9 research outputs found
Mining conflicts around the world: Common grounds from an Environmental Justice perspective
Abstract.
This report aims at exploring contemporary mining conflicts in the context of the
sustainable development and environmental justice movement. This is done
based on 24 real case studies from 18 different countries which are described by
local activists and scholars. While 17 of the reported cases focus on conflicts
related to metal mining (e.g. gold, silver, copper, zinc, and lead), four address
uranium mining and one refers to coal mining. As an example of a new frontier in
the industry, a sand mining conflict from India is also reported.
All of these cases are directly chosen and reported, either in factsheet or in-depth
study format, by EJOs, as part of a knowledge sharing activity well-established in
EJOLT between EJOs and the academic community. Although the cases covered
here are all quite unique and diverse in terms of type of conflict and geographical
setting, they all share a common frame of analysis. First, the project and type of
conflict are characterized in a nutshell, with some basic factual background that
describe the companies involved, and the communities and locations affected.
The roots of the conflicts are explored next, as well as relevant socioeconomic,
cultural, health, and ecological impacts and related community claims. Where
relevant, means of resistance are also specified with their influence on the project
and/or the outcome of the conflict.
The report then offers a synthesis of the described mining cases, review their
commonalities, link gained insights with research needs and discuss some policy
recommendations that might follow from this analysis. Despite its limitations,
compiling such a diverse set of mining conflicts that builds on EJO knowledge
promotes mutual learning and collaboration among stakeholders, EJOs and
academia, which is one of the key objectives of EJOLT
GEO-6 assessment for the pan-European region
Through this assessment, the authors and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) secretariat are providing an objective evaluation and analysis of the pan-European environment designed to support environmental decision-making at multiple scales. In this assessment, the judgement of experts is applied to existing knowledge to provide scientifically credible answers to policy-relevant questions. These questions include, but are not limited to the following:• What is happening to the environment in the pan-European region and why?• What are the consequences for the environment and the human population in the pan-European region?• What is being done and how effective is it?• What are the prospects for the environment in the future?• What actions could be taken to achieve a more sustainable future?<br/
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Understanding activist perceptions of environmental justice success in mining resistance movements
Using an activist-orientated dataset (the EJAtlas) of place-based mining resistances, we conduct a statistical analysis of 346 mining conflicts around the world to better understand patterns and conditions associated with activist perceptions of environmental justice (EJ) in mining conflicts. Our study uses a large set of variables, including location, project and conflict characteristics, impacts and resistance attributes. The results show that controlling for other factors, conflict intensity, timing of mobilisation, the centrality of the company in the network, conflict events, project status and the presence of international financial organisations are significant correlates of perceived EJ success. We find that mobilising during the prevention stage, and high-intensity reactions, as well as the ability to halt a project, are positively associated with perceived EJ success. In turn, the intensity of the mobilisation relates to immediate potential socio-economic and environmental impacts, and the presence of excluded and marginalised groups, whereas stopping a project relates to the timing of mobilisation and institutional contexts. We discuss these findings in the light of the literature on political ecology and social movements. We hope that our analysis will help those who seek evidence-based support for EJ activism and prompt further inquiry on mining politics in the world
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Does artistic activism change anything? Strategic and transformative effects of arts in anti-coal struggles in Oakland, CA
Mushrooming opposition to coal mining and transportation in the United States (US) connects with both environmental justice and climate justice movements. Artistic expressions are part of the strategic toolkit of these movements. Art’s capacity to foster cultural, cognitive and psychological changes is amply recognized by academics as well as by public in general. Nevertheless, the theoretical question of how art is linked to activist strategies and to socio-spatial transformations in environmental conflicts remains unexplored. This paper contributes to filling this gap by examining the emblematic struggle to stop the construction of a coal-export terminal in Oakland, CA. Our data includes 32 in-depth interviews of activists, artists and legal experts linked to the conflict surrounding this coal-export terminal. Non-participant observation and secondary data collection helped to contextualize the interviews. The results offer a timeline of the movement, a map of artistic expressions, and network analyses around the effects of environmental artistic activism. We demonstrate that creative activism has critical relevance for facilitating engagement, education and outreach of the anti- coal movement. Arts and its spatial impact benefited the movement by expanding its scale and making it more inclusive regarding demographics, including particularly women and youth of color. The use of the arts raised environmental and political awareness and enhanced public participation in decision making. The paper connects the literatures of environmental justice, environmental humanities and human geography. We contribute to the yet underdeveloped dialogue discussing the capacity of art to influence socio-ecological structures and socio-spatial dynamics in cases of environmental justice conflict
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Six avenues for engendering creative environmentalism
The ubiquitous use of artworks (e.g., paintings, music, films) in environmental activism has been shown to trigger specific cognitive processes as well as changes in personal values and behaviours. There is less understanding of whether (or how) gender-differentiated environmental claims and gender-transformative initiatives are voiced and promoted through art and cultural expressions. Using network analysis, this paper comprehensively reviews ninety-eight years of peer-reviewed literature on gender and environmental activism. We identify six avenues of gendered artistic activism (or ‘artivism’) on environmental issues that communities have pursued in the past. We present a non-prescriptive description of each avenue based on key references in the literature. A gendered lens on artistic activism makes visible the power of different groups to act, be they women, men, LGBTQ or other collectives, their chosen (or available) scopes of creative action when engaging with environmental protection and their thematic foci. A highlight of the study is the significant presence of younger demographics, including children and students in environmental artivism. Finally, we discuss how gendered artivism expands our understanding of environmental action, putting our results in conversation with well-known current environmentalism(s)
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Environmental Justice in Telecoupling Research
The authors of this chapter advocate for the integration of environmental justice thinking in telecoupling research. The chapter provides a succinct review of the history and conceptual foundations of environmental justice, which encompass distribution, recognition and participation issues, and it reviews the most recent empirical case studies in the telecoupling literature. The findings show that few empirical analyses of telecoupled systems have directly incorporated environmental justice in their analytical approach and those which address justice issues do so indirectly, with more focus on distribution than on participation and recognition. The chapter argues that addressing questions of recognition and participation more centrally in telecoupling research and combining both quantitative and qualitative methods can contribute to more systematic attention towards environmental justice in telecoupled systems
Make EU trade with Brazil sustainable
Brazil, home to one of the planet's last great forests, is currently in trade negotiations with its second largest trading partner, the European Union (EU). We urge the EU to seize this critical opportunity to ensure that Brazil protects human rights and the environment