Climate Change and the Politics of Apocalyptic Redirection

2021 ◽  
pp. 147892992110607
Author(s):  
Ben Cross
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Political Theory ◽  
Power Relations ◽  
Popular Support ◽  
Historical Role

Alison McQueen’s study of the historical role of apocalyptic ideas in realist political theory cautiously proposes the ‘redirection’ of apocalyptic thought as a plausible alternative to its rejection. Apocalyptic redirection, so understood, uses apocalyptic language to describe potential future catastrophes in order to inspire drastic action to prevent them. Although McQueen acknowledges that apocalyptic redirection may have certain risks, she suggests it may be an appropriate response to the crisis of climate change. In this article, I aim to show that this use of the discourse of apocalyptic redirection is ideologically problematic. I argue that it involves conflating the interests of those who are at least moderately materially comfortable with the interests of humanity as a whole. I will also draw on the 2019 ‘Stop Adani Convoy’ in Australia as a case study to show how the ideological character of this discourse renders it ill-suited to generating popular support for action on climate change, and liable to reproduce existing power relations.

scholarly journals Power, the Pacific Islands, and the Prestige Press: A Case Study of How Climate Reporting is Influenced by UN Framework Convention on Climate Change Summits

2021 ◽  
pp. 194016122110180
Author(s):  
Meghan M. Shea ◽  
James Painter ◽  
Shannon Osaka
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
Pacific Islands ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
Emotional Appeals ◽  
Issue Attention ◽  
Quantitative Results

While studies have investigated UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) meetings as drivers of climate change reporting as well as the geopolitical role of Pacific Islands in these international forums, little research examines the intersection: how media coverage of Pacific Islands and climate change (PICC) may be influenced by, or may influence, UNFCCC meetings. We analyze two decades of reporting on PICC in American, British, and Australian newspapers—looking at both volume and content of coverage—and expand the quantitative results with semi-structured interviews with journalists and Pacific stakeholders. Issue attention on PICC increases and the content changes significantly in the periods around UNFCCC meetings, with shifts from language about vulnerability outside of UNFCCC periods to language about agency and solutions. We explore the implications of these differences in coverage for both agenda setting and the amplification of emotional appeals in UNFCCC contexts.

Umstrittene Expertise

2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
Political Theory ◽  
Global Dimension ◽  
The Political ◽  
Special Issue ◽  
Political Consequences ◽  
Political Debates ◽  
Controversial Nature

The current political debates about climate change or the coronavirus pandemic reveal the fundamental controversial nature of expertise in politics and society. The contributions in this volume analyse various facets, actors and dynamics of the current conflicts about knowledge and expertise. In addition to examining the contradictions of expertise in politics, the book discusses the political consequences of its controversial nature, the forms and extent of policy advice, expert conflicts in civil society and culture, and the global dimension of expertise. This special issue also contains a forum including reflections on the role of expertise during the coronavirus pandemic. The volume includes perspectives from sociology, political theory, political science and law.

scholarly journals Should Judges Make Climate Change Law?

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 55-75 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Burgers
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Political Theory ◽  
Deliberative Democracy ◽  
Separation Of Powers ◽  
Democratic Legitimacy ◽  
Law And Politics ◽  
Sound Environment ◽  
Judicial Lawmaking ◽  
Near Future

AbstractWhat scholars referred to as a climate change litigation ‘explosion’ in 2015 has today become an established movement which is unlikely to stop in the near future: worldwide, over a thousand lawsuits have been launched regarding responsibility for the dangers of climate change. Since the beginning of this trend in transnational climate litigation scholars have warned that the separation of powers is threatened where judges interfere with the politically hot issue of climate change. This article uses Jürgen Habermas's political theory on deliberative democracy to reconstruct the tension between law and politics generated by these lawsuits. This reconstruction affords a better understanding of the implications of climate change litigation: while the role of the judiciary as such remains unchanged, the trend is likely to influence the democratic legitimacy of judicial lawmaking on climate change, as it indicates an increasing realization that a sound environment is a constitutional value and is therefore a prerequisite for democracy.

