Abstract

This chapter reviews a range of policy and governance instruments that can halt further degradation and destruction of peatlands and facilitate their conservation, restoration, and sustainable management. This assessment defines “policy” broadly as sets of rules and procedures that are typically used by public institutions to make decisions or take actions to achieve defined goals (Lerche and Said, 1971; Fox and Meyer 1995). This assessment defines “governance” as the formulation and implementation of rules, procedures, and processes. These can be informal (e.g., cultural norms) or formal (e.g., international agreements) and aim to achieve environmentally sustainable outcomes through multi-level interactions (from local to international) among state, market, and civil society actors (Folke et al. 2005; Lebel et al. 2006; Cundill and Fabricius 2010). Therefore, governance includes the implementation of policies as well as other modes of decision-making. It involves both policymakers and other actors as they interact to make and enact decisions about the natural environment (Patterson et al. 2017).