [Interviewee 10].

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Additional "We need to reinforce the UNFCCC process with regional and bilateral Frameworks cooperation efforts. As such, international frameworks like the G20, ASEM, and ASEAN, and other multilateral frameworks like ICAO and IMO all have important roles to play in supporting global climate action" [Interviewee 5].

Subordinate Theme 3: The Role of Singapore in Negotiations. Most interviewees addressed the role of Singapore in negotiations. Table 13 illustrates the role that Singapore plays during negotiations. Almost all interviewees answered based on their personal experiences and the information they were privy to.

Table 13

Comments on the Role of Singapore in Negotiations

Participant Quotes

Coordinator "We were involved in climate change negotiations, very inevitably Singapore would end up in as one of the coordinators, one of those in the key, you know the sort of discussions to try to reach a settlement on difficult issues" [Interviewee 1].

"And so he will coordinate all the views, and then be the one to like announce it during the plenary meetings or smaller contact group sessions" [Interviewee 2]. Mediator/ "Singapore is able to help to kind of mediate between the interests of the Facilitator/ developing countries and the developed countries because we are kind of in Bridge builder between the two worlds" [Interviewee 1].

"So facilitator in a sense, in some of the working groups or the meeting sessions, we have our negotiators co-facilitating or chairing them, or even the minister, I think there was one year, it was Minister of Norway, and Minister Masagos was co-chairing one of the sessions" [Interviewee 6].

"We can be relevant and useful to the world by being a facilitator, by being a bridge-builder, by being a neutral chairman, because we are small, we are friendly to all, we are acceptable to all, we are non-threatening, very often the big countries will ask us, the small country, to be the neutral chairman or to be the facilitator" [Interviewee 11].

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Convener "... but at the global level Singapore is quite recognized as convener role and be able to get some key ideas to the floor and so far that I know that in many of these climate debates where they have their bilateral or ministerial round tables and in most of the ministerial round tables, the Singapore Minister really plays a strong role and they play or chairing of the ministerial round table discussion" [Interviewee 4]. Honest Broker/ "I think this term that is sometimes accorded to Singapore - honest broker or Punch above punching above our weight is very interesting... Even though you might our weight think that we're such a small player but I think it was really important for us to play that role of bridging because otherwise, we would not be where we are today; we would be at square one" [Interviewee 2].

"I think first Singapore as an international player it's commonly said that we punch above our weight" [Interviewee 3]. Host of "We also see how we can play our part to help build capacity with the other Singapore Small Island States as well. So we do have quite a holistic and fairly Cooperation extensive technical cooperation program for developing countries, including Programme the SIDS" [Interviewee 5]. (SCP) - Capacity "... we have the Singapore Cooperation Programme where we provide Building technical assistance to countries right. And I think I don't know the number for Southeast Asia, but we do have regular meetings where you invite officials for technical cooperation programs" [Interviewee 6].

Leadership "As such, the SIDS platform was an important platform that suits us in terms role / "Big of articulating our constraints, our vulnerabilities, and then for us to have a Brother" / bigger voice" [Interviewee 5]. Constructive role "I think aside from that, Singapore's role in international policies is also one that tries to be like the big brother, maybe for Southeast Asia, which is not necessarily like at the UN conference itself" [Interviewee 6].

"... frankly leadership in two different ways, regional leadership in ASEAN like the kind of Southeast Asia bloc, but also leadership in what I would call the small, but highly developed countries in the kind of green growth area, like the kind of Korea, Denmark, Singapore, the kind of leaders in the small country space that can be seen as forward-looking in certain ways" [Interviewee 7].

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"... nonetheless, we still had to be in those meetings, and we tried to see where the strategic imperatives were for our neighboring countries, and largely our bottom line would always be that any new regulation or any kind of imposed restrictions must be a balance between sustainable development as well as preservation of the environment" [Interviewee 9].

"When we try to do something, especially in the ideas space, because ideas, my ideas are free. And if people are happy to take our ideas and we are happy that those ideas create win-win and we will benefit with the win-win right" [Interviewee 12].

"I think, working with each other, supporting each other, and then it meant that we could have much more impact, we're covered, if we can't make a meeting someone else can step in. ... they (Singapore) have people to put in a bunch of different tracks, so I think they boost the overall capacity of AOSIS in a really valuable way" [Interviewee 13].

"Actually, in ASEAN, we are always looked up to by our neighbors as one of the starters of everything. So we started off with nothing. ... nothing we have nothing to refer to. We brought in established sustainable policies or standards" [Interviewee 14]. Outsized role "So both outside globally and within ASEAN, Singapore has at the present time this kind of outsized role. So if I take the broad idea of economic and diplomatic outsizedness, and let's say how about the environment space" [Interviewee 3].

Theme 4: Priority Areas for Environmental Policies

The research analyzed 18 policy documents and 16 interviews. The interviewees were asked about their observations on what they thought were the most prominent environmental policies, whether these changed from previous priority areas, or whether they should address other issues. Table 14 demonstrates the important environmental policies as expressed by the participants. An analysis of Table 14 shows that the top priority areas are climate change (10), green finance (5), sustainability/sustainable development (5), air pollution/haze (4), biodiversity

(4), and land-related issues (4).

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Table 14

Important Environmental Policies

Part. Policies/ Policy Areas # 1 Energy Environmental Water Air Pollution Climate Conservation Public Health Change 2 Singapore Green Plan 2030 Public Sector Taking the Sustainable Climate (City in Nature/ Energy Lead on Environmental Living (Working Action Plan Reset / Energy Resilience) Sustainability (PSTLES) with schools) 3 Climate Change Haze Green Finance 4 Climate Change Climate Justice Adaptation Mitigation Biodiversity 5 Climate Change Adaptation Mitigation Decarbonize Singapore Green (Dengue) electricity (4 Plan 2030 Supply Switches) (Electric Vehicle Strategy/ Green Finance) 6 Green Finance Resource Marine Issues (Carbon Tax) Sustainability Act (Waste Management Land Management) 7 Transportation Formulation of Understanding drivers of emissions Decarbonize national climate and solutions to reducing emissions electricity (4 Supply strategies from the land sector Switches) 8 Sustainability Paris Accord Sovereignty Transboundary Climate (Food and Water) ratification Haze Change 9 Circular Building towards a Climate change Water Security Plastic Economy green economy (Climate Pollution (Sustainability) Green Finance Action) 10 Climate Change Plastic Pollution Biodiversity 11 Climate Crisis Biodiversity Crisis Ocean/Marine Crisis 12 Sustainability Climate Change Importance of (Cities) Strategy Innovation 13 Climate Change Sustainable Ocean/Marine Biodiversity Land Development Degradation 14 Education Encourage Enforcement (Emergence of (Monetary (Tied up with youth groups) initiatives) what they want such as land for development with conditions) 15 Green Building - Singapore Green Air Quality Decarbonization Technology Solar Green Mark Building Master Plan 16 The intersection Bunker Fuels Broader Views of Trade-Related (Shipping and of Issues with Aviation) Differentiation Climate Processes in the Climate Process

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All of these policy areas are also represented within the 18 policy documents analyzed for the research. National, regional and international documents prioritized climate change, green finance, sustainable development, waste management, mitigation, adaptation, technology transfer, capacity building and partnerships. Regional documents added to these policy areas science and technology, tourism resources, natural and environmental disasters, coastal and marine resources, and biodiversity. International policy documents supplemented flexible market mechanisms, transparency framework, support for developing countries, and the global stocktake of climate action effectiveness.

Findings

The data analysis process uncovered four themes, which led to five significant findings that contribute to answering the research questions. According to Hancock and Algozzine

(2017), a case study researcher synthesizes the many disparate portions of information collected during the research process to identify and report meaningful findings. After the synthesization process, the initial research questions were revisited to consider whether the questions needed to be streamlined or whether the information was sufficient to support answering the questions

(Hancock and Algozzine, 2017).

The study revealed five important findings of how Singapore considers environmental policy, and this develops how formulators and evaluators of environmental policy can understand the influence of a country that belongs to a regional grouping. These findings are:

• Finding #1: Culture was a significant factor in the interpretation of Singapore's environmental policy;

• Finding #2: The stakeholder's thinking is important and relates back to social constructivism and a focus on psychology;

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• Finding #3: Singapore's Whole-of-Government approach to environmental policy engages but does not rely on the private sector;

• Finding #4: Singapore maintains international leverage by the membership to regional organizations and by their development status; and

• Finding #5: Membership and role of Singapore in Small Island Developing States (SIDS) is often confused with membership to Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS).

