1st Edition
Community Governance and Citizen-Driven Initiatives in Climate Change Mitigation
One of the most heartening developments in climate change mitigation in recent years has been the increasing attention paid to the principle of ‘thinking globally and acting locally’. The failure of the international community to reach significant global agreements on the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions has led local governments, environmental organisations and citizens themselves to focus increasingly on the local possibilities for action on climate change.
This book analyses the strengths and weaknesses of the co-production of climate policies that take place where citizen engagement and local initiatives converge with public agencies. Case studies from Northern Europe, Australia/New Zealand and the USA reveal that traditional individualist approaches to promoting environmental behaviour epitomised by information campaigns and economic incentives cannot trigger the deep behavioural changes required to materially improve our response to climate change. Only by marshalling the forces of thousands, and eventually millions of citizens, can we manage to reach environmental sceptics, reinforce political action and create the new social norms that are sorely needed in our local, and global, response to climate change.
This book will be of great relevance to scholars and policy makers with an interest in climate change politics and governance, community engagement and sustainable development.
1. Community Governance and Citizen-Driven Initiatives in Climate Change Mitigation: An Introduction Jens Hoff and Quentin Gausset 2. The Conundrum of Calculating Carbon Footprints Bjarne W. Strobel, Anders Chr. Erichsen and Quentin Gausset 3. ‘Think Globally, Act Locally’ – Climate Change Mitigation and Citizen Participation Jens Hoff 4. On the Materialisation of Participation in a Municipality Near You Irina Papazu 5. Environmental Choices: Hypocrisy, Self-Contradictions and the Tyranny of Everyday Life Quentin Gausset, Jens Hoff and Christian Scheele 6. Energy Renovation Models in Private Households in Denmark Lise Tjørring and Quentin Gausset 7. Climate Ambassador Programmes in Municipalities: Encouraging climate change mitigation in public administrations and institutions Michael Søogaard Jørgensen and Stine Rahbek Pedersen 8. A local energy transition success story Stefanie Baasch 9.Incorporating Climate Change Mitigation Programmes in Local Administration: The Case of the CCP Programmes in Australia and New Zealand Jens Hoff 10. ’A Change of Just a Few Degrees’: The possibilities and challenges of local American climate mitigation Ebba Lisberg Jensen 11. How Many Thick Television Sets Can There Be in the World? Recycling workers and customers reflect on changing roles, recycling routines and resource flows Ebba Lisberg Jensen 12. Klimafesten: A Case Study of a Municipality’s Intervention to Engage Citizens in Environmentally Sustainable Actions Emilie Møllenbach and Kasper Hornbaek 13. Computer Games and Social Innovation: Participation through Micro-contributions Mette Wichmand
Biography
Jens Hoff is Professor in National and International Governance and Public Policy at the Department of Political Science, University of Copenhagen.
Quentin Gausset is a Lecturer at the Institute of Anthropology, University of Copenhagen.
"Full of new insights into the potential of citizens and their communities, this book provides a fresh perspective on how we can move beyond the promise of technological fixes or individual behaviour change to address new forms of governing climate change that place forms of active citizenship and collaboration at their heart. The book makes a convincing case for the need for policy makers to engage with new approaches to engaging citizens in responding to climate change across multiple scales." – Harriet Bulkeley, Durham University, UK
"A paradox of climate change is that this most global of problems is simultaneously profoundly local in its causes, impacts, and solutions. Hoff and Gausset have assembled a wonderful collection that explores the multiple and diverse ways that local communities from around the world are grappling with climate change and the transformations needed to respond to it. This book is not only cutting edge scholarship, it is also provides a crucial window into the practices, challenges, and practical politics of local responses necessary for solving this global problem." – Matthew Hoffmann, Department of Political Science, University of Toronto
