Abstract
This paper analyses the experience of actual policy process in detail and the peculiarities of a draft of the Sabah Environmental Education Policy, which was submitted to the Sabah State Government in January 2007. During the formulation of the policy draft, case studies and participant observations were conducted with the Science and Technology Unit, Chief Minister's Department, and the Government of Sabah from September 2005 to January 2007. The hypothesis of the research is that “there must be several conditions when environmental education policy is formulated”. Analysis of the data collected from participant observations revealed the following three findings. First, two different motivation factors were observed in the policy formulation process on environmental education in Sabah. One was the factor which launched the policy formulation process, and the other was the factor which desired future advantages to accrue through the policy. Those two different motivation factors facilitated a will to provide and institutionalise an environmental education policy in Sabah. Second, it was essential that one governmental department had a central role throughout the policy process to provide clear aims for the action plans. Simultaneously, keen participation from various other governmental departments and organisations had to be secured in the policy process. Finally, it was observed that the entire governmental organisation and other related agencies accepted the concepts of the drafted policy. It was important for all the related organisations and agencies to follow the concepts of the policy and launch their own environmental education activities based on suggested action plans. Overall, there were three conditions which promoted the development of environmental education policy critically in Sabah.
