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www.environmentalCitizenship.net > About environmental citizenship > Citizens and institutions
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What roles for citizens? |
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What role for institutions? |
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Think and act in 'citizenly' ways, individually and collectively, to reduce environmental impact
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Promote environmental citizenship through policies, programmes and partnerships
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Examples* of citizen-led initiatives
- Green consuming and ethical investing
- LETS and Swap Shops
- Community energy schemes; micro-generation
- Citizen science (expertise from experience)
- Walking school buses and car sharing
- Boycotts and protests (anti-GM, anti-roads)
- Petitions and letters to elected representatives
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Examples* of institution-led initiatives
- Friends of the Earth Scotland’s popular education on environmental justice
- University training for teachers of environmental citizenship (Queen’s University Belfast)
- Education for sustainable development in the national curriculum
- EA World Environment Day Pledge Campaign
- Best practice for sustainable construction in planning departments
- Greenpeace UK’s anti-SUV protests
- The RSPB’s Volunteer and Farmer Alliance Surveys
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Limits of citizen-led initiatives
Citizens may take on responsibilities towards sustainability, but they cannot do it alone. The scale of environmental issues can make individual action seem futile or tokenistic. Individuals need to act with others, and citizens also need government to provide the necessary infrastructures.
Some ways forward
- Regard government and institutions as co-producers rather than service providers.
- Convince other citizens, institutions and governments of a need to take environmental concerns seriously.
- Resist the downloading of responsibility from government to citizens (volunteers).
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Limits of institution-led initiatives
Governments and institutions may provide opportunities for environmental citizenship but cannot impose it on people ‘from the top down’.
Some ways forward
- Consider public as made up of citizens rather than merely clients or consumers of service.
- Avoid the deficit view of ‘the public’ by
recognising plurality, lay expertise and the importance of debate about values.
- Recognise that in many cases citizens have been well ahead of government in promoting sustainability and have pushed for government initiatives.
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Partnerships / co-production between citizens and institutions
- Governance
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Governance is ‘a process of open and inclusive public decision-making which actively seeks the commitment and engagement of citizens, stakeholders and interest organisations, and “good governance” is collaborative, consensual, democratic, and “bottom-up” rather than “top-down”’.†
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Examples* of partnerships
- Environment Agency flood management approach
(e.g., Stockbridge Pathfinder Report 2004)
- UN Partnerships for Sustainable Development
- West Devon Environmental Network
- Community Forest Partnerships
- Enabling Community Waste Initiative Partnerships
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What makes partnerships work?
- Trust and accountability
- Participation and dialogue
- Social and institutional learning
- Commitment to the common good and a liveable environment for all (i.e., environmental justice).
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* These examples were raised in the 2004-5 seminar series, and are not intended to be comprehensive or representative of the range of initiatives.
† Extract from Evans, Bob (2005). ‘The DISCUSS Project: Developing Institutional
and Social Capacities for Urban Sustainability’. Seminar presentation.
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If you would like to suggest examples for a future list of initiatives, email us. |
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