Climate activism and city politics

• In Event: Climate Activism and Socio-political Challenges in Democracies

Abstract

Based on the example of Vienna, the project analyzes how civil society (CS) activism can be best developed by adequate interplay with cities. The focus will be climate activism and CS-support for Ukrainian displaced persons. The presentation focuses on climate activism.
Research concern
• The potential of CS engagement for cities
• Effective forms of CS participation
• Framework conditions that increase the effectiveness of civil society
• Strategies of a productive handling of conflicts between activists and city administration.

Background
In climate issues, the relationship between politics and civil society is conflictual in many cities (Booth, 2019), if one thinks of occupations of public places or so-called "climate stickers". Nevertheless, a sustainable climate policy will be increasingly necessary for cities. The report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change forecasts alarming developments (IPPC, 2023). Thus, CS protest will not decrease. Civil society organizations can contribute knowledge, help increase the legitimacy of climate-supportive strategies, and opportunities for citizen´s participation in the development of solution (Devaney, Torney, Brereton, & Coleman, 2020; Narodoslawsky, 2020). For the most part, the engaged themselves have high expectations of policymakers (Daniel & Deutschmann, 2020).
Historical analysis shows that activism is an important precondition of larger social change (Gunningham, 2019). In the sense of sustainable urban development, it seems to make sense to involve civil society and to use its potentials, especially since the topic is becoming more and more emotionalized and increasingly takes on socio-political references (della Porta & Parks, 2013).
On the other hand, we see the rise of (right-wing) populist parties and increasingly authoritarian governments that undermine democratic institutions and try to restrict civil rights (Lührmann & Lindberg, 2018, Eikenberry, 2019). This has severe restricting effects on civil society activism (International_Center_for_Not-for-Profit_Law, 2016). This policy is generally polarizing (Mouffe, 2005), and currently the climate issue is being used heavily for this purpose.
Methodologically, the project is based on three pillars:
1. literature research and desk review on civil society engagement in urban spaces, including international experiences of best practices regarding. Due to the open questioning, best-practice-examples of cities´politics but also conflicts and barriers of the engagement will be identified and explored in depth.
2. 30 qualitative, semi-structured individual interviews with civil society actors.
3. Half-day stakeholder workshop with representatives of the Viennese city administration and politics.
Preliminary conclusions – expected results
Framework conditions have high effects on the resilience, forms and impact of civil society (Simsa 2022) and CS organizations are more resilient when there are favourable conditions and cooperation with the state (Pape et al., 2019).
Results are still open. We expect to find many elements of useful and sustainable strategies for cities. Nevertheless, we also expect that their adaption will be restricted by the populist propaganda against climate activism.
Relevance to an international audience
The climate crisis, climate protests and polarization around these issues are truly global phenomena. So although the research is done in one city and thus very local, the results and implications should be of global interest.

References

if possible, the paper should be presented in the following panel : Climate Activism and Socio-political Challenges in Democracies

Booth, E. (2019). Extinction Rebellion: social work, climate change and solidarity. Critical and Radical Social Work, 7(2), 257-261. https://doi.org/10.1332/204986019x15623302985296
Daniel, A., & Deutschmann, A. (2020). Umweltbewegung revisited? Fridays for Future in Wien: Profil und Einstellungen einer neuen Protestbewegung. Working Paper 9.
della Porta, D., & Parks, L. (2013). Framing-Prozesse in der Klimabewegung. Vom Klimawandel zur Klimagerechtigkeit. In M. Dietz & H. Garrelts (Eds.), Die internationale Klimabewegung. Ein Handbuch (pp. 39-56). Wiesbaden: Springer.
Devaney, L., Torney, D., Brereton, P., & Coleman, M. (2020). Ireland´s Citizens´ Assembly on Climate Change: Lessons for Deliberative Public Engagement and Communication. Environmental Communication, 14(2), 141-146. https://doi.org/10.1080/17524032.2019.1708429
Eikenberry, A. M. (2019). Discourses of Volunteering and Civic Action in the USA. VOLUNTAS: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations, 30(1), 54-61. doi: 10.1007/s11266-018-00080-6
Gunningham, N. (2019). Averting Climate Catastrophe: Environmental Activism, Extinction Rebellion and coalitions of Influence. King's Law Journal, 30(2), 194-202.
International_Center_for_Not-for-Profit_Law. (2016). Closing Civic Space: Impact on Development and Humanitarian CSOs (Vol. 7/3).
IPPC (2023): AR6 Synthesis Report: Climate Change 2023. https://www.ipcc.ch/report/sixth-assessment-report-cycle/
Lührmann, A., & Lindberg, S. I. (2018). Keeping the Democratic Façade: Contemporary Autocratization as a Game of Deception V-DEM Working Paper (Vol. 75).
Mouffe, C. (2005). On the Political. Thinking in Action. New York: Routledge.
Narodoslawsky, B. (2020). Inside Fridays for Future: Die faszinierende Geschichte der Klimabewegung in Österreich. Wien: Falter.
Petrella F, Simsa R, Pape U, et al.: Dealing With Paradoxes, Manufacturing Governance: Organizational Change in European Third-Sector Organizations. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly. April 2021.
Simsa, R. (2022): "Changing Civic Spaces in the Light of Authoritarian Elements of Politics and the Covid Crisis – The Case of Austria" Nonprofit Policy Forum, vol. 13, no. 3, 2022, pp. 211-228. https://doi.org/10.1515/npf-2021-0053

Author

• Ruth Simsa, Vienna University of Economics and Business