scholarly journals Japan’s Climate Change Discourse: Toward Climate Securitisation?

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 53-64
Author(s):  
Florentine Koppenborg ◽  
Ulv Hanssen
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Policy ◽  
White Paper ◽  
Foreign Affairs ◽  
Security Issue ◽  
Political Issue ◽  
Climate Action ◽  
The Status ◽  
Climate Crisis ◽  
First Time

This article situates Japan in the international climate security debate by analysing competing climate change discourses. In 2020, for the first time, the Japanese Ministry of the Environment included the term “climate crisis” (<em>kikō kiki</em>) in its annual white paper, and the Japanese parliament adopted a “climate emergency declaration” (<em>kikō hijō jitai sengen</em>). Does this mean that Japan’s climate discourse is turning toward the securitisation of climate change? Drawing on securitisation theory, this article investigates whether we are seeing the emergence of a climate change securitisation discourse that treats climate change as a security issue rather than a conventional political issue. The analysis focuses on different stakeholders in Japan’s climate policy: the Japanese Ministry of the Environment, the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the parliament, the Cabinet, and sub- and non-state actors. Through a discourse analysis of ministry white papers and publications by other stakeholders, the article identifies a burgeoning securitisation discourse that challenges, albeit moderately, the status quo of incrementalism and inaction in Japan’s climate policy. This article further highlights Japan’s position in the rapidly evolving global debate on the urgency of climate action and provides explanations for apparent changes and continuities in Japan’s climate change discourse.

Balkan Litmus. Austro-Hungarian Policy in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Russian Diplomacy, 1878–1908

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lidia Pakhomova ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Affairs ◽  
International Level ◽  
Research Subjects ◽  
Habsburg Monarchy ◽  
Internal Development ◽  
Occupied Territory ◽  
The Status ◽  
Russian Military ◽  
First Time

This monograph focuses on the activities of Russian consuls in Sarajevo, as well as the work of diplomats on the Bosnian-Herzegovinian issue both during the Great Eastern Crisis and before the Annexation Crisis. The Congress of Berlin, held after the Russian-Turkish War of 1877–78, placed the region under the control of the Habsburg Monarchy, but under the sovereignty of the Ottoman Sultan. The book shows that the Russian Military Ministry had a plan to prevent the occupation. One of the research subjects is the Russian-Austrian negotiation on the status of the provinces. The decisions made by the St Petersburg were based on an analysis of the situation in the province — the center for collecting information was the Consulate in Sarajevo, hence the author’s attention to its functioning. The assessment of the Austro-Hungarian modernisation policy in the occupied territory by the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs is analysed historiographically for the first time. The study of the ethnographic works by Pavel A. Rovinsky and Aleksei N. Kharuzin made it possible to trace the changes in the life of Bosnian and Herzegovinian inhabitants during the Austro-Hungarian occupation. Thus, the author attempts to demonstrate the connection between the internal development of the region and the decisions about its fate at the international level.

From Kyoto to Paris and Beyond: The Emerging Politics of Climate Change

2021 ◽  
pp. 097492842110272
Author(s):  
Saurabh Thakur
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Hybrid Approach ◽  
Political Issue ◽  
Climate Politics ◽  
Greenhouse Gases Emissions ◽  
Climate Action ◽  
Action Strategies ◽  
Multi Stakeholder ◽  
Justice Movements

Anthropogenic climate change has emerged as the most disruptive socio-political issue in the last few decades. The Kyoto Protocol’s failure to curb the rising greenhouse gases emissions pushed the UNFCCC-led negotiations towards a more flexible, non-binding agreement at the Paris COP21 meeting in 2015. The Paris Agreement’s hybrid approach to climate change governance, where flexible measures like the nationally determined commitments are balanced against the ambition of limiting the global temperature within the two-degree range, ensured the emergence of an increasingly complex and multi-stakeholder climate change regime. The article outlines the roadmap of the transition from the top-down approach of Kyoto Protocol to the legally non-binding, bottom-up approaches adopted for the post-Paris phase. The article outlines the post-Paris developments in international climate politics, which hold long-term geopolitical and geoeconomic implications. The article focuses on the fundamental shifts and balances within the UNFCCC architecture and examines the four fundamental features of this transition—the interpretation of differentiation and common but differentiated responsibilities, the evolving role of emerging economies in the negotiations, the rising profile of non-party stakeholders in shaping the climate action strategies and the emergence of climate justice movements as an alternate site of climate action.