When combined with the information explained in the themes, the findings provide an insightful background to Singaporean environmental policy and, consequently, the answering of the research questions for this study. These findings will be discussed in Chapter 5 within the context of the literature review and the theoretical framework of social constructivism and policy feedback theory.

Summary

This chapter analyzed data from two sources, namely interviews and policy documents.

The policy documents were accessed online and through one of the interview participants since that particular document was not available in PDF format. Sixteen interviews were conducted with participants that fulfilled at least one of the criteria for recruitment for this research, as shown in Table 5. The data was cleaned and then underwent two coding cycles to condense and organize the data. The second cycle resulted in the emergence of codes, patterns, and themes, which were subsequently analyzed and clustered together. Methods triangulation was used in the research between the interview information, and complemented by the information from the policy documents. Four themes and five findings emerged from the analysis of the data.

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Four themes and their respective subordinate themes emerged from the data analysis, namely (1) The Singaporean Mindset, with the subordinate themes: situation of Singapore on the development spectrum, the historical environmental challenges to Singapore, and direction from high ranking government representatives; (2) National Institutional Structure, with the subordinate themes: domestic procedure and approach, and Singapore stakeholders in environmental policy and their characteristics; (3) Building of International Reputation, with the subordinate themes: the need for Singapore to be ahead, participation in negotiating blocs, and the role of Singapore in negotiations; and (4) Priority Areas for Environmental Policies.

The findings of the study are as follows: (1) Culture was embedded in the interpretations of Singapore's environmental policy; (2) The stakeholder's thinking is important and relates back to social constructivism and a focus on psychology; (3) Singapore's Whole-of-Government approach to environmental policy engages but does not rely on the private sector; (4) Singapore maintains international leverage by the membership to regional organizations; (5) Membership and role of SIDS is often confused with membership to AOSIS.

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Chapter 5: Recommendations and Conclusions

Chapter 5 presents a discussion of the findings, which leads to the conclusions from the research. A further discussion of the findings ensues based on the theoretical framework, answers for the research questions, potential impact on policy and recommendations for future research. The chapter also outlines the problem statement, research questions, purpose statement, qualitative methodology, and research design of the study.

Summary of the Study

The susceptibility of Small Island Developing States (SIDS) countries, as well as their overall implementation of the adaptation initiatives and the international environmental policy agreements, take into consideration a regional grouping's effective policy strategy (Klöck &

Nunn, 2019; Robinson, 2019; Robinson & Gilfillan, 2017). Eccleston and March (2010) define environmental policy as the commitment of a government or organization to the policy devices such as laws and regulations regarding environmental issues. Countries that are affected by climate change use international platforms under the United Nations, such as the United Nations

General Assembly (UNGA), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and the

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of the Parties (UNFCCC

- COP) meetings as a means to address their quandaries of continued existence such as rising sea levels and unjust conduct in policy guidance and implementation (IPCC, 2014).

The research used Singapore as a case study to investigate how UN Member States

(UNMS) adjust and apply international environmental policy in their own countries' political landscape from 1992 to 2019. The change over time of participation trends, policy documents,

138 and outcomes emphasis through the policy documents and the open-ended semi-structured interviews ensured the examination of a broad, complex set of factors encompassing a central phenomenon (Creswell & Creswell, 2018).

The purpose of this qualitative research is to examine whether there is a correlation between the participation of Singapore as a SIDS country through the various UN platforms and frameworks and the effective implementation of international environmental policy. This correlation was investigated through desk-based research of policy documents and the personal experience and expert opinions of political practitioners, representatives of Singapore and the

UN, and other stakeholders in Singapore's environmental policy formulation and implementation.

Research Questions

The research entails the articulation of one overall research question, that is guided by three sub-questions as follows: Is there a relationship between the participation and lobbying of

Singapore as a Small Island Developing States (SIDS) country in resolutions, agreements, and regional outcomes at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), the United Nations

Environment Programme (UNEP) and United Nations Framework Convention on Climate

Change Conference of the Parties (UNFCCC - COP) meetings; and the national policy inclusion and implementation of international environmental policy?

1. "What domestic procedures related to environmental law and policy are employed by

Singapore to ensure the incorporation of international environmental policy formulation,

inclusion, implementation, compliance and evaluation into national environmental policy"?

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2. "How does Singapore utilize its prominence as a Small Island Developing States (SIDS)

country to influence/contribute to the overall formulation and implementation of international

environmental policy? Has this influence changed over time"?

3. "Has Singapore managed to take fellow Small Island Developing States (SIDS) countries'

opinions into account and enhance these vulnerable countries' voice in the international

policy formulation fora"?

Literature Review

The literature review on environmental policy found a significant amount of existing research to be adaptation-centric (Robinson, 2017a; Robinson, 2018; Saxena et al., 2018).

Therefore, this study would contribute to research regarding policy negotiation, formulation, and implementation of individual countries, in this case, Singapore and its transition from international to national environmental policy. Few studies have included Singapore as a SIDS in environmental policy and though not SIDS-related, the research by Ng, Lwin, and Pang (2017), through thematic and document analysis, postulated a theoretical framework for examining

Singapore's climate change policies.

The research has identified literature on SIDS, explicitly looking at: adaptation mainstreaming and limits (Robinson, 2017a; Robinson, 2018; Saxena et al., 2018); the role of regional organizations (Robinson, 2017a; Robinson & Dornan, 2017); and organizational effectiveness, national participation, and commitments (Atteridge et al., 2020; Betzold et al.,

2012; Ebi et al., 2006; Mackay et al., 2019; Ng et al., 2017; Ourbak & Magnan, 2018; Robinson,

2017b; Sowa et al., 2004). This body of literature has guided the determination of themes that

140 have emerged from analyzing the data collected, important in the subsequent findings and conclusions reached to answer the research questions.

Methodology and Method

The case study research method for this research is interpretive (Stake, 2005; Miles &

Huberman, 2020; Denzin, 2001) and inductive to comprehend personal experiences (Stake,

1995) and develop theory from case study data (Glaser & Strauss, 1967; Strauss & Corbin,

1998). This method was consistent with van Manen's (1990) suggestion that: hermeneutic phenomenology demonstrated the lived experiences of research subjects and the interpretation of their involvement, as well as Martin Heidegger's (1962) interpretive process which emphasized the essential nature of being and time (temporality) as centered around the individual to exemplify common meanings and practices as described by the interviewees (Diekelmann,

2001). This interpretive technique was applied when the information analysis is interchangeable between the whole represented by the situation and the parts represented by what the Singapore government ministries are doing.

Qualitative interpretive/hermeneutic phenomenological analysis of a collection of 18 policy documents and 16 open-ended semi-structured interviews was undertaken to investigate the information and opinions gathered from members of the Singapore-related policymaking and research community to comprehend how their participation changed the culture of policy negotiation, formulation, and implementation in environmental policy. Recruitment of the interviewees was based on the criteria shown in Table 5. The researcher used three recruitment methods, namely through reaching out to distinguished prospective participants, the researcher's direct personal contacts, and snowball sampling recruitment strategy.

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The research applied inclusion criteria for the national policy documents to be analyzed.

They had to be introduced or announced through speeches by high-ranking government officials at national events in Singapore or international platforms relevant to environmental policy. For example: the Singapore Climate Action Plan (2016) was announced at the World Cities Summit,

Singapore International Water Week, and CleanEnviro Summit Singapore event (Teng, 2016); and the Long-Term Low-Emissions Development Strategy (LEDS) (2020), as well as the submission of Singapore First Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) at the Singapore

Parliament before being submitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate

Change (UNFCCC) (Strategy Group Singapore - Prime Minister's Office, 2020).

The interview transcripts and policy documents were coded separately and culminated in two codebooks. The relevant data sections were manually coded, and NVivo and Microsoft

Word analyzed the applicable data to identify recurring themes using holistic methods.

Following the pre-coding process, preliminary codes were developed from emerging themes that were subsequently narrowed down to final codes and passages, including themes, sub-themes, and findings for the research. This generic coding method allowed the researcher to meticulously and methodologically analyze the participants' responses without distorting the core meaning of their answers (Alase, 2016).

