#PSClimatePolitics
LightNews LightNews
polstudiesassoc.bsky.social
👇For those interested in #PoliticalScience #Climate #Politics you can browse @polstudies.bsky.social #PSClimatePolitics campaign posts by using this hashtag, and view related #openaccess articles for a limited time. 👇
polstudies.bsky.social Political Studies @polstudies.bsky.social · 5d
Thank you to everyone who tuned into our #PSClimatePolitics campaign. You can view all posts by clicking the hashtag above or browse the articles online: buff.ly/UD3OpNj

They are all #openaccess at the moment.

@polstudiesassoc.bsky.social #polsky #polsci
October 29, 2026 at 5:11 PM
polstudiesassoc.bsky.social
📚New #OpenAccess article in @polstudies.bsky.social
'What's wrong with the transition paradigm in environmental politics?'
#Politics #PSClimatePolitics #EnvironmentalPolitics #ClimateCrisis #NetZero
polstudies.bsky.social Political Studies @polstudies.bsky.social · 9d
What's wrong with the transition paradigm in environmental politics? Mathias Thaler argues A. Gramsci's concept of an 'interregnum' can help us better understand politics in the Anthropocene. Read OPEN ACCESS: buff.ly/y2ywoUx

#PSClimatePolitics 5/8

@polstudiesassoc.bsky.social #polsci #polsky
Abstract In our times, talk of ‘transitioning’ to a world without fossil fuels has become pervasive. Despite its prevalence in environmental politics, this article argues that it is counterproductive to envisage the current conjuncture through the prism of a transition. I defend this claim by first outlining three respects in which the transition paradigm falls short: political corruptibility, historical inadequacy and conceptual confusion. Rather than recuperate the meaning of transitioning for progressive purposes, the constructive part of the article then asks which analytical framework should take its place. My proposal is to take inspiration from Antonio Gramsci’s notion of an interregnum to illuminate the distinctive political challenges of the Anthropocene. Gramsci’s conceptual apparatus foregrounds the fundamental openness of the future and thus facilitates a better understanding of various ‘morbid symptoms’, whose proliferation today can only be explained through a theoretical approach that combines attention to both individual well-being and social pathologies.
October 27, 2026 at 4:28 PM
polstudies.bsky.social
Thank you to everyone who tuned into our #PSClimatePolitics campaign. You can view all posts by clicking the hashtag above or browse the articles online: buff.ly/UD3OpNj

They are all #openaccess at the moment.

@polstudiesassoc.bsky.social #polsky #polsci
October 28, 2026 at 6:00 PM
polstudies.bsky.social
What types of political parties benefit most from taking strong positions on environmental issues? Silvia Bolgherini & Luca Carrieri find anti-environmental & radical right parties gained most from environmental issue voting. Read FREE ACCESS: buff.ly/5uzo24y

#PSClimatePolitics 8/8

#polsky #polsci
Abstract The environmental issue has become prominent in the public debate and, consequently, is likely to correlate with voting preferences. We explore this by addressing the voting demand-side and the support to parties according to their distance from the voters’ position on the environment. We considered the European Parliament elections in 2019 and employed both individual and party-level data to assess the role of environmental issue voting. We found that environmental issue voting has held relevance in affecting voting preferences across Western Europe. Nonetheless, this relevance has rewarded mostly those parties with anti-environmental positions, and those belonging to the radical right party family. Hence, although green parties have somehow held their electoral benefits on pro-environmentalism, this represents only one of the possible explanations for their growing vote share. These findings highlight the importance of the environmental issue voting and its potential divisiveness among the electorate.
October 27, 2026 at 6:02 PM
polstudies.bsky.social
How should societies consider trade-offs between different forms of climate change mitigation? @virginiadebiasio.bsky.social argues adaptation in Small Island Developing States should take priority over relocation. OPEN ACCESS: buff.ly/WzxbLh6

#PSClimatePolitics 7/8

@polstudiesassoc.bsky.social
Abstract Small Island Developing States are among the countries which are hit the most by climate change, and especially by sea-level rise. In this article, I argue against the narrative focused on plans for collective relocation for the populations of Small Island Developing States. I argue that focusing exclusively on relocation leads us to endorse a ‘doomsday’ approach, which normalises the inevitability of territory loss, and obscures theoretically distinct and pressing problems related to how to tackle the current environmental issues and resource scarcity affecting those countries. In the first part of the article, I argue that adaptation efforts, which are systematically neglected in the dominant political theory literature about Small Island Developing States, should be prioritised over plans for relocation. In the second part of the article, I start to cast light on some of the normative dilemmas raised by a close focus on adaptation, and I defend a community-based approach to adaptation in Small Island Developing States.
October 26, 2026 at 6:02 PM
polstudies.bsky.social
What does the language of 'transition' reveal & conceal about the politics of #climatechange? @jonathanpjwhite.bsky.social explores the intentions to which the 'transition' concept responds & the assumptions with it. OPEN ACCESS: buff.ly/92wrKoz

#PSClimatePolitics 4/8

@polstudiesassoc.bsky.social
October 23, 2026 at 5:02 PM
polstudies.bsky.social
Can apocalyptic thinking help us reimagine democracy? Joe PL Davidson argues apocalyptic thinking can expose corrupt institutions and inspire new democratic forms. Read OPEN ACCESS: buff.ly/UdLTX9l

