MEV 025: Unit 10 – Social movements and global civil society
UNIT 10: SOCIAL MOVEMENTS AND GLOBAL CIVIL SOCIETY
10.1 Introduction
Climate justice is not only a subject of
academic discourse or international negotiations—it is also a powerful people’s
movement. Around the world, social movements and global civil society
organizations have taken on a pivotal role in addressing climate change by
advocating for justice, equity, and accountability. They have become a crucial
force in raising awareness, demanding action, and giving a voice to those most
affected but least responsible for the climate crisis.
This unit explores different perspectives on
climate justice, examines the paradoxes of development and ecological debt,
and highlights the indispensable contributions of social movements and
global civil society in promoting climate justice worldwide.
10.2 Objectives
- To understand diverse perspectives on climate justice.
- To explore the roles of academic literature and research in framing
the climate justice discourse.
- To examine the paradoxes of development and the concept of
ecological debt.
- To analyze the influence of social movements in climate justice
activism.
- To understand how global civil society contributes to advocacy,
humanitarian aid, and equitable climate solutions.
10.3 Perspectives on Climate
Justice
Climate justice is approached from different
academic, political, and social lenses. These perspectives provide a nuanced
understanding of the global dynamics of injustice and the role of historical
responsibilities.
10.3.1 Academic Literature and
Research Reports
- Academic studies have framed climate justice in terms of environmental
ethics, political ecology, human rights, and development studies.
- Research highlights the inequitable exposure to climate risks,
uneven adaptive capacities, and the need for inclusive climate
governance.
- The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and other
scholarly works stress the ethical dimension of climate action.
10.3.2 The Development Paradox
- Developing countries are encouraged to grow economically but are
simultaneously pressured to limit emissions.
- This creates a development paradox: economic growth
increases carbon emissions, but environmental regulations may restrict
growth.
- A just solution must balance development needs and environmental
responsibility.
10.3.3 Ecological Debt and the
Global South
- Ecological debt refers to the historical overuse of the Earth’s resources by
industrialized countries at the expense of the Global South.
- The Global South has contributed least to climate change but
suffers the most.
- Climate justice demands that developed nations compensate
and support developing nations for adaptation and mitigation.
10.4 Climate Justice for All
- Climate justice advocates for universal rights to a safe,
healthy, and sustainable environment.
- It includes intra-generational (within the current
generation) and inter-generational (future generations) justice.
- Everyone—regardless of nationality, class, gender, or geography—has
the right to climate protection and participation in climate policy.
10.5 Climate Justice: Role of
Social Movements
Social movements play a crucial role in mobilizing
public opinion, challenging power structures, and demanding
accountability.
10.5.1 Understanding Social
Movements
- Social movements are organized efforts by communities and civil
society to demand social, political, or environmental change.
- Climate justice movements often arise from grassroots activism,
indigenous groups, youth initiatives, and vulnerable communities.
10.5.2 Divestment Movement
- Calls on institutions to withdraw investments from fossil
fuel companies.
- Universities, pension funds, and faith groups have joined the
movement.
- Aims to undermine the legitimacy of fossil fuel industries
and promote renewable energy investment.
10.5.3 Food Sovereignty
- Advocates for community control over food systems.
- Challenges industrial agriculture and climate-unfriendly practices.
- Supports agroecology, indigenous farming methods, and local
food security in the face of climate change.
10.6 Climate Justice: Role of Global
Civil Society
Global civil society includes NGOs, advocacy
networks, charities, and transnational alliances that shape the climate
justice discourse through activism, humanitarian work, and policy engagement.
10.6.1 Human Rights Protection
Civil society organizations integrate human
rights frameworks into climate action.
10.6.1.1 Environmental
Non-Governmental Organization (ENGO): Friends of the Earth International
- A global network of environmental justice groups.
- Works on climate change, biodiversity, and indigenous rights.
- Emphasizes grassroots mobilization and campaigns against
extractive industries.
10.6.2 Voice of the Vulnerable
Civil society amplifies the voices of marginalized
groups, especially in international forums.
10.6.2.1 Charity Organisation:
Jubilee Debt Campaign
- Advocates for debt cancellation for developing countries.
- Links economic justice with climate justice, arguing that high debt
limits climate action capacity.
- Pushes for climate finance grants instead of loans.
10.6.3 Advocacy Role for
Gender-responsiveness
Climate change affects women and men
differently. Civil society promotes gender-equitable solutions.
10.6.3.1 Mary Robinson
Foundation– Climate Justice
- Founded by former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.
- Works to ensure gender justice, intergenerational equity,
and the inclusion of marginalized voices in climate policy.
10.6.4 Humanitarian
Organisation
Civil society provides relief and
rehabilitation in climate-induced disaster zones.
10.6.4.1 Right to Access to
Resources: Cooperative for Assistance and Relief Everywhere (CARE)
- Works on climate resilience, disaster response, and
gender-sensitive adaptation.
- Supports communities in securing access to land, water, and food.
10.6.5 Transnational Network
Transnational civil society builds global
coalitions for knowledge-sharing, policy advocacy, and climate data access.
10.6.5.1 Access to Climate
Data: International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
- Provides research, data, and policy tools for biodiversity
and climate conservation.
- Connects governments, researchers, and NGOs in the global climate
justice movement.
10.7 Let Us Sum Up
- Climate justice involves multiple perspectives, including academic,
ethical, and socio-political.
- The development paradox and ecological debt highlight the need for
fair climate policies.
- Social movements like divestment and food sovereignty challenge
corporate power and promote sustainable practices.
- Global civil society—through NGOs, advocacy groups, charities, and
networks—plays a vital role in climate justice activism, humanitarian
aid, gender advocacy, and data accessibility.
- Empowering civil society and supporting grassroots initiatives is
crucial for inclusive and sustainable climate solutions.
10.8 Keywords
- Climate Justice – A movement and principle promoting fairness in climate action
across social, economic, and geographic lines.
- Ecological Debt – The debt owed by developed nations to developing countries for
environmental degradation and resource exploitation.
- Development Paradox – The conflict between
the need for economic growth and the imperative to reduce emissions.
- Social Movements – Collective actions
advocating for policy and social change.
- Divestment Movement – Campaigns to pull
investment from fossil fuel industries to promote sustainability.
- Food Sovereignty – The right of people to
control their food systems, prioritizing local and sustainable practices.
- Global Civil Society – International network
of NGOs, charities, and advocacy groups working on climate justice.
- ENGO – Environmental Non-Governmental Organization.
- Gender-responsive Advocacy – Climate policy that
considers the differential impacts on men and women.
- Transnational Network – International
coalitions that coordinate efforts across borders for climate action.
Comments
Post a Comment