The theoretical framework is based on two theories that may not be appropriate when applied together. So that is why conscious layering was used when looking at the data through the lenses of social constructivism and policy feedback theory. Social constructivism in phenomenological studies is where participants describe their experiences (Moustakas, 1994) through open-ended semi-structured interviews. Social constructivism allows for the interpretation of Singapore's environmental policy through a narrative lens, as clarified in the

142 interviews with the Singaporean and UN representatives, practitioners, and experts. Policy feedback theory enables the investigation of Singapore's environmental policy from a domestic, regional and international perspective, particularly how the policies serve as institutions that control policy change (Mettler, 2016). While interviewees did mention the significance of a feedback loop, the theoretical framework for this research applies social constructivism to the interviews. In contrast, policy feedback theory is utilized in the policy documents.

Summary of Results

The development of themes resulted from an inductive approach to analyzing the information collected from the interviews and policy documents. The researcher manually conducted the initial coding process, and the process of triangulation was utilized to improve the accuracy of the research (Neuman, 2011). Triangulation was performed to test the study's validity and strengthened the conclusions through the convergence of data gathered from multiple sources

(Carter et al., 2014). The themes identified culminated from the researcher's application of social constructivism and policy feedback theory to the data collected for this study.

A word cloud from the interview transcripts was generated through the Nvivo program, where the resultant keywords conveniently coincided with the emergent themes. Additionally, the themes that emerged from the triangulation of the lived experiences of the interview participants and the policy documents are as follows:

1. The Singapore mindset with the subthemes: situation of Singapore on the development

spectrum, the historical environmental challenges to Singapore, and the direction from high

ranking government representatives;

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2. National institutional structure with the subthemes: the domestic procedure and approach,

and Singapore stakeholders in environmental policy and their characteristics;

3. Building of international reputation with the subthemes: the need for Singapore to be ahead,

the participation in negotiating blocs, and the role of Singapore in negotiations; and

4. Priority areas for environmental policies.

Discussions and Conclusions

This section presents the conclusions drawn from the findings and the results of the data analysis. The findings further elaborate on their initial iteration in Chapter 4. The research questions for this research were also considered, and the information collected from the policy documents and interviews were used to answer these questions.

Discussion of Findings

The study uncovered five essential findings of how Singapore considers environmental policy, developing how formulators and evaluators of environmental policy can understand the influence of a country that belongs to a regional grouping. These align with how Hancock and

Algozzine (2017) understood how a case study researcher reaches these findings. These findings are:

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Finding #1: Culture was a significant factor in the interpretation of Singapore's environmental policy;

Finding #2: The stakeholder's thinking is important and relates back to social constructivism and a focus on psychology;

Finding #3: Singapore's Whole-of-Government approach to environmental policy engages but does not rely on the private sector;

Finding #4: Singapore maintains international leverage by the membership to regional organizations and by their development status; and

Finding #5: Membership and role of Singapore in Small Island Developing States (SIDS) is often confused with membership to Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS).

Finding One: Culture was a significant factor in the interpretation of Singapore's environmental policy. The collective analysis of the policy documents and interview transcripts followed a hermeneutic approach to addressing environmental policy in Singapore, whether it be from the national, regional, or international perspective.

The research found a use of culture through symbolism, myth, and language in the interviewees' interpretations and Singapore's national policy documents and high-ranking government representatives speeches. This finding aligns with how Richard and Morse (2013) postulate hermeneutic phenomenologists address a phenomenon in their interpretations.

Interviewee 12 specifically mentioned culture and the cultural aspects of environmental diplomacy, while "the norms, the vision, and the targets" are very close to cultural but end up at an unoperationalized abstract level,

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"Culture is always good because it is about food, talk, friendship, but it's something that

doesn't monetize to something concrete. Whereas infrastructure, I think is like an up and

coming category of diplomacy and somewhere in between" [Interviewee 12].

"I thought the environment, the moment you talk about the monetary part, it does seem to

be closer to the non-trade, non-tariff barriers type in trade diplomacy. ... But when you

talk about the "isms" and the things to do good, et cetera, what are small practices at the

cultural aspects, it takes the form closer to cultural diplomacy. I think the issue comes

with, just taking an analogy for environment diplomacy, there are two aspects of the

coin" [Interviewee 12].

Interviewee 12 also stated the symbolic motivations that Singapore has to adhere to sustainability without jeopardizing economic competitiveness,

"We need to do our part, so anything within Singapore's control we try to but there are

tough trade-offs, even though we are not going to emit, we are not going to save the

world just by not emitting. But we are committed because of symbolic reasons and to also

try to ID it and think of how do we be economically viable or profitable yet still

sustainable. I think the core problem, touching on the sustainability side more and

leaving the government side, is how does a country adhere to sustainability and concrete

goals without losing economic competitiveness" [Interviewee 12]?

Interviewee 12 further commented about the CEO as a champion and this individual's importance in ensuring that sustainability is profitable,

"What I realized is that most of the time for sustainability at the corporate level, people

do it because there's a champion. Champion, as in the CEO or the chairman, has made a

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commitment; you are talking about like your body shop or the dad who passed away like

the founder or no animal testing. And in the 90s, it was making a huge statement, and

naturally, it gained traction. But when the champion moves on, as in move to another

company, then you might lose the main force in a certain sense if it's not institutionalized.

The larger problem is that whether a champion or institutionalized model like

organization DNA, I think the fundamental issue is not many have found the formula

whereby being sustainable is profitable" [Interviewee 12].

The language aspect was earlier addressed in Theme 1: The Singapore Mindset,

Subordinate Theme 3: Direction from High Ranking Government Representatives, where interviewees mentioned the influence of speeches from high ranking government officials such as the Prime Ministers and the Foreign Minister, and how the level of representation also plays a role in sending a stronger message for that policy. In addition, Interviewee 1 expressed the importance of sustainability in the language of national environmental policy,

"I think sustainability has become much more core. So even in the period that I've been

involved, I think that it has become the language of everybody rather than just the language

of the Environment Ministry. So sustainability, climate change problems, and worries and

considerations are now very much widespread. And everybody has to think about

sustainability when they formulate their policies. So that's in government" [Interviewee 1].

Finding Two: The stakeholder's thinking is important and relates back to social constructivism and a focus on psychology. The analysis of policy language showed a focus on the involvement of policymakers and policy implementers in ensuring that environmental policy is constantly and continuously within SIDS through the Singapore Cooperation Programme, or

147 within Singapore. As mentioned by some interviewees, the main priority is domestic, but there are exceptions to this where the international attention leads to a change in national policy,

"I'll probably make one exception, and that is that there are times when there are very

complex subjects, and in these very complex subjects, sometimes you do need

international treaties to drive domestic awareness. And then, in turn, to drive domestic

policymaking. And the one case I would say is climate change" [Interviewee 1].

The analysis of policy documents through the lens of policy feedback theory revealed the institutional role of policies and their influence in the political sphere (Mettler, 2016; Orren &

Skowronek, 2004; and Pierson, 2007). In support of this institutional aspect, Interviewee 10 explained the legal aspect of Singapore being a "dualist" country where "most UN policy doesn't apply until the Singapore government decides it wants to apply",

"... dualist country where international law does not become applicable domestically until

the government passes through its legislature, a law saying that this international law is

now part of domestic law" [Interviewee 10].

However, discussion with several interviewees demonstrated that the knowledge they possessed was based on interactions with one another and their personal experience in relation to policymaking. This basis was seen in their reference to each other as being well-informed and experienced in that specific area of expertise. Relating this back to social constructivism, the language relates to social theory as posited by Lave and Wenger (1991) where society's practical knowledge is situated in practitioner relations, their practice, and the social organization and political economy of communities of practice.

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Finding Three: Singapore's Whole-of-Government Approach to Environmental

Policy Engages But Does Not Rely on the Private Sector. The Inter-Ministerial Committee on

Climate Change (IMCCC) augments a Whole-of-Government approach in coordinating climate change policies and includes members from different government ministries (Singapore National

Climate Change Secretariat - Prime Minister's Office, 2020). While the private sector is consulted with on policies that relate to them, with regards to affecting their operation or in which they have relevant expertise, they only provide recommendations and often have to adapt to government policies,

"... private businesses and international corporations are stakeholders that we have to

take into account. Do they directly participate in this policymaking? No. But they would

be a constituency that we might have to consult with. So, for example, when we did our

carbon tax, we would have to kind of ask the companies, we tell them we are going to do

this, we are going to do it in this way, what would be your feedback? ...So this is how

businesses, I would say, have an influence and need to be consulted. It does not mean

that they can veto; in no way is that the case. We do listen a lot to companies that are

badly or significantly affected. Because then it is important to see how we can help them

make the transition" [Interviewee 1].