Mapping power relations in SEA – The role of statutory environmental consultees. An Italian case-study

2020 ◽  
Vol 83 ◽  
pp. 106405
Author(s):  
Paola Gazzola ◽  
Alessandro Bonifazi ◽  
Alessandro Rinaldi
Keyword(s):  
Power Relations ◽  
Italian Case

scholarly journals ‘Volunteering is like any other business’: Civic participation and social media

2017 ◽  
Vol 20 (6) ◽  
pp. 2186-2207 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne Kaun ◽  
Julie Uldam
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Crucial Role ◽  
Power Relations ◽  
Civic Participation ◽  
Analytical Framework ◽  
Migration Crisis ◽  
Technological Affordances ◽  
Shed Light

The increased influx of refugees in 2015 has led to challenges in transition and destination countries such as Germany, Sweden and Denmark. Volunteer-led initiatives providing urgent relief played a crucial role in meeting the needs of arriving refugees. The work of the volunteers in central stations and transition shelters was mainly organised with the help of Facebook, in terms of both inward and outward communications. This article examines the role of social media for civic participation drawing on Swedish volunteer initiatives that emerged in the context of the migration crisis in 2015 as a case study. Theoretically, this article provides an analytical framework, including power relations, technological affordances, practices and discourses, which helps shed light on the interrelation between social media and civic participation.

The Least Developed Countries and Climate Change Law

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patricia Kameri-Mbote
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Phase 1 ◽  
Climate Change Impacts ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
Least Developed Countries ◽  
Legal Challenges ◽  
Historical Role ◽  
International Climate ◽  
Five Phases

This chapter describes the roles of the forty-nine least developed countries (LDCs) in the international climate change regime and climate change law. It investigates the following questions: How has the historical role of the LDCs evolved in relation to the climate change regime? What are the key legal challenges facing these countries? In order to address these questions, this chapter examines the role of the LDCs through five phases of the climate negotiations thus far: Pre-1990 (Phase 1), 1990—1996 (Phase 2), 1997—2001 (Phase 3), 2001—2007 (Phase 4), and 2008—2013 (Phase 5). Together, they have contributed the least to the climate change problem, but experienced the highest climate change impacts, because of their higher levels of vulnerability and lower adaptive capacity. The chapter also discusses how the LDCs are caught in the cross-fire between the emerging economies, Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), and developed countries.

Power relations and the accounting system in the Archbishop’s Seminary of Siena (1666-1690)

2019 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 401-420
Author(s):  
Michela Magliacani ◽  
Roberto Di Pietra
Keyword(s):  
Power Relations ◽  
Accounting System ◽  
Religious Institutions ◽  
Local Power ◽  
Content Type ◽  
And Control ◽  
Flow Of Information ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose Accounting can affect and determine power relations. Previous studies have emphasized how accounting has been used by “central” powers; less is known from the perspective of “local” power and its capacity to resist and protect its interests. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between the Archbishop’s Seminary of Siena (ASS) (local) and Roman ecclesiastic institutions (central). This study contributes to filling the existing gap in the literature regarding how accounting could be used as a tool for deception in local/central power relations. Design/methodology/approach The research methodology is based on a case study and archival research. The ASS case study was analyzed through its archive, made up for the most part of accounting books. As to the approach adopted, the authors used the Foucault framework to observe power relations in order to identify possible ways in which accounting can be employed as a factor of deception. Findings Power relations between the ASS and Roman ecclesiastic institutions were maintained through a system of reporting that limited the influence of the ecclesiastical power of Rome over the Seminary’s administration and control. The relationship thus runs contrary to the findings in previous studies. The accounting system was managed as a factor of deception in favor of local interests and the limitation of central ecclesiastic power. Research limitations/implications This study contributes to enhancing the existing literature on governmentality, proposing a different perspective in which power relations are based on the use of accounting. The Foucaldian approach demonstrates its validity, even though the power relations under consideration have the unusual feature of occurring within the context of religious institutions. Originality/value This study on the ASS has allowed the identification of two relevant points: the local/central dichotomy is consistent with the logic of power relations as theorized by Foucault, even in cases where it highlights the role of a local power in limiting the flow of information to a central one; and the ASS accounting system was used as a factor of deception.

When institutional entrepreneurship failed

2018 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 1199-1229 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Major ◽  
Ana Conceição ◽  
Stewart Clegg
Keyword(s):  
Change Process ◽  
Power Relations ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Power Dynamics ◽  
Institutional Entrepreneurship ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Power Strategies ◽  
Political Economic

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the role of power relations in initiating and blocking accounting change that involves increased “responsibilisation” and “incentivisation”, and to understand how institutional entrepreneurship is steered by power strategies. Design/methodology/approach An in-depth case study was carried out between 2010 and 2015 in a cardiothoracic surgery service (CSS) where a responsibility centre was introduced. Findings Introducing a responsibility centre within a CSS led to a change process, despite pressures for stability. The institutionalisation of change was conditioned by entrepreneurship that flowed through three circuits of power. Strategies were adapted according to changes in exogenous environmental contingencies and alterations in the actors’ relationships. Originality/value The contributions of the paper are several: first, it demonstrates that the existing literature discussing the implementation of responsibility centres cannot be isolated from power issues; second, it expands understanding of the power dynamics and processes of institutional entrepreneurship when implementing accounting change; third, it shows how change introduced by exogenous political economic events structured organisational circuits of power and blocked the introduction of the change initiative.