#PSClimatePolitics 6/8

@polstudiesassoc.bsky.social #polsky #polsci #Democracy
Abstract Apocalyptic consciousness, which is now common in campaigns on climate change as well as in theological political movements, is often understood as incompatible with a commitment to democracy. However, in this article, I contest the straightforward opposition between the apocalypse and democracy. It is first argued that democratic anti-apocalypticism, whereby democratic processes are protected by encouraging people to abandon their apocalypticism, is not viable. Instead, what is required is a form of apocalyptic democracy, in which the two terms come together to the mutual benefit of both. To develop this claim, I focus on three political thinkers: Percy Bysshe Shelley, W. E. B. Du Bois and Roger Hallam. These theorists use the apocalypse to, on the one hand, identify the irredeemable corruptions of current political institutions and, on the other, posit new forms of democracy established through the struggles of people in the face of apocalyptic threats.
October 25, 2026 at 6:01 PM
polstudies.bsky.social
What's wrong with the transition paradigm in environmental politics? Mathias Thaler argues A. Gramsci's concept of an 'interregnum' can help us better understand politics in the Anthropocene. Read OPEN ACCESS: buff.ly/y2ywoUx

#PSClimatePolitics 5/8

@polstudiesassoc.bsky.social #polsci #polsky
Abstract In our times, talk of ‘transitioning’ to a world without fossil fuels has become pervasive. Despite its prevalence in environmental politics, this article argues that it is counterproductive to envisage the current conjuncture through the prism of a transition. I defend this claim by first outlining three respects in which the transition paradigm falls short: political corruptibility, historical inadequacy and conceptual confusion. Rather than recuperate the meaning of transitioning for progressive purposes, the constructive part of the article then asks which analytical framework should take its place. My proposal is to take inspiration from Antonio Gramsci’s notion of an interregnum to illuminate the distinctive political challenges of the Anthropocene. Gramsci’s conceptual apparatus foregrounds the fundamental openness of the future and thus facilitates a better understanding of various ‘morbid symptoms’, whose proliferation today can only be explained through a theoretical approach that combines attention to both individual well-being and social pathologies.
October 24, 2026 at 10:45 PM
polstudies.bsky.social
What are the moral limits of climate sabotage & direct action? Alex McLaughlin examines Andreas Malm’s claim that the climate movement should engage in targeted sabotage of property associated with high emissions. Read OPEN ACCESS: buff.ly/w4SDl1R

#PSClimatePolitics 3/8
@polstudiesassoc.bsky.social
Abstract This article considers the moral limits on uncivil climate protest. It does so by examining Andreas Malm’s influential claim that the climate movement should engage in the targeted sabotage of property associated with high emissions. Although Malm’s criticisms of civilly disobedient climate protest are forceful, I show that there are problems with his positive arguments. First, we need not view sabotage as necessarily violent, and more clarity is needed on the relationship between the violence/nonviolence distinction and property damage. Second, the norms of defensive harm are too permissive: they seem inconsistent with the principle of nonviolence to persons Malm and other climate activists want to endorse. Finally, an ethic of resistibility to the climate movement is underspecified in both its content and grounds. The conclusion of the article is that Malm’s important challenge is incomplete, and that more work is required to understand the norms of uncivil climate protest.
October 23, 2026 at 12:41 AM
polstudies.bsky.social
🧵 ...under the hashtag #PSClimatePolitics - follow us to find out or if you're impatient, check out the collection directly: buff.ly/09BdMpZ

@polstudiesassoc.bsky.social #polsky #polsci 2/2
October 19, 2026 at 5:02 PM
polstudies.bsky.social
When should climate activists be civil & when might incivility be justified? Matteo Bonotti, @stevezech.bsky.social & Alexander Faehrmann argue moral civility should take precedence over justification & politeness.

OPEN ACCESS: buff.ly/TMfd9xQ

#PSClimatePolitics 2/8

@polstudiesassoc.bsky.social
Abstract In this article, we offer a normative analysis of environmental politics through the lens of civility. First, we explain what civility is by identifying its three key dimensions: civility as politeness, moral civility and justificatory civility. We then examine various instances of environmental politics and activism through the lens of civility, by focusing on the complex intersections between its three dimensions as well as the hierarchical relationship that exists between them, with moral civility taking precedence over justificatory civility and the latter over civility as politeness. This analysis, we argue, can help us to formulate more nuanced judgements about the desirability of different instances of civil and uncivil environmental politics and activism, and to develop educational strategies for preparing policymakers, environmental activists and citizens more generally to be civil participants in environmental politics.
October 21, 2026 at 5:03 PM
polstudies.bsky.social
What happens when ecological breakdown meets authoritarianism, inequality & conflict? Malena López Bremme & @ssregilme.bsky.social examine Syria as a case of ecocide, showing how drought & mismanagement intensified war & migration. Read OPEN ACCESS: buff.ly/GsIeo32

#PSClimatePolitics 1/8

#polsci
Abstract This article revisits the climate-conflict-displacement nexus by analyzing the Syrian Civil War as a case of climate-exacerbated state collapse. Rejecting linear causality, it asks: how does climate-induced stress contribute to armed conflict and forced migration, and how might these dynamics be understood through ecocide? Drawing on international relations, legal studies, and environmental studies, we develop a framework positioning environmental refugeedom and ecocide as concepts revealing international legal categories’ insufficiencies. Examining Syria, we show how drought, environmental mismanagement, and authoritarian governance intensified grievances, fueling conflict and mass displacement. Rather than presenting climate change as a singular cause, we argue for its role as a threat multiplier within authoritarian rule, developmental failure, and global inequality structures. The article contributes by proposing expanded conceptual vocabulary to capture environmental collapse’s political violence. It calls for rethinking state responsibility, legal protection frameworks, and human rights paradigms under planetary crisis—especially in authoritarian regimes facing ecological breakdown.
October 20, 2026 at 5:02 PM