Nevertheless, certain aspects of environmental policy whereby the business sector had implemented targets even before they were government mandates, such as submitting periodic sustainability reports and introducing green bonds by a company.

"I would say yes, but not just at the public sector level or the government level; I would,

in fact, see a lot more adoption happening at the private sector. Let me explain. So, for

instance, in sustainability reports, we do see an increase in the use of, I would say,

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sustainability frameworks that are aligned very much with the UNDP (United Nations

Development Programme) goals. And I think this is where it got very interesting where

through the UN SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals), the frameworks, in fact, were

adopted wholesale by many of the corporate players. And this was how it mainstreams

right, the thinking that UN sustainability goals are in fact aligned with what Singapore

wants to do. So this is where I saw the shift" [Interviewee 8].

"So when you achieve the first, you will sort of attract some attention because Singapore

is also an international financial center" [Interviewee 15].

The introduction of the parliamentary motion in parliament showed that the People's

Action Party (PAP) was listening to the youth. The motion includes significant recommendations that the PAP's youth wing, called Young PAP (YP), has outlined in the position paper entitled

"Singapore: A Green Hub" pertaining to sustainability matters in the country (Young PAP,

2020). However, interviewees mentioned that it might be a political move to garner more support for future elections since the PAP garnered the lowest vote differential in the last elections,

"So I will say that there was a shift in 2011 in terms of how the PAP sees itself as what

kind of government it wants to be. And I think this is fundamentally also sort of shaped by

the near electoral loss. Really, near electoral loss means 59% of the popular vote, which

to many countries that is clearly true. ... so it was sort of like a sombering wake-up call.

What kind of government do the people want today? And I think that was not just an

environmental shift but a social one as well. There was an increase in social assistance,

social welfare, increase in the way public administration has been done with regards to

socially-related issues" [Interviewee 8].

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Finding Four: Singapore Maintains International Leverage by Membership to

Regional Organizations and by their Development Status. Singapore has used its membership to regional organizations such as Small Island Developing States (SIDS), Association of

Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), G77 and China, and Alliance of Small Island States

(AOSIS), to ensure that in representing the regional grouping's voice, the country can elevate its status in the international fora. Additionally, interviewees stated that the sizeable gross domestic product (GDP) that the country has, as well as the trust it has garnered with years of its role as a mediator and facilitator, has allowed for more international leverage in discussions,

"As a voice for SIDS, I think Singapore, because of our profile thus we do have some

leverages with the other parties because of our active diplomacy. ... And in the positions

when Singapore is asked to be a mediator, then, of course, Singapore can also help to

make sure the SIDS position is properly represented and if it can be incorporated in the

consensus then to incorporate it in consensus" [Interviewee 1].

"Singapore has a lot more international leverage than its size would imply. You would

think a small city-state would have almost zero power globally just in terms of a sort of

equal weighting of population or something like that. But by virtue of a few things, it's

frankly relatively large GDP. I mean, this is in no particular order, by the way, and just

sort of particularly relatively large GDP relative to the population size, relative to having

a very good global reputation for being a country that has kind of an organized policy

perspective in order" [Interviewee 7].

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Finding Five: Membership and Role of Singapore in Small Island Developing States

(SIDS) is Often Confused with Membership to Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS). The perspectives of the interviewee participants differed with regards to the role of Singapore in the

Small Island Developing States (SIDS) group and the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) group. The AOSIS platform lobbies and negotiates for SIDS while serving as an ad hoc climate change voice within the UN system (Aginam, 2011). Some participants expressed the significance of AOSIS over SIDS, though they both belong in the same framework, with the only difference being that not all SIDS are members of AOSIS. There seemed to be a distinction drawn between both groups relating to their development status.

Discussion of Conclusions

The conclusions below are divided into two sections, namely the extent to which the research questions have been answered and conclusions derived from the research's themes and findings.

Conclusions Related to the Research Questions

The nexus of the themes that were derived from the data analysis are based on the research question and sub-questions presented for this current study. This section examines the sub-questions individually before addressing the overarching question since they contribute to answering the main question (Creswell & Guetterman, 2019).

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The following sub-questions guided the inquiry:

1. "What domestic procedures related to environmental law and policy are employed by

Singapore to ensure the incorporation of international environmental policy formulation,

inclusion, implementation, compliance and evaluation into national environmental policy"?

Conclusion from findings that answer Sub-question 1: Domestic procedures in

Singapore. There are national institutional structures in place in Singapore, reflected both in the interviews and the policy documents. These domestic procedures are: the Inter-Ministerial

Committee on Climate Change and the Whole-of-Government approach; the renaming of the

Ministry of Environment and Water Resources (MEWR) to the Ministry of Sustainability and

Environment (MSE), which emphasized a shift from water to sustainability; the Singapore

Cooperation Programme (SCP) administered under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; and the passing of a parliamentary motion.

Interviewees also identified the stakeholders in environmental policy and their characteristics, namely government representatives, multinational corporations, businesses,

Singapore-based companies; the public; the youth; and think tanks. Interviewee 9 mentioned the need for a feedback loop within the environmental policy system for Singapore.

2. "How does Singapore utilize its prominence as a Small Island Developing States (SIDS)

country to influence/contribute to the overall formulation and implementation of

international environmental policy? Has this influence changed over time"?

Conclusion from findings that answer Sub-question 2: Singapore's influence as a

SIDS in international environmental policy formulation and implementation. The

153 prominence of Singapore in global environmental policy formulation and implementation comes from the country's respectable reputation. Interviewees deduced that this was due to the country's need to be ahead of the environmental trend of being a country of firsts and ahead on having forward-looking policies. Also, Singapore's participation in the different negotiating blocs of

G77 and China, the Alliance of Small Island State (AOSIS), which represented most of the SIDS countries, and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) allowed for Singapore to reach its prominent potential.

Therefore, in relation to the first part of the sub-question, Singapore's distinction is not only initiated by its membership to SIDS but due to its active diplomacy. Furthermore, the interviews also portrayed a willingness to contribute in the form of ideas and technical capacity and remain an active player in the negotiation space.

The second part of the sub-question was not answered specifically anywhere in the interviews or the policy documents. However, since the interviewees mentioned the effective and continuous roles of Singapore in negotiations as a: coordinator; mediator, facilitator, bridge- builder; convener; honest broker; host of Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP); leadership role, "big brother," constructive role; and outsized role, both in the past and present international environmental landscape, this means that the country's influence has at least remained constant through the study's period of 1992 to 2019. It could be argued through the data collected from the interviews that the influence has increased since Singapore has hosted the SCP since 1992 and more recently came up with the term Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) in the negotiations leading up to the adoption of the Paris Agreement.

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3. "Has Singapore managed to take fellow Small Island Developing States (SIDS) countries'

opinions into account and enhance these vulnerable countries' voice in the international

policy formulation fora"?

Conclusion from findings that answer Sub-question 3: Singapore's role in enhancing the SIDS voice. There are a few situations where Singapore has taken SIDS views into account and helped strengthen their voice, and this included, as mentioned in the interviews, that the continuation of the Singapore Cooperation Programme as a way that Singapore could enhance vulnerable countries voice in international policy formulation,

"We regularly bring people from this grouping to Singapore through the Singapore

Cooperation Programme, ... we share ideas with them, study visits, exchanging views and

so on. ...And so this is our way of taking fellow SIDS countries' opinions into account,

whether they have a direct effect in enhancing these vulnerable countries' voice in

international policy formulation. I think it really is up to the countries themselves and

what they take away from the Friends of Small States group, having a voice through this

group as well" [Interviewee 2].

The roles that Singapore plays in negotiations, as mentioned in answering Sub-question

2, are also important as the responsibilities of coordinator, mediator, facilitator, bridge builder, convener, leader, "big brother" all imply that the country intensifies the vulnerable countries voices in carrying them out.

Is there a relationship between the participation and lobbying of Singapore as a Small Island

Developing States (SIDS) country in resolutions, agreements, and regional outcomes at the

United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), the United Nations Environment Programme

155

(UNEP), and United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of the

Parties (UNFCCC - COP) meetings; and the national policy inclusion and implementation of international environmental policy?

Conclusion from findings that answer the main research question. The answering of

Sub-questions 1, 2, and 3 above have led to the inference that there is a relationship between

Singapore's participation as a SIDS country in the United Nations platforms and the inclusion and implementation of international environmental policy.

