- Between weeks 8 and 12, each student should provide a weekly reflection (500 words) on the data you have collected to date.
- What data did you collect?
- What is your initial impression of the data?
- How have the data you have collected this week changed/progressed your thinking about your research project?
- What challenges did you encounter while collecting the data?
- What are your next steps?
This week, I continued my library research while also beginning to prepare for interviews. In my library research, I have begun to develop a framework for understanding how decisions with regards to the environment are made, which will be helpful when it comes to analyzing how activists may react to or try to impact those decisions. In particular, these articles have covered how major institutions forward the ideologies of neoliberalism, suggesting that activists would want to counter or dismantle these ideas in order to make change with regards to the environment. I am now trying to figure out how to incorporate these ideas into my interview protocol. Beginning to write my interview protocol was the first step I took this week to prep for my interviews. A few of my questions seek to elicit answers that would lead my respondents to reflect on these institutions’ environmental impact. In particular, “What changes would you like to see with regards to environmental protection?” and “What do you think are the biggest challenges facing environmental activists today?” may provide opportunities for them to discuss the role of large institutions in climate change and their insight on what change needs to be enacted with regards to these forces. The next steps I will be taking, in addition to continuing my library research, are to finish my interview protocol and beginning to contact respondents to schedule interviews.
Andrew, Jane and Corinne Cortese. 2013. “Free Market Environmentalism and the Neoliberal Project: The Case of the Climate Disclosure Standards Board.” Critical Perspectives on Accounting 24(6):397–409.
While this article focuses more narrowly on the relationship between neoliberalism and the practice of carbon disclosures by companies, it provides useful and relevant background on the general relationship between neoliberalism and the environment. They argue that climate policy decisions under neoliberalism are made non-democratically, and instead created by private actors who create them within the structure of capitalism. In the process, these practices serve to reify the neoliberal agenda. This argument helps to build a framework that understands how neoliberalism impacts institutions’ interactions with the environment, and thus how activists engage with those institutions. This article also touches on how the natural environment places limits on growth oriented capitalism; this concept resonates with Melinda Cooper’s work and may point to an opportunity to include her writing as a source for the project.
COMMENTS:
This article looks great. It is indeed a good idea to focus on the relationship between institutions and environment. In your interviews, depending on how they unfold, you could also specifically ask about companies. Also, in your interviews, do not assume that your informants would mean the same thing when they mention”environment” and “activism.” Pay attention to how they see/construct these terms.
Also, if you want to talk about the impact of growth model on environment, you could also look into “degrowth movement and environment” literature. But this is just a suggestion. You certainly do not have to do it.
Zelli, Fariborz, Aarti Gupta, and Harro van Asselt. 2013. “Institutional Interactions at the Crossroads of Trade and Environment: The Dominance of Liberal Environmentalism?” Global Governance; Boulder 19(1):105–18.
This article is a macro-level analysis of the norms surrounding environmentalism. The authors work from the understanding that institutions are embedded in norms, and so these norms have significant impact on how institutions handle environmentalism. They specifically argue for the hegemony of the norm of “liberal environmentalism,” which is “a set of global norms promoting economic efficiency and environmental improvements through market-based mechanisms.” They follow this up with examples of liberal environmentalism, which includes opposition from major world powers to trade restrictions as an environmental measure, due to their potential to hinder competition, as well as advocacy for market-based climate governance mechanisms. This argument aligns with David Harvey’s arguments about neoliberalism and the environment, but goes deeper and with more specificity. This article provides helpful, concrete examples that I could use to elaborate on Harvey’s basic overview of neoliberalism and the environment.
COMMENTS:
This article is also interesting. I do not know how they are exactly using the notion of “liberal environmentalism” (since I did not read the article) but you might actually end up using this concept for your project ( or maybe not, we will see). And you are right that this connects to David Harvey. But I think it also ties to Wendy Brown. What do you think?
Also, I read your consent form. I think it looks great.