Resisting Global Toxics: Transnational Movements for Environmental Justice
Abstract
Examines the export of hazardous wastes to poor communities of color around the world and charts the global social movements that challenge them.
Every year, nations and corporations in the “global North” produce millions of tons of toxic waste. Too often this hazardous material—inked to high rates of illness and death and widespread ecosystem damage—is exported to poor communities of color around the world. In Resisting Global Toxics, David Naguib Pellow examines this practice and charts the emergence of transnational environmental justice movements to challenge and reverse it. Pellow argues that waste dumping across national boundaries from rich to poor communities is a form of transnational environmental inequality that reflects North/South divisions in a globalized world, and that it must be theorized in the context of race, class, nation, and environment. Building on environmental justice studies, environmental sociology, social movement theory, and race theory, and drawing on his own research, interviews, and participant observations, Pellow investigates the phenomenon of global environmental inequality and considers the work of activists, organizations, and networks resisting it. He traces the transnational waste trade from its beginnings in the 1980s to the present day, examining global garbage dumping, the toxic pesticides that are the legacy of the Green Revolution in agriculture, and today's scourge of dumping and remanufacturing high tech and electronics products. The rise of the transnational environmental movements described in Resisting Global Toxics charts a pragmatic path toward environmental justice, human rights, and sustainability.
... As explicações empíricas para a existência de distribuição desigual dos problemas e riscos ambientais para uma parcela específica da população são: tendência de governos e empresas de seguirem caminhos de pouca resistência sobre decisões de alocação de riscos ambientais; dinâmica do mercado imobiliário que aproxima locais de risco ambientais e moradias de população pobre; exclusão de população local carente de instâncias decisórias; redução de importância de movimentos trabalhistas e de saúde ocupacional; exclusão de pessoas mais pobres e de cor do movimento ambiental; violação de acordos e tratados socioambientais, entre outros (Bryant, 1995;Bullard;Cole;Foster, 2001;Faber;Krieg, 2002;Gottlieb, 2002;Pellow, 2007;Smith;Sonnenfeld;Pellow, 2006). ...
... Partindo dessa definição, as pesquisas realizadas no campo da justiça ambiental se constituem de um caráter combativo e de denúncia (Malin;Ryder, 2018;Kojola;. Sua principal motivação é a transformação social com o fim último de construção de sociedades mais justas e democráticas (Pellow, 2007). Cinco são os eixos principais de transformações que a justiça ambiental oferece para a construção de sociedades mais justas: direito à participação em processos decisórios; direito à informação sobre os riscos ambientais; direito à organização para eliminar as desigualdades; direito à compensação de injúrias; e direito ao reconhecimento e solidariedade (Pellow, 2017). ...
... Notably, indigenous environmental justice claims often extend beyond distributional equity, emphasizing the various capabilities and functionings required for individuals and communities to flourish (Schlosberg and Carruthers 2010). Additionally, studies have adapted the EJ framework to investigate the transnational trade of hazardous waste and global North-to-South dumping scandals (Pellow 2007). ...
This chapter explores the intersection of waste, temporalities, and environmental justice in China’s production wastescapes. It emphasizes the gradual, insidious harms that accrue over protracted periods, often mirroring the slow violence of systemic and structural constraints. It theorizes the dispersed village industrial wastescapes and toxic agricultural wastescapes in China’s Pearl River Delta as a project of conceded harm. In this context, local communities and rural migrants actively participate in an opportunistic and short-term developmental trajectory co-orchestrated by the state and transnational firms as a response to the exigencies of their circumstances. This orchestrated short-termism in China’s political-economic transition highlights the pivotal concerns of intergenerational injustices and the internal heterogeneity of marginalized groups. These arise from the uneven apportionment of benefits and burdens among disparate community members and across generational divides in grappling with the ethical paradox birthed by the tension between developmentalism and the environmentalism of the poor.
... Exploring this variability enables us to provide layered insights into how air pollution impacts students in both more affluent urban centers and less developed areas, thereby offering a comprehensive understanding of the issue. We used a longitudinal fixed effects regression model to assess the relationships between air pollution and students' academic performance, measured by the grade point average (GPA), while controlling for potentially important time-invariant factors. 1 We adopt Pellow's (2007) conceptualization of the Global North and Global South as social constructs rather than strictly geographical ones. The Global North is characterized by more privileged, affluent Communities, often associated with the 'developed' or 'first' world. ...
Air pollution has been linked to various health problems in children, including respiratory and neurological issues. Existing research has also found that exposure to air pollution can affect children's cognitive ability and academic performance, with some studies showing a decrease in test scores and grade point averages associated with increased exposure to hazardous air pollution. This study examined the association between air pollution and children’s academic performance in Chile. This research addressed a critical gap in the literature by providing data from an understudied context and tracking children's academic performance at an individual level over time. We constructed a panel dataset that followed students from 1st to 8th grade and estimated their exposure to PM2.5, based on the distance of their school to air monitoring stations from elementary to middle school. We tracked students' academic performance using a longitudinal fixed-effects regression model to assess the relationship between their grade point average (GPA) and air pollution. The results revealed that, on average, an increase in the percentage of days exceeding different official air quality standards significantly affected students' annual GPA. The study also showed that academic performance among students from families with lower economic resources is disproportionately affected by air pollution. The findings underscore the pressing issue of environmental justice, highlighting that numerous students attend schools in the unhealthy environments of several Chilean cities that frequently bear the burden of socioeconomic disadvantage.