Conclusions Derived from the Themes and Findings

Conclusion #1: The significance of negotiators and their negotiation strategies is important for Singapore to build their supporting influence in the international fora. The lack of recognition for the SIDS grouping from the interviewees besides those in government and some academia showed how Singapore prioritizes domestic matters in environmental policy.

Those in government and academia acknowledged that as a SIDS, Singapore uses the AOSIS platform as a subsidiary negotiating bloc to the group of 77 and China bloc. However, some interviewees deflected discussion on SIDS and mentioned that the regional grouping is an insufficient platform to support Singapore's influence. Though this statement is due to the interviewee not being privy to the negotiation process. This conclusion was derived from

Finding 5: Membership and Role of Singapore in Small Island Developing States (SIDS) is

Often Confused with Membership to Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS).

Conclusion #2: The participants incorporated their personal experiences into their interview responses. All the interview participants had a conscious or unconscious inclination towards their personal experiences and their former or current role in environmental policy. For

156 example, those that were involved in the negotiation process, whether from government or from academia mentioned the "value of the UN process" and "working as a global community" to partake in this multilateral framework to address the "global commons issue" of climate change.

One participant touched on the private sector players influencing the private sector on policy implementation, and this was reinforced in his answer to another question regarding the role of the private sector in policy formulation and implementation (Interviewee 8). This observation is based on his involvement in ensuring that the corporate sector is aligned UN-related goals. The inclusion of personal experiences in the participant's answers abides by Michael Crotty's (1998) assumptions of criticism of constructivism where individuals create meanings as they engage with their environment in a social manner through interaction with others in the community, and comprehend this based on their historical and social perspectives which usually is engrained in culture. Therefore, the application of social constructivism to this research has played an important part in coming to this conclusion.

Conclusion #3: The themes that emerged from the data analysis strongly aligned with the literature review. An additional conclusion that was reached aside from answering the research questions is in the form of the emergence of themes. The literature review for this research identified three themes: adaptation mainstreaming and limits, the role of regional organizations and organizational effectiveness, national participation, and commitments. The themes that came out of the data analysis are the Singapore mindset, national institutional structure, building of international reputation, and priority areas for environmental policies.

Therefore, the themes that came out of the data analysis strongly aligned with the literature review.

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Discussion in Relation to the Theoretical Framework

The theoretical framework employed for this research ensured that the results of the data analysis were sufficient to answer the research questions posed for the study. The study used two theories that run through different domains, the social constructivism lens applied to the open- ended semi-structured interviews and the policy feedback theory used to analyze policy documents. The segregation of the two theories and their respective data source pairings were essential since the prospective combination of the two theoretical frameworks earlier in the research process demonstrated an incompatibility.

The concepts surrounding national, regional, and international environmental policy are socially constructed, and the research focused on the role of a specific elite, particularly the policymakers and relevant stakeholders in Singaporean environmental policy, in structuring and promoting particular ideas in their pursuit of creating an international norm. Bachelard's (1984) notion that "nothing proceeds from itself. Nothing is given, All is constructed" forms the basis of this study, confirmed by the understanding of policy areas that were constructed. As an example, the policy area of sustainability was developed by the interviewees, with some of the participants recognizing its importance; acknowledging what opportunities it creates; how their initiatives align with international sustainability frameworks such as UNDP and UN SDGs,

"So both in terms of domestic environmental policy and also international, I think more

people being interested in sustainability in Singapore just means that they would demand

more regular engagement" [Interviewee 2].

"We also see sustainability as opportunities to create new jobs and harness green growth

as a competitive advantage. Apart from supporting local companies in their sustainability

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transition, we also aim to develop Singapore as a carbon service and green finance hub

and pursue new investments that are among the best-in-class in carbon and energy

efficiency, including low-carbon hydrogen and CCUS" [Interviewee 5].

"And then the Resource Sustainability Act I think for Singapore because historically we

always have had a land management issue and then our waste, so Singapore incinerates

our waste, and then we dump all these residues in a manmade island called Pulau

Semakau (Semakau Island)" [Interviewee 6].

"So, for instance, in sustainability reports, we do see an increase in the use of, I would

say, sustainability frameworks that are aligned very much with the UNDP (United

Nations Development Programme) goals. And I think this is where it got very interesting

where through the UN SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals), the frameworks, in fact,

were adopted wholesale by many of the corporate players. And this was how it

mainstreams right, the thinking that UN sustainability goals are in fact aligned with what

Singapore wants to do" [Interviewee 8].

Policy feedback theory commenced through the Schattschneiderian (1935) view that adopted policies restructure their procedures and then influence how the original policy influences the primary problem definition and if the policy should persist to exist. Paul Pierson (1993, 2000,

2004) has an interpretation of policy feedback that is rooted in historical institutionalism. The policyscape introduced the role of policies as institutions, that once inaugurated, contribute significantly in the political sphere, determining interests and motivations, organize social and economic relationships, and encourage while constraining political change (Mettler, 2016; Orren

& Skowronek, 2004; and Pierson, 2007). For example, the consequence of international

159 environmental policies has led to the change in approach for how the Singapore government has dealt with its policy process to discuss environmental policy. This change led to establishing the

Inter-Ministerial Committee on Climate Change (IMCCC) in 2007 that is strengthened by a

Whole-of-Government approach to synchronize climate change policies (Singapore National

Climate Change Secretariat - Prime Minister's Office, 2020). Several interviews also corroborated the information in the policy documents about the domestic procedures in place within Singapore, which facilitated the response to research sub-question 1.

Limitations

Most limitations were identified in the earlier sections of this research, though several materialized as the study progressed. One limitation was the scope for recruiting individuals in high-level policymaking positions as prescribed in Table 5. The advent of COVID-19 and the travel restrictions that ensued meant that there were constraints on the outreach, particularly in

Singapore. The researcher had to rely on initial email correspondence, contacts in the policy space, and snowball sampling. Discussion with the interviewees revealed that there were equally adequate prospective participants in lower-level policymaking positions but had similar exposure to Singaporean environmental policy. Some of these individuals were recruited for the interviews.

Another limitation was the uncertainty of the participation of and responses from the interviews. There were initial doubts that the research would not reach the assigned 15 to 20 interviews because the researcher had no control over the interviewee's consent or refusal to participate and their intentions behind their enlistment in the study.

160

The depth of knowledge was also another shortcoming during the interviews. The initially suspected limitation of whether uniformity in the technical and subject-related language used by all participants would be the same did not materialize since they were familiar with the environmental and scientific vernacular. What did emerge was the reluctance of some participants to express their views about government or non-government stakeholders as they were concerned that their identities would be compromised. The researcher had assured them of the anonymous nature of the study though she had no control of the personal worries of the interviewees at all times during the data collection process.

Throughout this research, the only disruptive event was the COVID-19 pandemic, though that only affected the in-person accessibility to the prospective interviewees. The study overcame this by conducting the interviews through Zoom and Whatsapp. This transitions into another limitation which was the unreliability of these technological software and internet connectivity.

While the intention was to have all 16 interviews held on Zoom video, a few were held via

Whatsapp voice and audio call, as well as Zoom audio-only.

Potential Impact on Policy

The research contributes to the literature on how policy formulators and evaluators understand the influence of a country within a particular regional grouping and how this country's adherence to international environmental policy translates to national-level policy. On

Singapore, the emergence of themes within policy documents and interviews of relevant stakeholders allows for these policy formulators and evaluators to observe the historical and future trends of the country's national environmental policy. Future policy could be informed through the experiences of national and international policymaking experts.

161

Singapore is a dualist country when it comes to the application of international law into domestic law and policy where this is essential as international law does not come into effect domestically until the government passes through its legislature a law stating that this international legislation is now a part of domestic law (Cassese, 1992). This legal understanding means that Singaporean policymakers and those at the UN or countries and organizations that enter into an agreement with the country, have to convince the government to adopt these laws.

As an example, Interviewee 10 mentioned that to persuade the Singapore government to adopt more international laws, they had to be "tucked into" another agreement. The Singapore and

European Union (EU) free trade agreement (FTA) had a clause saying that both parties had to adhere to the principles of the Kyoto Protocol (Interviewee 10). This carrot-stick approach meant that for the free trade agreement to be realized, Singapore would have to sign up and adhere to international environmental regulations. Singapore has an inclination towards economic development so the progression of environmental policy should be tied to economic agreements and policies to allow for compelling government support.

