Freebies,freedom and fundamental change: resistance to neoliberal environmentalism in large “green” corporations

Despite the professed concern of many governments, businesses and individuals – and the recent publication of another alarming report from the IPCC – inaction on climate change remains a significant concern. For many, the problem is rooted in a neoliberal account of social change. Neoliberal environmentalism is the dominant approach to environmental issues but it is often blamed for the continuing failure of climate change policy in general and behaviour change initiatives in particular. This paper explores the dynamics of this dominant discourse through an examination of environmentalism in the large “green” corporation. Specifically, it uses discourse analysis to investigate so-called “climate champion” schemes and considers examples of resistance to the dominant neoliberal discourse. The paper finds that many of the champions did resist the basic components of neoliberal environmentalism. They challenged the principles of self-interest, self-rule and incremental change, and they talked about the possibility of enforced action. However, this resistance was limited in a number of different ways. The paper suggests that the workplace does play a role in restricting resistance but that there are more fundamental issues that need to be addressed if we hope to pursue an alternative approach to environmental problems such as climate change.     

Municipalities’ ambitions and practices: At risk of hypocritical sustainability transitions?

In contemporary planning discourse and practice, different planning ideas co-exists. How this affects the transition towards a sustainable development is an important question for both research and practice. The aim of this study is to explore potential conflicts between planning goals caught between growth-led planning and sustainability commitments in a case study of Fredericia, Denmark. The paper discusses the underlying, framing and controlling conditions for transition dynamics. The analysis builds largely on the formulated policies, strategies or national goal achievements towards sustainable futures. These are put in the context of planning and political practices, which are interpreted from a sustainability rationale. Here this study introduces hypocrisy as a theoretical-analytical perspective to dispute actual sustainability practices to respond to continuous ambivalent planning measures. The author concludes that disregarding the inherently different internal logics of growths and sustainability leads to planning paradoxes and impedes sustainable transitions pursued.     

The ‘green’ and ‘self’ in green self-governance – a study of 264 green space initiatives by citizens

Scholars observe an increased involvement of citizens in green space governance. This paper focuses on green self-governance, in which citizens play a major role in realizing, protecting and/or managing green space. While existing research on green self-governance focuses mostly on specific cases, we aim to contribute towards a large overview via an inventory of 264 green self-governance practices across The Netherlands. With this, we discuss the relevance of green self-governance for nature conservation and its relationship with authorities. In our analysis, we show that green self-governance practices are very diverse: they pursue a wide variety of physical and social objectives; employ a multitude of physical and political activities; involve different actors besides citizens; mobilize different internal and external funding sources; and are active within and outside of protected areas. While green self-governance can contribute towards protection and management of green space and towards social values, we highlight that this contribution is mostly of a local relevance. Most practices are small scale and objectives do not always match those of authorities. Although we speak of self-governance, authorities play an important role in many practices, for example, as financial donor, landowner or regulatory authority. In this, self-governance is often not completely ‘self’.

Abbreviations: PAA: Policy Arrangement Approach; NNN: National Nature Network; N2000: Natura 2000; NCOs: Nature Conservation Organizations; NGOs: Non-governmental organizations     

“Just Another Hoop to Jump Through?” Using Environmental Laws and Processes to Protect Indigenous Rights

Protection of culturally important indigenous landscapes has become an increasingly important component of environmental management processes, for both companies and individuals striving to comply with environmental regulations, and for indigenous groups seeking stronger laws to support site protection and cultural/human rights. Given that indigenous stewardship of culturally important sites, species, and practices continues to be threatened or prohibited on lands out of indigenous ownership, this paper examines whether or not indigenous people can meaningfully apply mainstream environmental management laws and processes to achieve protection of traditional sites and associated stewardship activities. While environmental laws can provide a “back door” to protect traditional sites and practices, they are not made for this purpose, and, as such, require specific amendments to become more useful for indigenous practitioners. Acknowledging thoughtful critiques of the cultural incommensurability of environmental law with indigenous environmental stewardship of sacred sites, I interrogate the ability of four specific environmental laws and processes—the Uniform Conservation Easement Act; the National Environmental Policy Act and the California Environmental Quality Act; the Pacific Stewardship Council land divestiture process; and Senate Bill 18 (CA-2004)—to protect culturally important landscapes and practices. I offer suggestions for improving these laws and processes to make them more applicable to indigenous stewardship of traditional landscapes.     

Just and Sustainable? Examining the Rhetoric and Potential Realities of UK Food Security

The dominant discourse in 20th century UK food and agricultural policies of a liberal, free trade agenda was modified at the turn of the 21st to embrace ecological sustainability and “food security.” The latter term has a long international history; the relationship between issues of technical production and equality of distributional access are also much debated. The paper examines shifts in UK policy discourse in the context of international research, policy, and initiatives to promote food security, and highlights the implications for social justice in and through the food system.     

