Beyond Efficiency: How Institutional and Political Lenses Reshape Sustainability Policy Analysis
Policy Analysis Frameworks are often taught as rational, linear tools for evaluating options. However, when applied to complex, long-term challenges like sustainability, the limitations of purely efficiency-driven models become stark. This article goes beyond the basics to explore how Political and Institutional frameworks provide deeper, more realistic insights. By incorporating power dynamics, stakeholder interests, and the 'rules of the game,' analysts can design policies that are not only evidence-based but also politically viable and resilient. We dissect how shifting from a Rational Choice to an Institutional lens changes problem definition and implementation strategies, offering a slow-analysis audit of the structural forces that determine a policy's success or failure in the sustainability sector.