The role of Singapore in the international policymaking fora was present in their hosting of SIDS and multilateral programs, as well as the country's negotiators function as a coordinator, mediator, facilitator, bridge builder, convener, honest broker, leader, and "big brother".

Singapore advances the development of customary international law related to environmental policy through these platforms and their representative's roles. The Singapore Cooperation

Programme serves as a stage for Singapore to share its best practices and cater to other developing countries capacity building deficiencies (Singapore Ministry of the Environment and

Water Resources, 2019b).

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The research underlines the country's need to stay "useful and relevant", and Singapore can continue to do this by ensuring that their representatives are present and active in all relevant international forums. Representation not only from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but from other relevant ministries and think tanks should be given the opportunity to partake in the international policymaking platforms such as those within the UN umbrella or ASEAN. This broadening of representation would allow for more stakeholders to be knowledgeable about international and domestic environmental policy, not just restricting them to their own job scope.

The inclusion of stakeholders such as businesses, think tanks, and youth groups in discussions or forums would lead to lifting the stigma that government makes policy and all parties follow. The presence of these groups would ensure that the environmental policy outcomes consider the emotional and intellectual support of as many community groups as possible. Government agencies still play a primary role, but the communication and advocacy aspect heightens the provision of all stakeholders with up-to-date information on these policies.

Advancing the previous potential impact on policy, a mechanism should be established where all relevant Singaporean environmental policy stakeholders are brought together to implement new policies and evaluate current ones. This platform would ensure that the policy formulators, implementors and evaluators are aware of what initiatives are already present and allow for example the public sector or government to learn from the safeguards and measures implemented by the corporate or private stakeholders. Having Singaporean policymakers kept abreast of or involved in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reports means that the national policies are backed by scientific evidence. All stakeholders would also have a shared understanding of the policies and they would not be subject to the privy of just a select group of individuals.

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The exposure of students to environmental initiatives in school allows for fostering green attitudes from a young age. This nurturing situation would secure that future public, practitioners, leaders, and policymakers are aware of these initiatives from international outreach measures such as the news and social media and Singapore's educational curriculum and the awareness initiatives introduced by the teachers.

The research showed that Singaporean environmental policy needed the convergence of three streams as postulated by Kingdon (1984) for the change of public policy to occur. The coming together of the problem stream, policy stream, and political stream was observed in the passing of the parliamentary motion that addressed sustainability matters in Singapore and was introduced by the youth wing of the People's Action Party (PAP). One interviewee mentioned the role of Greta Thunberg in inspiring the public, specifically the youth, and how her international presence percolated into the national environmental scene (Interviewee 3).

The interviewees expressed areas where Singaporean environmental policy could improve, and some were not yet present in the environmental policy documents. These include: the transparency and accountability in national reporting; the need for open discussions and evaluation with relevant stakeholders; adapt the national policy to a scientific basis; make environmental impact assessments (EIA) mandatory; and the possibility of involving the local community in the EIA process similar to Taiwan's current practice. There was also an emphasis on the link between education and poverty, that relates to Maslow's hierarchy of needs which postulates that an individual's fundamental needs should be met before they can move on to a need on a higher tier (Maslow, 1943, 1954; McCloed, 2018).

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Recommendations for Future Research

Recommendation #1: Replicate the same study for other SIDS countries. Refer to

Appendix C for the list of SIDS countries. There would be a different national political landscape, and accessibility to national environmental policy stakeholders may be a limitation.

Another limitation occurred during the present study, namely the transparency of information provided by the interviewees.

Recommendation #2: Undertake the same study but through a different theoretical lens, such as social identity theory. Another theory that could be applied would be game theory if the research focused on negotiations, though it would be quantitative research.

Recommendation #3: Trace Singapore's environmental framework from the perspectives of different stakeholders in the country (government, academia, private sector and business) since its independence in 1965. The present study looked at the period of 1992 to 2019.

However, policy documents and some interviewees addressed the challenges that helped shape the Singaporean mindset towards environmental policy that originated well before 1992.

Recommendation #4: Conduct an empirical study for the environmental target achievements of SIDS countries pledges and commitments. The research method could be quantitative or qualitative, or mixed methods, depending on what research questions guide the research.

Recommendation #5: A comparative study of three SIDS countries from each region,

Caribbean, Pacific, and AIS (refer to Appendix C for country list) and their achievement of environmental targets. The research could look at the targets and achievements entrenched

165 within the UN environmental framework to ensure consistency in the data. For example, the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Nationally Determined

Contributions (NDCs).

Recommendation #6: A further prospective study could see an empirical study on

Singapore's policies and how they compare in implementation to what is prescribed in, for example, the international documents such as ISO 14090 (2019) or the Paris Agreement (2015), regional documents such as the SAMOA Pathway (2014), and national documents such as the

Singapore Green Plan (1992, 2006, 2021).

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Part Five: Appendices

Appendix A: Geographic World Map for Small Island States (SIDS) Case Study - Singapore

Map generated from Mapchart.net, Retrieved at https://mapchart.net/world.html 189

Appendix B: Research Alignment Map for Singapore as a Small Island States (SIDS) Case Study’s Impact on International Environmental Policy (1992-2019)

Problem Climate change agenda is present at the international stage through platforms such Statement as the United Nations (UN) and regional organizations. Nations, most specifically those that are directly affected by the results of climate change, state their case about their mere struggle to survive as they are threatened by rising sea levels and unfair treatment with regards to policy direction and actions. The most vulnerable of these countries are the Small Island Developing States (SIDS) grouping which comprised of 58 countries from three regions, namely the Atlantic, Indian Oceans, and South China Seas (AIS), the Caribbean and the Pacific.

The research investigated how UN Member States adapt and implement international environmental documents in their own countries. The qualitative research used Singapore as a case study, and this research could be replicated for other countries, in particular SIDS countries.

Purpose The purpose of this qualitative research is to examine whether there is a relationship between the participation and lobbying of Singapore as a Small Island Developing States (SIDS) country, be it through UN resolutions and international environmental policy agreements deliberations at the UN General Assembly (UNGA) and UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Assembly and United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of the Parties (UNFCCC - COP) meetings, and the effective implementation of international environmental policy.

The relationship between the participation and implementation of environmental policy in Singapore was explored through the experience and expert opinion of political practitioners, representatives of Singapore and the UN.

Research Is there a relationship between the participation and lobbying of Singapore as a Question(s) SIDS country, in resolutions, agreements and regional outcomes at the UNGA and UNEP and UNFCCC-COP meetings, and national policy inclusion and implementation of international environmental policy?

Sub-Questions: • What domestic procedures related to environmental law and policy are employed by Singapore to ensure the incorporation of international environmental policy formulation, inclusion, implementation, compliance and evaluation into national environmental policy? • How does Singapore utilize its prominence as a Small Island Developing States (SIDS) country to influence/contribute to the overall formulation and implementation of international environmental policy? Has this influence changed over time? • Has Singapore managed to take fellow SIDS countries’ opinions into account and enhance these vulnerable countries’ voice in the international policy formulation fora?

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Data The investigation of UN Members States’ participation, particularly Singapore, Collection/ lobbying and contribution to language that led to the adoption of these policy Method documents, and would determine and identify the impact of SIDS on international environmental policy for the duration of 1992 to 2019.

The research looked at the relevant law and policies that make up the environmental policy in the SIDS, as well as enlighten relevant stakeholders and policy makers on the efficiency of these environmental policies to allow for mutual benefit in the implementation and compliance of policy.

Semi-structured interviews of 16 environmental representatives from the Singapore Government or the United Nations asking: domestic background on environmental policy initiatives; future directions; how national policies are meeting anticipated needs; and how countries integrate international environmental agreement’s commitments into national policy.

Case studies also often looked at other kinds of documentation and researcher observations. The researcher traced how the participation and lobbying trends, policy documents and outcomes have changed over time and this allowed the researcher to explore a general complex set of factors surrounding the central phenomenon (Creswell and Creswell, 2018).

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Appendix C: List of Small Island States (SIDS) Countries (United Nations, n.d.)