Developing green infrastructure ‘thinking’: devising and applying an interactive group-based methodology for practitioners

Recent years have witnessed a wave of interest in the concept of green infrastructure (GI) as a means of applying an ecosystem approach to spatial planning practice; however, more limited attention has been paid to decision-making processes or tools to enhance GI within spatial plans and guidance. We address this deficit by reporting on the development and application of an interactive group-based methodology to enhance GI ‘thinking’ and interdisciplinary collaboration, drawing on the literature on the sociology of interactions. Our findings suggest that a game-based approach to GI problem-solving was successful in breaking down professional barriers by creating an informal learning arena, providing an enabling opportunity for participants to solve problems in an iterative, non-linear style to develop principles for action with transferability to ongoing plan formation. This style of problem-solving was characterised by shifting norms and routines of interaction, leading to problem re-framing and a search for alternative solutions.     

Can you tell a green field from a cold steel rail? Examining the “green” of Green Infrastructure development

The rapid development of Green Infrastructure as an approach to planning has enabled landscape practitioners to implement a range of projects utilising its principles. Discussions though exist examining what Green Infrastructure is, how it should be planned, and whether it can be identified as only those elements of the landscape that are green. A further element of this argument examines the use of water within this process. Therefore, as planners, we can ask: can we tell a green field from a cold steel rail? Both may have a green or sustainable function with only the visual appearance differing. Debates, however, focus on practitioner selectivity of the interpretation of “green” infrastructure planning exploring whether physical landscape characteristics or the function of an investment is the main focus of discussion. Using the grey–green continuum developed by Davies et al. [2006. Green infrastructure planning guide project: Final report. Annfield Plain: NECF], this paper examines whether geographical differences exist in the application of the Green Infrastructure and examine how practitioners use the ambiguity of Green Infrastructure planning to guide investment. Drawing on academic and practitioner literature provides this paper with a balance of conceptual and process-based assessments evaluations of global Green Infrastructure focusing on the design and implementation of terrestrial and marine resources. This paper also examines whether the dominant landscape planning framework in each region could be considered contradictory to the wider application of Green Infrastructure principles.     

Criminalization of “galamsey” and livelihoods in Ghana: Limits and consequences

The fact that the artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) sector in Ghana is driven largely by poverty means that the sector is a major source of livelihood for people in mining communities across the country. However, given the various social and environmental problems associated with the ASM sector, there is now an emerging consensus that the formalization of the sector would not only allow for these associated problems to be addressed but also ensures that the sector contributes to sustainable development and safeguard the livelihood of local communities. While a large body of extant literature has examined the challenges and opportunities facing the process of formalization, the question of the criminalization of the sector and its consequences for local livelihood has received only limited attention. Drawing from primary data collected during fieldwork in Ghana, this study examined the livelihood implications of the ban on galamsey in the Tarkwa-Nsuaem Municipality in South-Western Ghana from the perspectives of local communities and other key stakeholders. The study reveals that the ban on galamsey has imposed significant socio-economic hardships on the people and appears to be entrenching poverty rather than sustainable development. The study considers the theoretical and practical implications of the findings for sustainable livelihood enhancement in developing countries.     

Applying the multi-level perspective on socio-technical transitions to rentier states: the case of renewable energy transitions in Nigeria

Although numerous studies have been conducted in recent years on energy transitions, they have been predominately developed and applied in industrialized countries. It is however important to examine the applicability of transition theories, as they are currently formulated, beyond OECD countries. This paper analyses renewable energy transitions in Africa, using Nigeria as a case study, to elucidate the analytical and methodological challenges that sustainability transition studies are facing in developing countries, particularly rentier states. In doing so, the paper employs the lens of the multi-level perspective (MLP) on socio-technical transitions - a well-established theory that emphasizes the role of ‘niches’, ‘regimes’ and ‘landscapes’ in instituting transitions. Based on a detailed analysis of Nigeria, we argue for a more nuanced enquiry of the construct ‘regime’ that better accounts for the rentier character of the state including the role of political elites and prevalent client-patron relationships. As such, our paper makes an important contribution to the further refinement and enrichment of the MLP by focusing on the political dimensions of energy transitions.     