Al Gore and the Climate Reality Project Down Under: The Up Market of the Climate Movement

2015 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
pp. 10-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hans Baer
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Environmental Problem ◽  
Social Economic ◽  
Field Research ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Violent Conflict ◽  
Climate Policies ◽  
Climate Action ◽  
The Status ◽  
Action Groups

In terms of applied work, anthropologists have been working on climate change issues at two broad and quite distinct levels, namely in the formulation of climate policies and by becoming involved in climate action groups and the climate movement that supports social, economic, and technological changes in the interest of mitigating climate change, a phenomenon that an increasing number of observers view as the most profound environmental problem ever faced by humanity and one that will continue to play itself out during the present century. In her list of issues that engaged anthropologists examine, Warren (2006:213) includes "social justice, inequality, subaltern challenges to the status quo, globalization's impacts, and ethical position of our field research in situations of violent conflict." Ironically, many of these issues are related in one way or another to anthropogenic climate change. I maintain that more anthropologists need to become involved as observers and engaged scholars in applied initiatives seeking to respond to climate change on the local, regional, national, and global levels.

scholarly journals Are citizen juries and assemblies on climate change driving democratic climate policymaking? An exploration of two case studies in the United Kingdom

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca Wells ◽  
Candice Howarth ◽  
Lina I. Brand-Correa
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Policy ◽  
Comparative Case Study ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Climate Action ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Elected Representatives ◽  
The Impact

Abstract In light of increasing pressure to deliver climate action targets, and the growing role of citizens in raising the importance of the issue, deliberative democratic processes (e.g. Citizen Juries and Citizen Assemblies) on climate change are increasingly being used to provide a voice to citizens in climate change decision-making. Through a comparative case study of two processes that ran in the UK in 2019 (the Leeds Climate Change Citizens’ Jury and the Oxford Citizens’ Assembly on Climate Change), this paper investigates how far Citizen Assemblies and Juries on climate change are increasing citizen engagement on climate change and creating more citizen-centred climate policy-making. Interviews were conducted with policy-makers, councillors, professional facilitators and others involved in running these processes to assess motivations for conducting these, their structure and the impact and influence they had. The findings suggest the impact of these processes is not uniform: they have an indirect impact on policymaking by creating momentum around climate action and supporting the introduction of pre-planned or pre-existing policies rather than a direct impact by being truly being citizen-centred policymaking processes or conducive to new climate policy. We conclude with reflections on how these processes give elected representatives a public mandate on climate change, that they help to identify more nuanced and in-depth public opinions in a fair and informed way, yet it can be challenging to embed citizen juries and assemblies in wider democratic processes.

scholarly journals China and Climate Change Governance: A Golden Opportunity

2022 ◽  
pp. 1-12
Author(s):  
Barry Buzan
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
The United States ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Climate Governance ◽  
Policy Adjustment ◽  
The World ◽  
Golden Opportunity ◽  
Climate Action ◽  
Climate Crisis

Climate change is a threat to all of humankind, yet there is still a leadership vacuum on climate governance. At the same time, the deepening climate crisis also presents a golden opportunity for Beijing to assume the role of a global leader. China has the capacity to do it in a way that the United States, Russia, India, and the European Union do not. Taking swift climate action is in Beijing’s interest. Greater contributions to climate governance will certainly help advance China’s long-term political interest in both raising its political status and demonstrating the claimed superiority of its system of government. Positive rhetoric and robust action by China are likely to have a disproportionate effect on the rest of the world. Policy adjustment and implementation by Beijing will bring benefits to the rest of the world. Climate policy options that Beijing may take in the future are not mutually exclusive. The policy shift on climate change could also be attached more firmly to the idea of sustainable development as a defining factor of China’s approach to tackling the climate change threat.

scholarly journals Whose climate intervention? Solar geoengineering, fractions of capital, and hegemonic strategy

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin Surprise ◽  
Jean Philippe Sapinski
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Policy ◽  
Carbon Emissions ◽  
Research Finding ◽  
Capitalist Class ◽  
Climate Action ◽  
Solar Geoengineering ◽  
Market Driven ◽  
Technological Capital ◽  
Business As Usual

Proposals for slowing climate change by reflecting sunlight back to space, known as solar geoengineering (SG), are gaining traction in climate policy. Given SG’s capacity to slow warming without reducing carbon emissions, prominent criticism suggests that it will enable fossil fueled business-as-usual. This assessment is not without merit, yet the primary funders of SG research do not emanate from fossil capital. We analyze sources of funding for SG research, finding close ties to financial and technological capital as well as a number of billionaire philanthropists. These corporate sectors and associated philanthropies comprise part of “climate capital” – the fraction of the capitalist class aligned with climate action. We argue that SG is being positioned as a tactic for enabling incremental, market-driven decarbonization, explore key institutions advocating this approach in US climate policy, and conclude that SG is poised to serve as a tool for class compromise between fossil and climate capital.

scholarly journals Perceived Cultural Impacts of Climate Change Motivates Climate Action and Support for Climate Policy