United Nations Members (38)

Atlantic, Indian Ocean and South China Sea (AIS) (9)

Bahrain Guinea-Bissau Sao Tomé and Principe Cabo Verde Maldives Seychelles Comoros Mauritius Singapore

Caribbean (16)

Antigua and Barbuda Dominican Republic Saint Kitts and Nevis Bahamas Grenada Saint Lucia Barbados Guyana Saint Vincent and the Belize Haiti Grenadines Cuba Jamaica Suriname Dominica Trinidad and Tobago

Pacific (13)

Fiji Palau Timor-Leste Kiribati Papua New Guinea Tonga Marshall Islands Samoa Tuvalu Micronesia (Federated States of) Solomon Islands Vanuatu Nauru

Non-United Nations Members / Associate Members of Regional Commissions (20)

American Samoa Cook Islands New Caledonia Anguilla Curacao Niue Aruba French Polynesia Puerto Rico Bermuda Guadeloupe Sint Maarten British Virgin Islands Guam Turks and Caicos Islands Cayman Islands Martinique U.S. Virgin Islands Commonwealth of Northern Marianas Montserrat

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Appendix D: Interview Questions Guide

Open-Ended Semi-Structured Interview: Impact of Singapore on International Environmental Policy - From a Small Island Developing States (SIDS) Context

Introduction: My doctoral study is focusing on the impact of Singapore as a case study of Small Island Developing States (SIDS) on international environmental policy for the period of 1992 to 2019.

I will proceed to ask you a series of questions about how Singapore as a SIDS country, has contributed to the overall formulation and implementation of international environmental policy. The goal of this research is to see how environmental policy formulators and evaluators understand the influence of a country within a particular regional grouping and how this country’s adherence to international environmental policy translates to national level policy.

As a reminder, you have given your written informed consent to participate in the study, and you have received a copy of this consent form. This consent form has clarified that the interview will be recorded for transcription purposes, and that you have consented to the recording of this interview today for the purpose of this research only.

1. What were your personal experiences in international environmental policy? a. How do you think your experience from 1992 to 2019 within international environmental policy has changed over this time period? b. How do you feel your role evolved over the course of your career? c. Can you tell me a bit about your roles and responsibilities from 1992-2019? Can you explain whether your roles were related to the Singapore government, or any activities related to regional groupings (maybe SIDS), or did you participate in any activities related to non-governmental organizations (NGOS)(maybe the United Nations)?

2. I want to remind you of the responses you provided to my earlier introductory letter about the three main prominent policies. I am curious whether when you first started your career in environmental policy, were these the areas that were highlighted or are there other areas that you think were taken into account? a. Can you elaborate on the response you provided pertaining to the change in policy area emphasis between one international environmental treaty and convention to the next? b. Acknowledging the three main policy areas you recommended as the main focus for present and future environmental policy in your written response, do you think there is a hierarchy of importance in these policy areas, be it nationally, regionally or internationally?

3. What role do you think Singapore plays in international environmental policy?

4. How do you think United Nations (UN) policy has turned to become policy in Singapore? a. What are the challenges that you see in policy implementation when generated from the UN? b. What are the benefits of policy implementation generated from the UN in the Singaporean context?

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5. What is the role of Singapore in regional groupings as a Small Island Developing State (SIDS)?

6. How do you think Singapore’s involvement as a SIDS has played a role in environmental law and policy? a. Where does Singapore’s role in policy formulation and policy implementation as part of the SIDS regional grouping come in and/or has changed since 1992?

7. In your personal experience as a policy maker or as an expert, how have you seen a change in the relationship of SIDS and policy formulation at the UN-level? a. To what level do you see the relationship of Singapore with other SIDS influence policy formulation? b. From your personal experience, were you able to observe regional grouping participation and involvement in policy formulation? If so, please elaborate on your observation. c. Did the individual countries that were a part of this regional grouping ensure that the formulated environmental policies translated to their national policies?

8. Has Singapore’s contribution to international environmental policy come from an individual country perspective or from regional involvement in policy formulation discussions?

9. Has Singapore managed to take fellow SIDS countries’ opinions into account and enhance these vulnerable countries’ voice in the international policy formulation fora? a. How do you think SIDS countries’ recommendations are taken into account in policy discussions?

10. How do you think Singapore’s management of national policies and implementation of environmental policies has changed over time?

11. From your experience, how has Singapore’s formulation of national policies changed over time, especially in relation to environmental policy? a. To what level do you think the UN was involved in this change? b. To what level do you think other regional organizations, such as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), were involved in this change? c. To what level do you think there were differences between the two?

12. Where do you think private business, multinational corporations, or Singapore-based companies have played a role in the formulation of these policies? a. Why do you think these businesses have played a role in the implementation of these policies?

13. What are your recommendations for the future of environmental policy, including but not limited to Singapore’s environmental policy?

14. Can you identify and tell me a little bit about what regional policy initiatives you think are important to Singapore, or should be considered for Singapore?

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15. What are any other thoughts about how law and policy can be utilized to help the environmental policy formulation and/or implementation on an international, regional or national level?

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Appendix E: Letter to Relevant Singapore Ministry or United Nations Department

Requesting for Release of Documents for the Research

Dear Sir or Madam / Dear Singapore [Relevant Government Ministry] / To Whom It May Concern,

This letter is with regards to documents in relation to my thesis entitled “Mapping the Little Red Dot’s Advocacy for Small Island Developing States (SIDS): The Impact of Singapore on International Environmental Policymaking (1992-2019)”, for an academic study at Northeastern University. The Principal Investigator is Dr. Golnoosh Hakimdavar and as the student researcher my name is Mansurah Izzul Bolkiah.

I would like to thank you in advance for your kind cooperation and these are the documents that I need: • [List needed document here] • [List needed document here]

Thank you very much.

With Regards,

Mansurah Izzul Bolkiah, MA, MALD [email protected]

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Appendix F: Introductory Recruitment Email

Dear [“Participant” - Personalized],

My name is Mansurah Izzul Bolkiah and I am a doctoral student in Northeastern University’s Doctorate of Law and Policy program. I am conducting research to study the impact of Singapore as a Small Island Developing States (SIDS) case study, on international environmental policy for the period of 1992 to 2019. As a diplomat for my country, I am familiar with the role of regional groupings in policy formulation and implementation.

I am requesting your participation in an interview for this study because I believe you have valuable insight from your role as an individual [Pick one or as appropriate] with experience in drafting at least one of the international environmental treaties from 1992 to 2019 at the United Nations or in the Singapore government / in high ranking policy making position in the Singapore government / informed either academically or on the policy side with international environmental policy related to the United Nations. I would like to interview you over zoom call or over the phone for approximately one hour. Your identity will not be revealed as a participant in this study. The outcomes of the study will likely benefit our profession and will help us environmental policy formulators and evaluators understand the influence of a particular regional grouping and how this country’s adherence to international environmental policy translates to national level policy. I would really value your contribution to this effort.

As a prelude to the interview, I want you to consider the following questions with respect to your role as a government official / environmental policy expert:

1) Define the most prominent policy areas (at least three) that relate to international or Singapore’s domestic environmental policy? When you first started your career in environmental policy, were these the areas that were highlighted and taken into account?

2) Do you believe that there has been a change in policy area emphasis between the transitions from one international environmental treaty and convention to the next?

3) From your experience, what policy areas (at least three) do you recommend as the main focus for the present and future of environmental policy, either nationally, regionally or internationally?

If you would agree to participate in the telephone or zoom interview, at your convenience, please send a reply to this email. Could you let me know how many years of experience do you have in the realm of environmental policy? Thank you very much and look forward to hearing from you soon.

Kind Regards

Mansurah Izzul Bolkiah, MA, MALD [email protected]

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Appendix G: Follow-up Telephone Conversation

Dear [“Participant” - Personalized],

Thank you so much for your reply to my introductory email and I am very excited that you have agreed to participate in the interview for my research regarding the impact of Singapore as a Small Island Developing States (SIDS) country, on international environmental policy for the period of 1992 to 2019. I acknowledge your [insert number of years] years of experience in the area of environmental policy and recognize the expertise you bring to this research study. I thank you for your insight into the policy areas pertaining to the questions I asked in the introductory email.

During the interview, I would like to ask you a few questions about how Singapore has contributed to the overall formulation and implementation of international environmental policy. The goal here is to help environmental policy formulators and evaluators understand the influence of a particular regional grouping and how this country’s adherence to international environmental policy translates to national level policy.

When is the next most convenient time to conduct the zoom interview / telephone interview within the next three weeks from this date of this email? I look forward to your reply and thank you in advance for your kind participation.

