"The Paradox of Sustainable Development Policy in Iran: An Analysis of the Environment–Development Nexus in the Second Five-Year Development Plan (1995–1999)"
assistant professor of historical and environmental department, the organization for researching and composing university textbooks in the humanities (SAMT).
10.30465/ehs.2025.50337.2014
Abstract
The simultaneity of the drafting of Iran’s Second Five-Year Development Plan (1995–1999) with the 1992 Rio Conference raises two critical questions: Did the Rio Conference influence the formulation of the Second Plan? And, more broadly, what is the relationship between sustainable development and the planning and implementation measures within this plan? The research findings indicate that, despite the inclusion of the term sustainable development in the plan’s amendments and legal framework, environmental protection was largely neglected. This was because the government’s focus was directed toward controlling inflation and reducing non-essential expenditures, which were deemed necessary to manage inflation, control liquidity, and promote economic growth, thereby supporting development. The marginalization of environmental concerns in the Second Plan resulted in the concept of sustainable development remaining largely rhetorical, with no effective practical measures implemented to advance it. From this perspective, the Second Development Plan embodied a fundamental paradox: while claiming to pursue sustainable development, its environmental imperatives were disregarded. This contradiction perpetuated the degradation of natural resources, intensified environmental pollution, and accelerated soil and forest erosion, highlighting that achieving sustainable development in Iran requires a reconsideration of policy-making and the establishment of more effective institutional mechanisms.
rafatipanah mehrabadi,M. (2025). "The Paradox of Sustainable Development Policy in Iran: An Analysis of the Environment–Development Nexus in the Second Five-Year Development Plan (1995–1999)". (e10631). Tahqiqāt-e Târix-e Eqtesâdi (Economic History Studies of Iran), (), e10631 doi: 10.30465/ehs.2025.50337.2014
MLA
rafatipanah mehrabadi,M. . ""The Paradox of Sustainable Development Policy in Iran: An Analysis of the Environment–Development Nexus in the Second Five-Year Development Plan (1995–1999)"" .e10631 , Tahqiqāt-e Târix-e Eqtesâdi (Economic History Studies of Iran), , , 2025, e10631. doi: 10.30465/ehs.2025.50337.2014
HARVARD
rafatipanah mehrabadi M. (2025). '"The Paradox of Sustainable Development Policy in Iran: An Analysis of the Environment–Development Nexus in the Second Five-Year Development Plan (1995–1999)"', Tahqiqāt-e Târix-e Eqtesâdi (Economic History Studies of Iran), (), e10631. doi: 10.30465/ehs.2025.50337.2014
CHICAGO
M. rafatipanah mehrabadi, ""The Paradox of Sustainable Development Policy in Iran: An Analysis of the Environment–Development Nexus in the Second Five-Year Development Plan (1995–1999)"," Tahqiqāt-e Târix-e Eqtesâdi (Economic History Studies of Iran), (2025): e10631, doi: 10.30465/ehs.2025.50337.2014
VANCOUVER
rafatipanah mehrabadi M. "The Paradox of Sustainable Development Policy in Iran: An Analysis of the Environment–Development Nexus in the Second Five-Year Development Plan (1995–1999)". Tahqiqāt-e Târix-e Eqtesâdi (Economic History Studies of Iran), 2025; (): e10631. doi: 10.30465/ehs.2025.50337.2014