... These conceptual advancements in EJ research have underscored the importance of qualitative methodologies that are better suited for exploring the complex geographic processes that generate patterns of inequality (Holifield, 2001). According to some literature reviews (Agyeman et al., 2016;Das, 2021) this shift from quantitative to qualitative studies has characterized the second (e.g., Faber and McCarthy, 2003;Pellow & Park, 2003;Pulido 2000) and third generation of EJ scholars (e.g., Pellow, 2007;Schlosberg, 2007;Tschakert, 2009), although much of EJ research still seem to rely on quantitative methods. ...
This critical review explores the evolution of environmental justice research, highlighting the transition from a primary focus on the distribution of environmental "goods" and "bads" to a multidimensional approach that includes recognition, participation, and socio-historical analysis. The review evaluates empirical studies, categorizing them into quantitative and qualitative methods, and assesses their strengths and limitations. While quantitative research has been instrumental in mapping spatial inequalities, it often fails to capture the socio-historical and structural processes that shape environmental injustices. On the other hand, while qualitative methods have added depth by capturing lived experiences and complex socio-political dynamics, they often lack the ability to address spatial patterns systematically. The separation of these approaches has limited the field's ability to fully understand environmental justice. To bridge these gaps, the contribution proposes a framework for a new generation of environmental justice (EJ) scholars, advocating for mixed-methods research and the adoption of a critical geographical perspective. This integrated approach aims to offer a comprehensive understanding of environmental justice, encompassing distribution, recognition, participation, and other possible dimensions, thereby enhancing both academic insight and practical policy impact.
... In anni recenti è diventato sempre più evidente come questo genere di eventi abbia un impatto molto più elevato sulle popolazioni più fragili e marginali, a livello globale e locale (Agyeman et al. 2002). Le disuguaglianze globali nelle conseguenze della crisi ecologica si manifestano attraverso deforestazioni massive, gravi danni sociali e ambientali dell'industria estrattiva o smaltimento di rifiuti tossici ed elettronici nelle regioni più povere del mondo (Carruthers 2008;Pellow 2007). In parallelo, nelle città del Nord Globale le popolazioni più povere e marginali a livello locale sono anche quelle più vulnerabili agli effetti negativi della crisi ecologica e, alle volte, degli interventi pensati per mitigarla (Anguelovski et al. 2019). ...
This article presents an overview of recent social science research engaged with the nexus between social vulnerability and ecological transition, in urban contexts of the Global North. Starting from a perspective attentive to ethnographic and qualitative methods, I review research on two main trends, intersected by multiple cross-cutting topics: (1) vulnerability as exposure to different ecological harms, produced by the overlapping effects of urban marginality and social inequalities, but also by the potential drawbacks of adaptation policies; (2) more or less «sustainable» knowledge and practices of different vulnerable subjects, migrants among them. The so-far overlooked experiences and perceptions of vulnerable subjects and groups can substantially enrich sustainability debates. At the same time, the article reflects on the necessity to go beyond a strictly Western-centered gaze, thus embodying in future research a thorough consideration of the complex combination of material elements and cultural meanings, in the social construction of key concepts such as «sustainability», «environment», «nature».
... Mitigation may even be a secondary result of green commerce, subsidiary to the displacement of toxic materials and dangerous work away from sites of consumption. Conspicuously in waste management, these harms generally flow away from consumers in the Global North and toward workers in the Global South, where the result is increased rates of injury, disease, and mortality (30). ...
... Moreover, the identity of the modern nation-state was constructed through violence as defined in opposition to the identity and practices of those people who became indigenous. As scholars like Shrinkhal, Kashwan, Pellow, Pourmokhtari, Vitalis and others have pointed out, nation-states were "modern" and marked a teleological progression of humanity from barbarism towards development precisely because states had geometrically standardized borders, land use practices integrated in the developing global economy, and were recognized as equals with mutually constituted sovereignty by European powers (Kashwan 2017;Pellow 2006;Vitalis 2015;Pourmokhtari 2013;Konkle 2008;Rodney 2018;Shrinkhal 2021). Illustrating Pellow's observation that "the exploitation of humans and the environment is a unified practice and is the foundation of racism… a cornerstone of modern nation building" (Pellow 2006, 5), Brave Noisecat explained: ...
This paper explores the barriers to full and effective Indigenous participation in global climate and biodiversity governance. It examines how post-colonial frameworks, state sovereignty, and neoliberal epistemologies inhibit Indigenous agency, even as institutions like the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (UNCBD) and UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) develop participatory mechanisms. Drawing from international agreements, COP decisions, and Indigenous organizations, the paper reveals that, despite the creation of working groups and platforms aimed at Indigenous inclusion, systemic power imbalances and epistemological constraints persist. The research highlights the limits of these mechanisms, arguing that Indigenous participation is often framed within state-centric and market-driven frameworks that marginalize Indigenous worldviews. The authors recommend that Indigenous sovereignty and knowledge systems be re-centered in environmental governance to promote genuinely inclusive and effective climate and biodiversity policies.
