Linda Hantrais, FAcSS, is Emeritus Professor of European Social Policy at Loughborough University, UK, and Visiting Professor at the LSE Centre for International Studies, UK. Her research interests span international comparative research theory, methods, management and practice, with particular reference to public policy and institutional structures, and the relationship between socio-demographic trends and social policy.Ruth Kattumuri, FAcSS, is Co-Director of the LSE India Observatory and an Associate at the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, UK. She is involved in transdisciplinary evidence-based research, policy influence and advice concerning sustainable growth, inclusion and population development, primarily in the context of the Global South.Ashley Thomas Lenihan is a Visiting Fellow at the LSE Centre for International Studies, UK, and a Term Member of the Council on Foreign Relations, USA. Her research focusses on the connection between state power and foreign investment, and the relationship between social science research and the policymaking process.

• Foreword 1. Sustaining natural resources in a changing environment: evidence, policy and impact 2. International water targets and national realities in Sub-Saharan Africa: the case of Uganda 3. Towards sustainable development: planning surface coal mine closures in India 4. The impact of urbanisation on land resources in Chongqing, China, 1997–2015 5. Negotiating transparency: NGOs and contentious politics of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative in Ghana 6. Gendered participation in community forest governance in India 7. Community empowerment in changing environments: creating value through food security 8. Environmental impact assessment: evidence-based policymaking in Brazil 9. Low carbon energy and international development: from research impact to policymaking

Linda Hantrais, FAcSS, is Emeritus Professor of European Social Policy at Loughborough University, UK, and Visiting Professor at the LSE Centre for International Studies, UK. Her research interests span international comparative research theory, methods, management and practice, with particular reference to public policy and institutional structures, and the relationship between socio-demographic trends and social policy.Ruth Kattumuri, FAcSS, is Co-Director of the LSE India Observatory and an Associate at the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, UK. She is involved in transdisciplinary evidence-based research, policy influence and advice concerning sustainable growth, inclusion and population development, primarily in the context of the Global South.Ashley Thomas Lenihan is a Visiting Fellow at the LSE Centre for International Studies, UK, and a Term Member of the Council on Foreign Relations, USA. Her research focusses on the connection between state power and foreign investment, and the relationship between social science research and the policymaking process.

• Foreword 1. Sustaining natural resources in a changing environment: evidence, policy and impact 2. International water targets and national realities in Sub-Saharan Africa: the case of Uganda 3. Towards sustainable development: planning surface coal mine closures in India 4. The impact of urbanisation on land resources in Chongqing, China, 1997–2015 5. Negotiating transparency: NGOs and contentious politics of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative in Ghana 6. Gendered participation in community forest governance in India 7. Community empowerment in changing environments: creating value through food security 8. Environmental impact assessment: evidence-based policymaking in Brazil 9. Low carbon energy and international development: from research impact to policymaking

Linda Hantrais, FAcSS, is Emeritus Professor of European Social Policy at Loughborough University, UK, and Visiting Professor at the LSE Centre for International Studies, UK. Her research interests span international comparative research theory, methods, management and practice, with particular reference to public policy and institutional structures, and the relationship between socio-demographic trends and social policy.Ruth Kattumuri, FAcSS, is Co-Director of the LSE India Observatory and an Associate at the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, UK. She is involved in transdisciplinary evidence-based research, policy influence and advice concerning sustainable growth, inclusion and population development, primarily in the context of the Global South.Ashley Thomas Lenihan is a Visiting Fellow at the LSE Centre for International Studies, UK, and a Term Member of the Council on Foreign Relations, USA. Her research focusses on the connection between state power and foreign investment, and the relationship between social science research and the policymaking process.

• Foreword 1. Sustaining natural resources in a changing environment: evidence, policy and impact 2. International water targets and national realities in Sub-Saharan Africa: the case of Uganda 3. Towards sustainable development: planning surface coal mine closures in India 4. The impact of urbanisation on land resources in Chongqing, China, 1997–2015 5. Negotiating transparency: NGOs and contentious politics of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative in Ghana 6. Gendered participation in community forest governance in India 7. Community empowerment in changing environments: creating value through food security 8. Environmental impact assessment: evidence-based policymaking in Brazil 9. Low carbon energy and international development: from research impact to policymaking