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kim-Pong Tam ◽  
Angela Leung ◽  
Brandon Koh
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Policy ◽  
The United States ◽  
Political Orientation ◽  
Communication Strategy ◽  
Public Understanding ◽  
Student Sample ◽  
Cultural Impacts ◽  
Climate Action ◽  
Impacts Of Climate Change

The impacts of climate change on human cultures receive increasing attention in recent years. However, the extent to which people are aware of these impacts, whether such awareness motivates climate action, and what kinds of people show stronger awareness are rarely understood. The present investigation provides the very first set of answers to these questions. In two studies (with a student sample with N = 198 from Singapore and a demographically representative sample with N = 571 from the United States), we observed a generally high level of awareness among our participants. Most important, perceived cultural impacts of climate change robustly predicted intentions to engage in climate change mitigation behavior and climate activism, as well as support for climate policy. We also found expected associations between perceived cultural impacts and psychological and demographic variables (e.g., cosmopolitan orientation, moral inclusion, political orientation). These findings not only add a cultural dimension to the research on public understanding of climate change but also reveal a viable application of cultural frames as an effective climate communication strategy.

scholarly journals Kierkegaard in the Anthropocene: Hope, Philosophy, and the Climate Crisis

Religions ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 279
Author(s):  
Ruby Guyatt
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Empirical Research ◽  
Religious Faith ◽  
Therapeutic Practice ◽  
Christian Philosophy ◽  
Climate Action ◽  
Climate Crisis ◽  
Positive Climate ◽  
Affective Dimensions

What is the role of hope in the climate crisis? What type of hope does this crisis demand? How can we sustain hope, in order to resist falling into fatalistic despair or paralyzing fear, whilst always guarding against hope giving way to happy complacency? This essay considers these urgent questions through a novel encounter between the Christian philosophy of Søren Kierkegaard, and recent eco-critical and empirical research on the affectivity of climate change mobilization. I begin by outlining the scope and aims of this essay (1st section), before introducing some affective dimensions of the climate crisis (2nd section), particularly the place of hope. Next, I examine Kierkegaard’s account of hope, and explore the extent to which it corresponds to the type of hope needed in the climate crisis (3rd section). Here, I show that Kierkegaardian hope is a therapeutic practice which subverts the eco-anxiety and sense of helplessness that can otherwise prevent individuals from engaging in positive climate action. Finally, I compare Kierkegaard’s theologically grounded hope with the hope held by climate change activists without religious faith (4th section). Participating in collective climate action anchors the individual’s hopes in a larger, collective hope, which I suggest is sustainable in ways that are partially analogous to the therapeutic functions of Kierkegaard’s Christian hope.

Democracy and the Challenge of Climate Change

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Lindvall
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Policy ◽  
Intrinsic Value ◽  
Civil Society Organizations ◽  
Political Implications ◽  
Institutional Learning ◽  
The Face ◽  
Policy Agendas ◽  
Free Flow Of Information ◽  
Climate Crisis

Climate change actions in democracies face perceived challenges such as short-term bias in decision-making, policy capture or inconsistency, weak accountability mechanisms and the permeability of the policy-making process to interests adverse to fighting climate change through the role of money in politics. Apart from its intrinsic value to citizens, democracy also brings critical advantages in formulating effective climate policy, such as representative parliaments which can hold governments to account, widespread civic participation, independent media and a free flow of information, the active engagement by civil society organizations in policymaking and the capacity for institutional learning in the face of complex issues with long-term and global social and political implications. International IDEA’s work on change and democracy aims to support democratic institutions to successfully confront the climate crisis by leveraging their advantages and overcoming the challenges to formulating effective and democratically owned climate policy agendas.

Ecological Security

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matt McDonald
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Critical Theory ◽  
Political Ecology ◽  
Human Populations ◽  
Ecological Security ◽  
Security Issue ◽  
National Sovereignty ◽  
Time Space ◽  
Security Relationship ◽  
Climate Crisis

Climate change is increasingly recognised as a security issue. Yet this recognition belies contestation over what security means and whose security is viewed as threatened. Different accounts – here defined as discourses – of security range from those focused on national sovereignty to those emphasising the vulnerability of human populations. This book examines the ethical assumptions and implications of these 'climate security' discourses, ultimately making a case for moving beyond the protection of human institutions and collectives. Drawing on insights from political ecology, feminism and critical theory, Matt McDonald suggests the need to focus on the resilience of ecosystems themselves when approaching the climate-security relationship, orienting towards the most vulnerable across time, space and species. The book outlines the ethical assumptions and contours of ecological security before exploring how it might find purchase in contemporary political contexts. A shift in this direction could not be more urgent, given the current climate crisis.

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