... Significantly, socioeconomically disadvantaged populations are mostly affected by e-waste management (ISSN) Print: 2992-4774 andOnline: 2992-4782 https://journals.frankridgeconsortium.com inadequacies (Pellow, 2022). Furthermore, lessons learnt from international best practices indicate that sustainable e-waste management entails policy, community-based action and participation of industry players (Balde et al., 2017). ...
Electronic waste (e-waste) management is fast becoming an environmental and public health concern especially in the developing world where informal recycling is a common practice. The emission of toxins because of inappropriate e-waste disposal and recycling activities creates major health concerns. The aim of this research is to evaluate the effect of e-waste management practices on human health within Enugu State, a region where e-waste is abundant but data on associated health outcomes are lacking. A cross-sectional study was carried out among individuals living close to major e-waste dumps and recycling sites in Enugu State. By a combination of structured questionnaires and health checkups , data on demographics, e-waste exposure, health symptoms and safety practices were collected and analyzed on 300 participants. Preliminary results suggest a rather strong relationship between e-waste exposure and the appearance of health symptoms like respiratory problems, skin irritations, and neurologic symptoms. People engaged in informal e-waste recycling reported fewer safety practices and higher rates of self-reported health problems. Blood levels also showed increased levels of heavy metals and other toxins, in line with chronic e-waste exposure. The results of this study thus emphasize the necessity of better e-waste management practices in Enugu State to minimise health risks. It emphasizes the need for government intervention, solid public health strategies, and education programs geared towards encouraging responsible e-waste management and formal recycling activities with adequate health and safety measures. This research gives basic understanding which will be beneficial to the policy makers, public health officials and environmental agencies to work together in creating sustainable e-waste management policy. It stresses the importance of enactment of inclusive legislation, health monitoring of affected people and adoption of global best practices in e-waste management to safeguard human health in the region.
... 36 Historically, capitalism has been entwined with the exploitation and subjugation of marginalised racial groups, evident in practices such as colonialism and slavery, serving the interests of privileged classes. 37 Capitalist structures have perpetuated racial hierarchies, facilitating the concentration of wealth and power among white people while marginalising black people. According to Mbembe, 38 the unique intertwining of race and capitalism in South Africa, shaped by colonial and discriminatory histories, has led many individuals to consistently assume the form of waste. ...
Waste is an increasing global environmental issue. South Africa’s informal sector plays a crucial role in diverting recyclables from landfills. Despite their indispensable contributions, informal recyclers form part of a societal group that is marginalised, negatively labelled and deemed ‘disposable’ under neoliberal capitalist structures. This article draws on data from interviews held with 21 participants who work in the informal recycling sector in Gqeberha (formerly Port Elizabeth) in South Africa. It investigates the participants’ own perceptions of their societal role, of which four became prominent, namely: (1) cleaners of the environment, (2) providers for dependents, (3) informal environmental educators and (4) community uplifters. We argue that the participants’ positive self-views can be seen as a powerful counter-narrative that challenges harmful prevailing stereotypes, which allows for a more nuanced perception of their lives and labour. Their positive self-perceptions and resourcefulness should not be interpreted as an endorsement of neoliberal capitalism that compels them to actively combat stigmatisation. Instead, their determination to resist negative stereotypes simultaneously underscores the necessity of confronting stigmatisation in society.Transdisciplinary contribution: The parallel themes of agency and autonomy in both informal recycling and entrepreneurship prompt a reconsideration of the conventional entrepreneurial discourse and its applicability to marginalised communities. We recommend that informal recyclers’ accumulated knowledge, skill set and well-being be acknowledged to ensure their dignity and that their labour is valued.
... Environmental justice embodies the principles of fairness and equity in environmental decision-making and resource allocation. The four recognized approaches to understanding EJ are distributive, procedural, recognition, and capabilities justice (Pellow 2007).Within distributive justice frameworks, environmental justice focuses on the equitable distribution of environmental burdens and benefits across society (Bullard 1999). Procedural justice theories highlight the importance of inclusive and participatory decision-making processes in achieving environmental justice (Williams 1999). ...
This review examines the intersection of race, class, and the use of straight pipe septic systems in the United States, focusing on how marginalized communities, particularly Black and low-income populations, are disproportionately affected by inadequate wastewater infrastructure. Historically, systemic racism and economic disinvestment have led to significant disparities in access to essential services, resulting in severe public health and environmental repercussions. The case study of Lowndes County, Alabama, illustrates the profound impact of these inequalities, where residents face legal and health challenges due to the prevalence of straight pipes. Theoretical frameworks such as Critical Race Theory and Environmental Justice are employed to analyze these systemic issues and propose pathways to sustainable development. Addressing these disparities requires comprehensive strategies, including economic investment in low-income areas, strengthening regulatory frameworks, enhancing community engagement, and resolving heirs' property issues.
