The Bioeconomy as a Learning Test for Truncated Environmental Governance in Brazil

Abstract

This article analyzes the trajectory of environmental governance institutionalization in Brazil to elucidate the contemporary challenges in constructing a National Bioeconomy Policy, aiming to verify whether the new cycle of bioeconomy policies can overcome the historical patterns of institutional fragmentation and implementation deficits. The research was conducted through a narrative review of specialized literature and documentary analysis of legal and institutional frameworks. The underlying hypothesis – that Brazilian environmental governance is marked by a “truncated institutionalization” – was tested by critically applying and expanding Monosowski’s (1989) periodization. The qualitative data were obtained through a bibliographic survey and the systematization of documentary sources, and were processed using content analysis and historical-institutional organization. The results confirm the initial hypothesis, identifying the pattern of “truncated institutionalization” in the trajectory of environmental governance and revealing that the bioeconomy emerges as a decisive test for its overcoming. The discussion suggests that the success of the bioeconomy will depend on the capacity for institutional learning, adding an integrated and original historical analytical perspective to the literature.