With Regards,

Mansurah Izzul Bolkiah, MA, MALD [email protected]

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Appendix H: Informed Consent Form

Northeastern University, Department Name of Investigator(s): Dr. Golnoosh Hakimdavar; Mansurah Izzul Bolkiah Title of Project: Mapping The Little Red Dot’s Advocacy for Small Island Developing States (SIDS): The Impact of Singapore on International Environmental Policymaking (1992-2019).

Informed Consent to Participate in a Research Study

We are inviting you to take part in a research study. This form will tell you about the study, but the researcher will explain it to you first. You may ask this person any questions that you have. When you are ready to make a decision, you may tell the researcher if you want to participate or not. You do not have to participate if you do not want to. If you decide to participate, the researcher will ask you to sign this statement and will give you a copy to keep.

Key Information

• Your consent is being sought for participation in a research project and your participation is voluntary. • The purpose of the research is to examine whether there is a relationship between the participation of Small Island Developing States (SIDS) countries, particularly Singapore, be it through resolutions and international environmental policy agreements deliberations at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Assembly, and the successful implementation of international environmental policy. • The anticipated amount of time that your participation will take will be the duration of the scheduling and conducting of the interview. • The procedures that you will be asked to complete will be the participation in the interview process. • The foreseeable risks to the subject are low in probability and are nonphysical in nature due to the nature of collection of data, by oral history. • The potential benefits to the subject are that they will be able to contribute to this empirical study about Small Island Developing States (SIDS), particularly Singapore, and international environmental policy. The information they provide will support the document analysis conducted by the researcher, and should identify emerging trends in the international environmental policy research. Their participation will form a strong basis for future research.

Why am I being asked to take part in this research study? We are asking you to participate in this study because you are an expert political practitioner in Singapore environmental policy (2) / United Nations expert in Small Island Developing States (SIDS) or international environmental policy (2) / subject expert in Small Island Developing States (SIDS) or international environmental policy (1).

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Why is this research study being done? The purpose of this qualitative research is to examine whether there is a relationship between the participation of Small Island Developing States (SIDS) countries, particularly Singapore, be it through resolutions and international environmental policy agreements deliberations at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Assembly, and the effective implementation of international environmental policy.

The relationship between the participation and implementation of environmental policy in Singapore will be explored through the experience and expert opinion of political practitioners, representatives of Singapore and the United Nations.

This will be done through the investigation of Singapore’s participation, and contribution to language that led to the adoption of these policy documents, and will determine and identify the impact of SIDS on international environmental policy for the duration of 1992 to 2019. The researcher will trace how the participation trends, policy documents and outcomes have changed over time and allow the researcher to explore a general complex set of factors surrounding the central phenomenon.

What will I be asked to do? If you decide to take part in this study, you will be contacted by the student researcher, and informed of the essence and scope of the research.

The following activities will be undertaken once the participant has agreed to partake in the study: • Schedule a mutual time for the interview to take place. • Share the Informed Consent form and allow participant to read it before signing. The interview can only take place once the participant has consented to partake in the research. • Attend the online or virtual interviews. • For the recorded interview, questions will be asked by the student researcher, with the participant answering these questions. The duration of the interview will be between 45 minutes to one (1) hour. • There may be a possibility of a follow-up session between three (3) weeks to one (1) month later. This will be confirmed by the student researcher at the conclusion of the interview.

Where will this take place and how much of my time will it take? The interviews will be conducted by the student researcher - Mansurah Izzul Bolkiah. They will be conducted virtually on online platforms such as Zoom or Microsoft Teams for all participants either in Singapore or in New York, as well as for those that are not at these two locations. The duration of the interview will be between 45 minutes to one (1) hour. There may be a possibility of a follow-up session between three (3) weeks to one (1) month later. This will be confirmed by the student researcher at the conclusion of the interview.

Will there be any risk or discomfort to me? The research could have the following possible risks to the participant as a result of the research:

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• Physical safeguards are measures that secure the location of private and sensitive information from unauthorized personnel. These include locked filing cabinets, secluded interview rooms, private offices, storing information away from public, and easily accessible areas. • Social harms involve the negative effects on one’s interactions or relationships with others. For example, study participation or the research findings may expose participants to insurance or employment discrimination or other forms of social stigmatization. • Economic harms involve the imposition, direct or indirect, of financial costs on participants. • Legal harms are legal actions that could be taken against the participant, such as arrest, conviction, incarceration, or lawsuits. • Dignitary harms are those incurred when individuals are not treated as persons with their own values, preferences and commitments, but rather as mere means, not deserving of respect.

There is a low probability that these nonphysical harms will occur since the research will center upon oral collection of data. The participants are secure in their occupation status and aware of their authority to disclose their participation in the research.

Will I benefit by being in this research? The participant(s) will be able to contribute to this empirical study about Small Island Developing States (SIDS), particularly Singapore, and international environmental policy.

The information they provide from the answering of the interview questions will support the document analysis conducted by the researcher, and should identify emerging trends in the international environmental policy research. Their participation will form a strong basis for future research.

The potential benefits to others is that those reading the research will be aware of the past, current and even future trends in international environmental policy, as well as inform Singapore of the evolution of their environmental policy in terms of what their priorities were, currently are, and will be.

Who will see the information about me? Your part in this study will be confidential. Only the researchers on this study will see the information about you. No reports or publications will use information that can identify you in any way or any individual as being of this project.

The student researcher will implement the following safeguards to protect the anonymity of their participants throughout all the following stages of the research cycle: • Recruitment; • Initial collection of information; • Use of and analysis of the information collected; • Dissemination of the findings from the study; • Storage and retention of information; and • Disposal of records or devices where the information is stored.

The research will abide by the following safeguards to help protect the confidentiality and privacy of research participants:

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• Physical safeguards are measures that secure the location of private and sensitive information from unauthorized personnel. These include locked filing cabinets, secluded interview rooms, private offices, storing information away from public, and easily accessible areas. • Administrative safeguards are measures that protect the privacy of participants’ information by clearly delineating who does and who does not have access to participants’ information, and in what ways. Only the Principal Investigator and the student researcher will have access to the data/information. • Technical safeguards are technological measures that protect the privacy of participants. These include the proper use of computer passwords, firewalls, anti-virus software, encryption and other measures that protect data from unauthorized individuals, loss, theft or modification. All electronic data will be password protected and encrypted, based on the sensitivity of the information. • Research design safeguards are measures intrinsic to the research design of a project that help protect the privacy of research participants. These include anonymizing information, transcribing raw data as soon as possible, storing de-identified data separately from coding lists, shredding all hard copies with sensitive information as soon as feasible.

The above safeguards will ensure that the participants are in control of the disclosure of their identity and their contribution. In rare instances, authorized people may request to see research information about you and other people in this study. This is done only to be sure that the research is done properly. We would only permit people who are authorized by organizations such as the Northeastern University Institutional Review Board to see this information.

If I do not want to take part in the study, what choices do I have? Since the research does not involve treatment or other potential benefit, the participant’s option is to not participate.

What will happen if I suffer any harm from this research? No special arrangements will be made for compensation or for payment for treatment solely because of my participation in this research.

Can I stop my participation in this study? Your participation in this research is completely voluntary. You do not have to participate if you do not want to and you can refuse to answer any question. Even if you begin the study, you may quit at any time. If you do not participate or if you decide to quit, you will not lose any rights, benefits, or services that you would otherwise have [as a student, employee, etc].

Who can I contact if I have questions or problems? If you have any questions about this study, please feel free to contact Mansurah Izzul Bolkiah (617-356-9940), the person mainly responsible for the research. You can also contact Golnoosh Hakimdavar (877-668-7727), the Principal Investigator.

Who can I contact about my rights as a participant? If you have any questions about your rights in this research, you may contact Nan C. Regina, Director, Human Subject Research Protection, Mail Stop: 560-177, 360 Huntington Avenue,

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Northeastern University, Boston, MA 02115. Tel: 617.373.4588, Email: [email protected]. You may call anonymously if you wish.

Will I be paid for my participation? You will not be paid for participating in the research.

Will it cost me anything to participate? There will be no costs that may be incurred by the participant for the study.

Is there anything else I need to know? No.

This study has been reviewed and approved by the Northeastern University Institutional Review Board (# CPS20-11-10).

I agree to take part in this research.

______Signature of person agreeing to take part Date

______Printed name of person above

______Signature of person who explained the study to the Date participant above and obtained consent

______Printed name of person above

I agree to be contacted for follow up or for future research studies

______Contact Information (email or phone)