... This 'internationalization' of EJ reflects the concept's global importance as both an organizing principle and a research paradigm. However, it raises questions about the implications of applying a framework developed in North America to case studies in other regions (Pellow 2007), particularly given the early EJ movement's focus on urban communities and state-led redistributional justice. ...
... As environmental justice scholars have explored in depth, lands and bodies have been rendered toxic by polluting industries that are often intimately tied to the pursuit of wealth, prestige or power in modern nation states. 12 This, as Jessica Urwin explores, has been central to critiques of anti-nuclear and anti-mining groups in Australia and across the world since the late 1960s. Yet toxicity is not indiscriminate. ...
... Trade-offs must be balanced with ethics and justice in mind, using past environmental movements as guideposts and accounting for the interconnections between regions and their social systems (Dooley et al., 2022). For example, environmental justice advocates have long fought against the export of waste products to areas without sufficient power, knowledge, or resources to enact fully-informed consent (Pellow, 2007). Similar issues are envisaged to arise if carbon removal activities are 'outsourced' to developing countries. ...
Carbon dioxide removal (CDR) – the creation, enhancement, and upscaling of carbon sinks – has become a pillar of national and corporate commitments towards Net Zero emissions, as well as pathways towards realizing the Paris Agreement’s ambitious temperature targets. In this perspective, we explore CDR as an emerging issue of Earth System Governance (ESG). We draw on the results of a workshop at the 2022 Earth System Governance conference that mapped a range of actors, activities, and issues relevant to carbon removal, and refined them into research questions spanning four intersecting areas: modeling and systems assessment, societal appraisal, policy, and innovation and industry. We filter these questions through the five lenses of the ESG framework and highlight several key ‘cross-cutting’ issues that could form the basis of an integrated ESG research agenda on
CDR.
... Care in power emphasizes that environmental governance requires a form of caretaking that engages with structural inequities in decision making. As asserted by environmental justice scholars Pellow (2007Pellow ( , 2018 and Mascarenhas (2021), these include a wide range of inequities contributing to environmental and racial injustice at local and global scales. Further, Deborah McGregor (2014) asserts that Indigenous environmental justice relies on engagement with deeply held reciprocal relationships between Indigenous peoples and the land and waters. ...
... Recent movement scholarship has increasingly centered on activist insights (see Manski 2019), particularly within the EJ framework. EJ scholars shed light on how marginalized communities experience and resist environmental problems (Bullard 2008, Bullard 1993Brulle and Pellow 2006;Cole and Foster 2001;Mohai et al. 2009;Pellow 2007;Perkins 2021). Examining the diversity of movements, especially the ones emphasizing the non-Western contexts (Oliver et al. 2003;Schaeffer 2003), would yield valuable insights into environmental injustice issues worldwide. ...
This paper analyzes the ways in which a site of catastrophic ruins transpires as a new political society for critical social and environmental justice. Predicated on two and half months of fieldwork in Bhopal – consisting of 60 interviews with gas and water victims and activists, archival research, and observation of sites and events – the paper specifically explains how the Bhopal Movement, the longest-running social movement in post-colonial India, has become an exemplar of what I call ‘unyielding humanity,’ one that rejects conciliatory posturing and ad-hoc solutions, constraining states and corporations alike to meaningfully address the ongoing social and environmental mutilation of Bhopal. Underlining the agency, targets, means, objectives, and determinations of the subaltern people, the paper illustrates how this women-led movement poses triumphant challenges to dominant narratives by focusing on the politics of long-term, intergenerational suffering. Findings indicate that prolonged marginalization can give rise to distinct forms of politics, diverging not only from labor and identity politics but also from various environmental justice movements that have been theorized emphasizing primarily material, visible, and immediate consequences. The paper holds implications for social and environmental justice struggles worldwide.
... Distributive justice requires fairness and equity in the allocation of the costs and benefits of resource governance. A just treaty on plastic pollution is therefore going to need to account for the strong and growing evidence that waste, including plastics, disproportionately ends up in impoverished, marginalized, racialized, and Indigenous communities in both low-and high-income countries [2,11,21,25,31,36,48,65,75,79,84,87,93,97,98]. In addition, the treaty will have to reflect that those harmed the most from plastic pollution tend to benefit the least from producing or consuming plastics [27,84,102] (p. ...
In 2022, states resolved to negotiate by the end of 2024 a legally binding international instrument to govern the life cycle of plastics, including the prevention of marine pollution. Prioritizing justice, this study contends, is going to be necessary for a fair and equitable agreement that safeguards human rights, which in turn is going to be essential for the treaty’s legitimacy and effectiveness. Five justice principles in particular will need to guide development and implementation of the agreement. First, negotiators, policymakers, and implementors will need to strive for distributive justice, reflecting the strong evidence that plastic pollution is disproportionately harming vulnerable populations, especially in developing countries. Second, they are going to need to commit to procedural justice, ensuring Indigenous peoples and marginalized communities have the opportunity to participate fully and meaningfully in plastics governance. Third, they will need to aim for environmental justice at all levels of governance, avoiding rules, incentives, and market mechanisms that exacerbate social inequities or violate human rights. Fourth, they are going to need to impose strong regulatory controls, including trade and investment restrictions, to enhance corporate transparency and accountability for plastic pollution and environmental injustices. Fifth, they will need to provide technical and financial assistance to help transition marginalized populations to a non-polluting global plastics economy, avoiding further indebting low-income states while placing the economic burden on high polluters and high-capacity states. The article concludes by reflecting on possible approaches, regulatory controls, and legal concepts to promote these principles and enhance the treaty’s legitimacy and effectiveness.
