Hocherman, T., Trop, T., & Ghermandi, A. (2025). Time lags in environmental governance: A critical review. Ambio, 1-18.

While time lags play a critical role in environmental governance, research on their causes and impacts has largely been sector-specific, hindering the emergence of a cross-disciplinary body of knowledge. Here, we utilize a novel framework—the temporal Driver-Pressure-State-Impact-Response, to synthesize the scientific literature on time lags across a wide range of environmental challenges. The framework facilitates the categorization and analysis of lags both within the ecological system and societal responses. A full-text analysis of 101 studies reveals common themes—such as long ecosystem lags, and shared response lags mechanisms across a range of environmental issues. We further explore how time lag analysis complements sustainability transitions research, highlighting the ways in which ecological lags influence the dynamics of socio-technical transitions, underscoring the importance of encompassing both ecological and social system dynamics.