scholarly journals FORMALISASI SYARI�AT ISLAM DAN DOMINASI NEGARA TERHADAP ELITE AGAMA ISLAM TRADISIONAL DI ACEH

2014 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 91-105
Author(s):  
Nirzalin ◽  
Fakhrurrazi
Keyword(s):  
Government Policies ◽  
Political Elites ◽  
Political Actor ◽  
State Apparatus ◽  
Powerful Means ◽  
Ruling Elites ◽  
Historical Role ◽  
Democratic Spaces

Berdasarkan studi kasus di Aceh Utara, tulisan ini hendak menunjukkan realitas kompleks tentang komodifikasi Syariat Islam oleh elite yang sedang memerintah di Aceh. Realitasnya, birokratisasi Syariat Islam telah menutup ruang bagi lahirnya wacana tandingan (counter discourse) dari masyarakat terhadap wacana yang dikembangkan oleh negara. Hal itu termanifestasi pada pelbagai Qanun yang telah disahkan. Qanun-qanun tersebut justeru memperlihatkan dominasi kepentingan elite yang sedang memerintah daripada aspirasi yang disuarakan oleh masyarakat. Sementara itu, birokratisasi dayah (pondok pesantren salafi/tradisional) dan penciptaan ketergantungan ekonomi dayah pada negara melalui kegiatan yang mengatasnamakan pembinaan dayah ternyata merupakan kedok bagi dominasi negara terhadap teungku dayah (elite agama Islam tradisional). Dominasi ini berhasil memposisikan teungku dayah sebagai jastifikator pelbagai kebijakan pemerintah. Akibatnya, peran teungku dayah di Aceh yang pada awalnya adalah aktor sosial yang secara vis a vis sanggup berhadapan dengan pemerintah dalam mengkritisi pelbagai kebijakan berdasarkan aspirasi yang berkembang di masyarakat menjadi pudar.Based on a case study in North Aceh district, this paper wants to demonstrate the complex reality of current commoditization of Syariah committed by political elites in Aceh. In fact, the bureaucratization of Syariah has closed democratic spaces which enable civil society including local religious elite to counter states discourses and policies. Such bureaucratization was manifested in the enactment of several Qanuns which unveil the domination of ruling elites interests over societys interests and aspiration. On the other hand, the bureaucratization of dayah (traditional or salafi pesantren) and the formation of its economic dependence on states budgets through what called as dayah guidance/direction programs became a powerful means for the state apparatus to co-opt teungku dayah as Islamic local religious elites. Such cooptation has successfully positioned teungku dayah to act as justificatory actor toward various government policies. As the result, the historical role of teungku dayah in Aceh as the main political actor, which able to criticize government policies based on people aspiration, is fading away in the aftermath of conflict in Aceh.

scholarly journals Mosquito Host Seeking in 3D Using a Versatile Climate-Controlled Wind Tunnel System

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annika Hinze ◽  
Jörgen Lantz ◽  
Sharon R. Hill ◽  
Rickard Ignell
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Wind Tunnel ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Flight Behavior ◽  
Future Studies ◽  
Host Seeking ◽  
Seeking Behavior ◽  
Tunnel System

Future anthropogenic climate change is predicted to impact sensory-driven behaviors. Building on recent improvements in computational power and tracking technology, we have developed a versatile climate-controlled wind tunnel system, in which to study the effect of climate parameters, including temperature, precipitation, and elevated greenhouse gas levels, on odor-mediated behaviors in insects. To establish a baseline for future studies, we here analyzed the host-seeking behavior of the major malaria vector mosquito, Anopheles gambiae sensu strico, to human odor and carbon dioxide (CO2), under tightly controlled climatic conditions, and isolated from potential background contamination by the presence of an experimenter. When presented with a combination of human foot odor and CO2 (case study I), mosquitoes engaged in faster crosswind flight, spent more time in the filamentous odor plume and targeted the odor source more successfully. In contrast, female An. gambiae s. s. presented with different concentrations of CO2 alone, did not display host-seeking behavior (case study II). These observations support previous findings on the role of human host-associated cues in host seeking and confirm the role of CO2 as a synergist, but not a host-seeking cue on its own. Future studies are aimed at investigating the effect of climate change on odor-mediated behavior in mosquitoes and other insects. Moreover, the system will be used to investigate detection and processing of olfactory information in various behavioral contexts, by providing a fine-scale analysis of flight behavior.

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