... Indeed, the siting of the Unilever factory in Kodaikanal is part of a long history of shifting toxic burdens to the Global South. During the 1980s, as environmental standards improved in the Global North, toxic factories and waste were increasingly shifted towards the Global South (Pellow 2007). In response to this global trend, in 1983, a mercury thermometer factory owned by Chesebrough Pond, which was originally based in Watertown, New York, shifted its production to Kodaikanal as a consequence of the promulgation of more stringent environmental standards in the United States. ...
In environmental discourses, environmental justice has grown to be a significant problem. This paper comes from the background that major environmental agreements like the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change () and the Kyoto Protocol, increasingly include concerns for environmental equality and justice. This study situates the questions of environmental justice within the larger context of environmental sustainability and the current discussions of justice theories. It examines the environmental justice movement that has recently gained popularity in the USA. With a strong social justice component, this specific grassroots movement has redefined the sustainability agenda in Sub-Saharan Africa. It has characteristics with social justice movements for environmental justice in developing countries sometimes known as “environmentalism of the poor.” This paper critically evaluates several of the well-known conceptions of justice based on various principles of justice such as need, desert, and entitlement, using a critical discursive technique. current discussions on universalism against particularism, “abstract” liberalism versus communitarianism, and some other critical viewpoints on justice are examined. The paper recommends the need for a more expansive definition of environmental justice that recognises individual differences in different countries, while also being aware of the global nature of environmental issues. This paper concludes that environmental justice has to consider differential effectsfrom disproportionate contributions to environmental damages. It contends that a theory of justice that takes this reality into account must likewise take distinct obligations into account.
The escalating climate crisis disproportionately impacts vulnerable communities, exacerbating existing social inequalities and sparking urgent calls for environmental justice. This article examines the intricate interplay between climate change, social disruption, and the fight for equitable solutions. We explore the heightened vulnerability of marginalized groups, the ethical dimensions of climate injustice, and the strategies employed by communities to demand recognition, representation, and transformative change.
Executive Summary
The detonation of a nuclear weapon in a populated area would cause devastating harm: it can kill thousands of people instantly, whether through the explosion itself, or through the intense heat and high levels of radiation. The mid- and long-term consequences from radiation exposure are less well understood, in part because they manifest differently for male and female survivors.
Robust evidence of differentiated health impacts emerged in 2006, when the US National Academy of Sciences published Biological Effects of Ionizing Radiation VII which reported 60 years of data from the Life Span Study of atomic bomb survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Nearly 20 years after the publication of that report, this report speaks to the extent to which new evidence has been published regarding the correlation between harm from exposure to ionizing radiation and biological sex.
This report concludes the following:
ϐ The post-2006 radiation research reviewed in this report provides clear evidence that radiation causes more cancer, heart disease, and stroke in women compared to men.
ϐ Several studies present evidence that supports the hypothesis that a higher percentage of reproductive tissue in the female body could be one contributing factor to the greater rate of harm from radiation exposure in females compared to males.
ϐ In addition to biological sex, some studies suggest that age at time of exposure may be an important factor in assessing radiation outcomes.
ϐ Girls (ages 0–5 years) are the most at risk post-birth lifecycle stage for developing cancer and non-cancer related health consequences over the course of the lifetime from exposure to ionizing radiation.
These findings are important for discussions about nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament, given that sex-specific and gendered impacts of nuclear weapons are a prominent topic during the meetings of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.
More research is needed, however, that takes seriously the ways that age and intergenerational impacts inform discussions about radiological harm. This report concludes with an outline of a future research agenda and suggests research questions applicable across a number of disciplines and lines of inquiry.
Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE or e-waste) has emerged as a formidable global waste stream, reflecting the mounting demand for technology in our interconnected world. Over the past two decades, besides a world facing a rapid digital, e-mobility, and green energy transition, there has been a growing recognition across the globe, among both society and industries, regarding the hazards and opportunities linked to e-waste management. This collective consciousness has driven the adoption of best practices, including the implementation of circular economy (CE) models, fostering environmentally sustainable production and recycling processes. With a rate of around the 72% of the global population (81 countries) reached by specific regulations by 2023, this review explores the evolving landscape of international legislation and emerging technologies designed for e-waste prevention and valorization, emphasizing low-environmental impact and sustainability. Despite a prolific scientific community (papers published on e-waste grew over 1000 times in the period 2002–2022) and the rise in good practices in different countries, the modest increase of innovation patents (rate of around 50% increase) and the limited number of industrially established innovation processes demonstrates that while the advancing technologies are promising, they remain in an early, embryonic stage. This paper offers a concise review of life cycle assessments from existing literature to underpin the technological advancements discussed. These assessments provide insights into the reduced environmental footprint of various innovative processes aimed at enhancing the circular economy and incorporating them into the emerging concept of safe- and sustainable-by-design. Meanwhile, global e-waste production rose from an estimated 34 Mt in 2010 to 62 Mt in 2022, while documented proper collection and recycling only increased from 8 Mt to 13.8 Mt over the same period. This shows that e-waste generation is growing nearly five times faster than formal recycling. Furthermore, if waste management activities remain at 2022 levels, a projected economic (benefit – costs) deficit of 40 billion USD is expected by 2030. It is time for communities to reverse the trend by expanding good practices and implementing technology-economic-environment sustainable and efficient circular economy models.