Overtown: neighbourhood,change, challenge and “invironment”

This paper explores how residents of Overtown, a low-income neighbourhood in Miami, Florida, view the positive and negative aspects of their neighbourhood “invironment” through photographs taken by residents. The “invironment” [Bell, M., 2004. An invitation to environmental sociology. Thousand Oaks, CA: Pine Forge Press] alludes to the interactions between environment/surroundings and the human body. Residents involved with a community social justice organisation were provided with a photographic workshop and cameras to visually document the positive and negative aspects of their neighbourhood. These participant photographers provided narratives paired with their photographs which were then exhibited at local community events. During the exhibits, community members’ comments on the photographs were recorded. This paper analyses community issues through both photographs and neighbourhood comments inspired by the photographs. The following themes of importance to residents were derived from the photographs and discussion with residents: Housing, Public Space, Neighbourhood Economy, History, Environmental/Invironmental Issues, Human Capital and Power. These themes were all connected by residents’ concerns about inequality in Overtown compared to other neighbourhoods in Miami.     

How green is your thumb? Environmental gardening identity and ecological gardening practices

For gardeners, the garden is a significant aspect of identity. The number of people who garden and consider themselves environmentally friendly is growing. This exploratory study investigated whether “environmental gardening identity” is a measurable construct that motivates environmentally-friendly home gardening cultivation practices above that predicted by the previously validated environmental identity scale (EID, Clayton, 2003). A mail questionnaire was sent to a random sample of 800 urban-suburban self-identified gardeners (61% return rate.) The survey contained four sections: (1) the environmental identity scale (EID); (2) a new scale instrument designed to measure environmental gardening identity (EGID), (3) multiple choice questions addressing specific gardening practices, and (4) demographic questions. Results show that environmental identity, as measured by the EID, significantly predicts ecological gardening behavior. Additionally, it was found that the environmental gardening identity scale (EGID) comprises five subscales, all of which are highly correlated with the environmental identity scale (EID), and three of which explain the variability in gardening practices above that explained by the EID. However, it does not appear that these three subscales of the EGID specifically measure identity. Additional analyses show that respondents' reasons to have a garden are linked to the strength of both EID and EGID, especially for those respondents who garden as a way to connect with nature.     

“A Kiss Here and a Kiss There”: Conflict and Collaboration in Environmental Partnerships

Multistakeholder collaboration in the environmental realm has been increasing steadily over the past decade. This trend is responding to several stimuli, including dissatisfaction with current regulatory regimes, a liberal economic climate emphasizing global competitiveness and short-term returns, and the growing roles of the business and nongovernmental organization sectors in the environmental policy arena. This paper grows out of ethnographic research conducted between 1994 and 1998 with four environmental partnerships in Europe and the United States. The research found all of these partnerships to be marked by practices of conflict minimization and diffusion. Drawing upon illustrative data from one of these case studies, a European Union level initiative aimed at enabling sustainable development in Europe, the paper asks why this was the case, especially given the diverse political and economic interests at stake and the history of contentious relations between the sectors in other venues. Employing a theoretical perspective highlighting the sociohistoric factors involved in these processes, the paper suggests that this proclivity toward nonconfrontational behavior stems in part from two sources: a prominent cultural model that conceptualizes the partnership process as fundamentally nonconflictual in nature, and the promotion of the discourse of ecological modernization over other competing discourses. The paper explores some of the implications of this finding and concludes that environmental partnerships characterized by such nonconfrontational practices risk inadvertently encouraging the delegitimization of conflictual approaches to environmental action and engendering a retreat from radical thinking and innovative environmental solutions.     

The green dividend of urban biking? Evidence of improved community and sustainable development

As the cost of car ownership has skyrocketed, urban biking has experienced the largest share increase of any transportation mode, rising by 40% between the years 2000 and 2014. Growing attention is being paid to the potential local economic development impacts of urban neighbourhoods becoming more bike-friendly. It is now a green economic development strategy in cities as diverse as Chicago, New York City, Portland, and San Francisco to increase bicycling as a transportation mode. This paper reports the results of a survey of 2032 responses from faculty, staff, and students of a car-dependent, downtown university. We use a mixed methods approach, including data from the American Community Survey, to support our arguments and to inform potential savings and economic benefit calculations that can be achieved from bicycle infrastructure investments and anticipated redistributed spending patterns. We argue that urban biking results in a green dividend that promotes local community development and more importantly results in zero carbon emissions.     

What are the drivers and barriers for green business practice adoption for SMEs?

Environment Systems and Decisions - The depletion of natural resources as a byproduct of widespread, global economic growth has urged entrepreneurs to think about the environment when starting or...     

