Environmental mainstreaming is defined as integrating poverty-environment linkages into national development planning processes and their products, such as Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs), Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), and growth strategies. It involves establishing the links between poverty and environment– including climate change – and identifying the policies and programmes to bring about better pro-poor environmental management. It is targeted at influencing national plans, budget processes, sector strategies and local level implementation– reflecting the need to integrate the valuable contribution of environmental management to improved livelihoods, increased economic security and income opportunities for the poor.

The overall aim is to establish enduring institutional processes within government from national to local levels and the wider stakeholder community to ensure environmental mainstreaming focused on the government bodies responsible for poverty reduction and growth policies, as well as strengthening the role of environmental agencies, and non-governmental actors.

The Poverty-Environment Initiative, through its Facility, codifies and captures generic lessons learnt, best practices and produces concrete guidance materials such as Handbooks and Primers. The following PEI publications, reviews and introductory documents are recommended as reference for environmental mainstreaming.