Climate change is the most pressing challenge of the 21st century, impacting human society and natural ecosystems with severe environmental, economic, and social implications. Global politics is an intricate terrain with multiple actors from states and countries to international organisations, corporations, and civil society groups. Nation-states and their interests are shaped by national security, domestic politics, and economic development, which can lead to discord and competing individual interests in international negotiations, thus frustrating efforts to address climate change. Nonetheless, governance is sought in global politics and offers opportunities to resolve one of the most complex problems the world has ever faced. There are also reasons for optimism, such as the increasing global public profile of climate activists and the rising recognition of the climate crisis as a global priority. This research has tested the complex ways in which global political dynamics, climate justice, psychological effects, and international law are tied to tackle the multilateral challenge of climate change. While research into the mechanisms of climate justice is ongoing and concentrates on the historical and structural factors that result in generational and socioeconomic discrimination, this research has shown the effects of increasing climate concern psychologically at the level of the individual and the community, has highlighted the need for political solutions to the climate crisis and has sought to promote a concrete hope. Furthermore, the role of international law in facilitating global cooperation and climate change policy is examined, and challenges and opportunities for effective governance are considered.
Non-technical summary
There is abundant research about the impacts that large-scale mining produces on territories to the detriment of their social and environmental sustainability. However, during our research in Chile and Peru, we also identified local transformative initiatives that pursue sustainable development by proposing alternatives to how the socio-ecological impacts of natural resource extraction are produced and distributed throughout society. Specifically, we ask the question: How do local communities in Chile and Peru that are affected by mining activities engage in community-based environmental monitoring (CBEM)?
Technical summary
By examining how local communities in Chile and Peru engage in community environmental monitoring, this paper argues that local political organisation and institutional innovations are crucial for the emergence of transformations towards sustainability. Local political organisation and mobilisation can create a window of opportunity for discussion about extractive activities and their impacts, as well as possible proposals for alternatives. Institutional innovations triggered by local political work can lead to the implementation of such initiatives. Our findings are based on qualitative case studies of CBEM in Chile and Peru, in areas with high levels of environmental degradation due to mining. In Chile we analysed a case of community air monitoring in a copper processing area, and in Peru a case of community water monitoring in a mining area. Drawing on debates on social transformation and political ecology theory, this study aims to show CBEM promotes changes towards a more democratic and preventive environmental governance, and encourages the recognition of environmental injustices.
Social media summary
This paper analyses how local communities in Chile and Peru engage in community environmental monitoring in areas affected by the presence of extractive industries. We identified local transformative initiatives that pursue sustainable development by proposing alternatives to how the socio-environmental impacts of natural resource extraction are produced and distributed in society. Our findings are based on qualitative case studies of community-based air and water monitoring in extractive areas in Chile and Peru.
Air pollution has profound socioeconomic impacts that extend beyond public health and environmental concerns. This chapter aims to discuss the socioeconomic impacts of air pollution and highlights the multifaceted issues, ranging from economic costs to social inequalities and environmental justice concerns. Socially, air pollution diminishes the quality of life for affected individuals and communities by reducing outdoor recreational opportunities, limiting access to green spaces, and impairing the enjoyment of natural environments. Air pollution imposes economic burdens on individuals, families, businesses, and governments through increased healthcare costs, lost productivity, and decreased property values. The public health burden of air pollution imposes significant socioeconomic costs on individuals, communities, and societies. These costs include healthcare expenditures, lost productivity due to illness and absenteeism, and premature mortality. Air pollution-related illnesses result in increased healthcare utilization, hospital admissions, emergency room visits, and medication costs, straining healthcare systems and budgets. Environmental racism, socioeconomic disparities, and unequal access to clean air and healthy environments perpetuate social inequalities and contribute to disparities in health outcomes, life expectancy, and quality of life. There is an urgency to address the economic costs, social inequalities, and environmental injustices associated with air pollution. Lost productivity due to air pollution-related morbidity and mortality affects individuals, businesses, and economies, leading to decreased economic output and competitiveness. Implementing pollution control measures, promoting clean energy technologies, and fostering social and environmental justice can help mitigate the socioeconomic impacts of air pollution and build healthier, more equitable societies for all. Tourist destinations are often impacted by air pollution and pose economic challenges to local communities and businesses. For example, cities such as Beijing, Delhi, and Los Angeles have experienced declines in tourism due to concerns about air pollution, resulting in decreased spending by visitors and adverse effects on the hospitality industry. Additionally, the socioeconomic burden of air pollution disproportionately affects low-income communities and disadvantaged populations, exacerbating existing social inequalities in health outcomes and access to healthcare services.