“By and for local people”: assessing the connection between local energy plans and community energy

ABSTRACT

“Community energy” (CE) is argued to be an opportunity to transition to low-carbon energy systems while creating additional benefits for local communities. CE is defined as energy initiatives that place a high degree of emphasis on participation of local community members through ownership and control, where through doing so, benefits are created for the community. The trend has seen considerable growth in many countries over the last decade. Occurring simultaneously is a trend for local communities (e.g. municipalities) to create their own Local Energy Plans (LEPs) – a planning process that articulates energy-related actions (i.e. expected outcomes). While CE and LEPs both address energy activities in a local context, any further connection between these trends remains unclear.

This research develops a framework, based on CE and LEP literature, to assess LEPs for their relevance to CE. The research analyses 77 LEPs from across Canada for the ways in which they address the three components that define CE: community participation, community ownership, and community capacity. The main findings are that LEPs have emerged as a process that is both relevant to CE and capable of strategically addressing its components. Despite this, LEPs do not appear to reveal a radically different approach to the “closed and institutional” models of traditional community involvement practices. The investigation suggests that for CE advocates, LEPs may be considered to be an important avenue to pursue CE ambitions. LEPs could increase their relevance to CE by improving the processes and actions related to all three CE components.     

“Perceived neighbourhood” and tolerance relations: the case of Arabs and Jews in Jaffa,Israel

This paper examines the complex social reality of mixed ethnic residential areas, as reflected in drawn perceived neighbourhoods of Jews and Arabs living in homogenous and mixed neighbourhoods in Jaffa, Tel Aviv. Through in-depth interviews conducted among 89 Jaffa's residents, it illustrates how different perceptions about the residential area and its residents (including attitudes, emotions, feeling of fear/safety, collective identity and tolerant relations) are reflected in the form, size and consensus area of residents' perceived neighbourhoods. The study finds a clear association between tolerant attitudes and the size and consensus area of the perceived neighbourhoods. Arabs perceive their neighbourhood as significantly larger than Jews do and are characterised by a larger consensus area. These findings are explained by the Arab's strong social cohesion, common national identity, rootedness in Jaffa, as well as by tolerant attitudes towards Jaffa's Jewish population. The study demonstrates the interrelation between the spatial, social and perceptual dimensions associated with the mixed residential area, and illustrates how these dimensions are reflected in drawn perceived neighbourhoods.     

Civic modes of greening the city? Urban natures in-between familiar engagement and green critique

ABSTRACT

In this article, we deploy the loosely bounded phenomenon of “urban green communities” – in the shape of urban gardening, beekeeping, food collectives, biodiversity enhancement, tree planting and kindred citizen-based group practices towards urban greening – in order to probe the wide variations in modes of civic engagement with urban sustainability politics. As such, we explore the conceptual gaps opened up in-between everyday lifestyle politics, green social movements and critiques of neoliberal urban political economies, by leveraging a novel and fine-grained conceptualization of civic and place-based material participation built from pragmatic sociology. The work of Laurent Thévenot on regimes of engagement, in particular, allow us to trace translations in-between the familiar attachments and the public critiques undertaken by urban green communities in ways that expand the frame on socio-material politics relative to current research conversations. Empirically, we leverage this re-conceptualization as part of a comprehensive digital mapping exercise set in Denmark, in which we trace core patterns and differences in modes of urban-green politics at the level of everyday citizen practices and group interaction styles across a diversity of urban green communities. Having identified six such civic modes of urban greening and specified their group styles of engagement, we end by discussing the implications of our findings for questions of care, justice and democracy in sustainable city-making.     

Putting the “Ecology” into Environmental Flows: Ecological Dynamics and Demographic Modelling

There have been significant diversions of water from rivers and streams around the world; natural flow regimes have been perturbed by dams, barriers and excessive extractions. Many aspects of the ecological 'health' of riverine systems have declined due to changes in water flows, which has stimulated the development of thinking about the maintenance and restoration of these systems, which we refer to as environmental flow methodologies (EFMs). Most existing EFMs cannot deliver information on the population viability of species because they: (1) use habitat suitability as a proxy for population status; (2) use historical time series (usually of short duration) to forecast future conditions and flow sequences; (3) cannot, or do not, handle extreme flow events associated with climate variability; and (4) assume process stationarity for flow sequences, which means the past sequences are treated as good indicators of the future. These assumptions undermine the capacity of EFMs to properly represent risks associated with different flow management options; assumption (4) is untenable given most climate-change predictions. We discuss these concerns and advocate the use of demographic modelling as a more appropriate tool for linking population dynamics to flow regime change. A 'meta-species' approach to demographic modelling is discussed as a useful step from habitat based models towards modelling strategies grounded in ecological theory when limited data are available on flow-demographic relationships. Data requirements of demographic models will undoubtedly expose gaps in existing knowledge, but, in so doing, will strengthen future efforts to link changes in river flows with their ecological consequences.