POLITICS IN A CLIMATE- CHALLENGED SOCIETY

Professor David SchlosbergDepartment of Government and

International Relations

Overview of the Challenges Climate change challenges us to adapt –

it’s too late for prevention Climate change challenges the

relationship between science, knowledge, progress, and democracy

Climate change challenges our dedication to justice

Climate change challenges how we govern ourselves

Climate change challenges us to rethink how we relate to the rest of nature.

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From Prevention to Adaptation Adaptation is not an option From unacceptable and impolitic to

necessity Not all adaptive responses are

sustainable Resilience

Adger: “the ability of a system to absorb change while retaining essential function…to have the capacity to adapt and learn.”

Potential dangers of resilience as an adaptive frame

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Science, Progress, Democracy The fantasy of enlightenment thinking

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Knowledge, the public, and policy

Sarawitz: Science cannot solve disputes that are at root political or ethical.

From one-way communication to public engagement

Inclusion of a variety of local knowledges and discourses.

Examples: NYC heat island planning Alberta Climate Dialogue Forthcoming work in adaptation planning

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The Challenge of Justice UNFCCC 1992: “protect the climate system for

the benefit of present and future generations of mankind, on the basis of equity and in accordance with their common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capacities”

So: We have responsibility to the future and across

borders Equity is a basic principle Yet we also have differing responsibilities… …and differing capacities to act The climate system supports life itself

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The Challenge(s) of Justice, continued

Expanding the community of justice: Across borders Across generations

Historical responsibility: polluter pays Equity: everybody must act Does climate change violate human rights? Do we have environmental rights? An

“environmental justice threshold” Justice for nonhuman individuals and

communities?

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Justice and Local Adaptation Voice to local communities Vulnerability mapping Participation, engagement, and

deliberation

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The Challenge of Governance

How do we govern ourselves through climate change?

Proposals for new forms of global governance

Focus on governance – not just governments

Governance for adaptation - Bierman Distributed governance Networked governance

Opposition, contestation, reflexivity

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The Challenge of New Materialism The unsustainable practices of everyday

life Movements for sustainable materialism

Local energy generation and transition Food security through community

agriculture Crafting, making, mending

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Framing Sustainable Materialism 1 A response to powerlessness

Resisting the current flows of power Embodying new forms of power and flows

of materials

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Framing Sustainable Materialism 2 Beyond post-materialism Not just about values or political

interests Developing sustainable practices and

institutions, focused on material flows

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Framing Sustainable Materialism 3

Aimed directly at sustainability, and the human relationship with nonhuman world

Flows of food, matter, energy. Actively replace a politics of separation

with one of immersion. Latour: Neither liberation from Nature nor

fall…but a process of becoming ever-more attached

Critiques: Easily hijacked, often apolitical

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Adaptation Gives Us A Lot To Do Future plans, collaborations, networks. Questions….

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POLITICS IN A CLIMATE- CHALLENGED SOCIETY

Professor David SchlosbergDepartment of Government and

International Relations