Many rhetoricians have tended to the spatial dynamics of rhetoric and the emplaced rhetorics of social movement, including drawing on critical cartography to map regional relations of power. Yet activists themselves also perform rhetorical cartographic labor while building solidarity with others. Aligning with calls for a “flipped method” in the study of social movements, this chapter introduces rhetorical powermapping, to connect methods of rhetorical cartography with the already-existing social movement tactic of “power mapping,” used to identify targets and assets in the design of grassroots campaigns. Rhetorical powermapping calls for deep listening to social movement rhetors (as theorists and cartographers themselves) as they unearth the depth and texture of disparate place-based harms, draw linkages across multi-scalar dimensions of power, and articulate shared solidarities and solutions for more liberatory worlds. Putting rhetorical powermapping into practice, I demonstrate its value in amplifying the labor of translocal movements for ecological justice, and more specifically those that converged at the Solidarity to Solutions (Sol2Sol) Week in San Francisco, California, in 2018 to challenge climate colonialism and extractive capitalism while cultivating care and interconnected alliances across geographies. The chapter concludes by reflecting on possibilities of rhetorical powermapping, recognizing that no power map is ever complete.
This study analyzes the impact of military expenditures on sustainable development in NATO countries. The analysis utilizes annual data for the period between 1995 and 2019. In this study, the Durbin-Hausman panel cointegration test is used to analyze the cointegration relationship between the variables and the Panel AMG estimator is used to estimate the long-run coefficients. The results of the AMG estimator show that military expenditures and industrial production index have a negative effect on sustainable development in NATO countries, while foreign direct investments have a positive effect. The impact of primary energy consumption is negative and less significant than the other negative impacts. The study also analyzes how the impact of military expenditures on sustainable development varies across countries. This analysis reveals the significant differences in the direction, significance, and coefficient size of the relationship among different countries. These findings suggest that the impact of military expenditures on sustainable development varies across countries. Therefore, countries should develop policies to ensure sustainable development by considering their specific dynamics.
With academic and institutional interest in environmental justice growing, the forthcoming efforts in this field warrant thorough analysis of the interactions between state and non-state actors. This article provides an empirical response to more critical views placing skepticism on the efficacy of achieving environmental justice through the official framework of the state and advocate for the pursuit of environmental justice “beyond” the state’s designated institutions, namely various non-state actors (NSAs), such as non-governmental organizations and community based organizations. What role do NSAs have in the realization of environmental justice? This paper will provide a comparative case study to analyze this question along three key factors: the degree of social and economic capital among NSAs, the outcomes for NSAs that the alignment of the state with international environmental institutions produces, and state-capital hegemony, in Kenya and South Africa. Both nations have adopted basic environmental justice policies and have hosted sustained environmental grassroots movements working towards environmental justice objectives, with Kenya appearing to have achieved a greater legacy of success in bringing environmental justice movements to fruition. The findings reveal the crucial impacts of non-state actors’ social and economic capital as well as state-capital hegemony on the success of environmental justice movements. The article also problematizes the relationship between environmental justice and sustainable development models which prioritize economic growth.
Engaging the thinking of Georges Bataille, this article examines the international politics of poison as a category of death-dealing that defies distinctions between war/not war and weapon/not weapon. Refraining from splitting poison into pesticides and chemical weapons, the article analyses political ecologies and affective economies of poison both historically and today, to illuminate which desires and strategies poison, as a technology of death, lends itself to. Taking its departure in Bataille’s writing on fascism and ending with his main theory of a general economy, the article weaves through nerve agent assassinations, fumigation, and ideas about gardening, to arrive at the conclusion that poison is not so much an excessive response as it is a response to excess. Following Bataille in viewing ecology as economies of consumption and competition, the article develops a rubric of martial economies of poison to encapsulate how poison, as mode of martial expenditure, makes spaces vacant by death, and room for organisms deemed worthy.
Carbon removal is emerging as a pillar of governmental and industry commitments toward achieving Net Zero targets. Drawing from 44 focus groups in 22 countries, we map technical and societal issues that a representative sample of publics raise on five major types of carbon removal (forests, soils, direct air capture, enhanced weathering, and bioenergy with carbon capture and storage), and how these translate to preferences for governance actors, mechanisms, and rationales. We assess gaps and overlaps between a global range of public perceptions and how carbon removal is currently emerging in assessment, innovation, and decision-making. In conclusion, we outline key societal expectations for informing assessment and policy: prioritize public engagement as more than acceptance research; scrutiny and regulation of industry beyond incentivizing innovation; systemic coordination across sectors, levels, and borders; and prioritize underlying causes of climate change and interrelated governance issues.
The Global South (or Low-Income Countries, LICs) long has been advocating for the establishment of a Loss and Damage (L&D) Fund to address vulnerability and limited adaptation capacity in response to disasters exacerbated by climate injustices, which finally gained international recognition of late. This essay focuses on two key moments that led to this landmark agreement: at COP19, when Philippines climate delegate Naderev "Yeb" Saño advocated for L&D in the wake of Typhoon Haiyan; and during COP27, when global leaders invoked the historic floods in Pakistan as the agreement was reached. We consider how these two disasters were invoked during the passing of L&D in ways that critically interrupted the prevailing spiral of silence to articulate "disasters" to "climate" and "climate" to "justice" in the global climate policy arena. These discourses reveal, then, part of the expanding imaginary emerging to address human agency and inequities in an age of the climate disasters, including the idea of a "global majority."
The lands and natural resources of indigenous communities in the Global South have been severely
exploited thereby leading to a major decline in the ecosystem, following centuries of colonization. The
research intends to investigate and demonstrate the relevance of indigenous cultural epistemologies and
traditional performances, in challenging and reversing the ecological degradation brought about by
colonialism in Nigeria. Relying on the postcolonial, and environmental justice theoretical frameworks, an
examination of the literature and case study centred on the indigenous populations in Ogoniland in the
Niger Delta region of Nigeria will be deployed. Through an exploration of the traditional performances of
the Ogoni people, which are deeply rooted in their indigenous cultural epistemologies, encompassing their
customary knowledge structures, rituals, and worldviews, this study aims to illuminate the deep ecological
understanding that has supported this Nigerian, Niger Delta community for several generations.
Additionally, it aims to acknowledge the vital role that indigenous peoples play in maintaining a variety of
ecosystems as well as their deeply ingrained spiritual and cultural ties to the natural world. The study
examines creative practices and effective eco-restorative projects led by the indigenous people of
Ogoniland that defy the colonial-era models of resource extraction and industrial development. The
research intends to contribute to the current global conversation on decolonization, environmental
stewardship, and the importance of inclusive and diverse viewpoints in sustainable development. The
research concludes that indigenous cultural epistemologies and traditional performances provide vital
resources for engaging the ecological issues that Ogoniland and other locations in Nigeria for that matter,
face by elevating the voices and knowledge of indigenous peoples
The lands and natural resources of indigenous communities in the Global South have been severely exploited thereby leading to a major decline in the ecosystem, following centuries of colonization. The research intends to investigate and demonstrate the relevance of indigenous cultural epistemologies and traditional performances, in challenging and reversing the ecological degradation brought about by colonialism in Nigeria. Relying on the postcolonial, and environmental justice theoretical frameworks, an examination of the literature and case study centred on the indigenous populations in Ogoniland in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria will be deployed. Through an exploration of the traditional performances of the Ogoni people, which are deeply rooted in their indigenous cultural epistemologies, encompassing their customary knowledge structures, rituals, and worldviews, this study aims to illuminate the deep ecological understanding that has supported this Nigerian, Niger Delta community for several generations. Additionally, it aims to acknowledge the vital role that indigenous peoples play in maintaining a variety of ecosystems as well as their deeply ingrained spiritual and cultural ties to the natural world. The study examines creative practices and effective eco-restorative projects led by the indigenous people of Ogoniland that defy the colonial-era models of resource extraction and industrial development. The research intends to contribute to the current global conversation on decolonization, environmental stewardship, and the importance of inclusive and diverse viewpoints in sustainable development. The research concludes that indigenous cultural epistemologies and traditional performances provide vital resources for engaging the ecological issues that Ogoniland and other locations in Nigeria for that matter, face by elevating the voices and knowledge of indigenous peoples.
Management and organization studies (MOS) scholars have recently brought attention to the lack of engagement with social equity and justice in tackling grand challenges. We argue that environmental justice (EJ) can deepen MOS’ engagement with social equity in addressing grand challenges, particularly climate change. Through a bibliometric analysis and qualitative review, we explore scholarly communities within EJ literature and draw connections to MOS research. We develop three bridges between EJ and MOS scholarship: (a) investigating organizational roles and processes in distributing environmental benefits and burdens within socioecological systems, (b) situating the firm within structural and historical contexts that create and perpetuate environmental injustices, and (c) prioritizing the goals, perspectives, and agency of activists and neglected voices within environmental conflicts and solutions. Ultimately, this review aims to build meaningful pathways to embed EJ in MOS research on grand challenges.
Environmental movements are forms of collective action that are sustained over time and across space and which serve to politicize nature while also pursuing particular normative goals regarding the environment. These goals vary widely, reflecting the particular environmentalism that underlies these movements. These environmentalisms can hinge around notions of conservation, justice, livelihood, resource nationalism, and the rights of nature and species, among others. Politicized notions of the environment can also be fostered by movements that do not self‐identify as “environmental”: the indigenous movement for example. Environmental movements range from the locally focused through to transnational, networked movements. Movement strategies and approaches to protest also vary widely. Some movements embrace direct action and overt protest, while others prefer to express disagreement through negotiation. Nongovernmental and other social movement organizations play critical roles in determining movement orientation and strategy, though relationships between these organizations and the broader movement can be complex and tense.
In 1996 the Norwegian parliament decided to build two large power stations to produce electricity from natural gas. With a company ready to build and a decision made by the authorities, it seemed almost impossible to prevent it. Natural gas had for years been presented as “clean” and “friendly to nature.” In fact, to promote the project, the company behind the plans took the name Naturkraft (Power of Nature).
ResearchGate has not been able to resolve any references for this publication.