Ep. 36, Civil Society and Sustainability Conference

Key Concepts

• Civil Society: The sphere of voluntary, collective action that exists outside of government and market structures, aiming to improve society.
• Environmental Sustainability: The ability to maintain environmental quality and natural resources over time, supporting human well-being.
• Social Movements: Organized efforts by groups of people to bring about or resist social change.
• Political Violence: The use of force by groups or individuals to achieve political goals.
• Cross-cutting Issues/Inter-domain Learning: The idea that insights and strategies from one social or political domain (e.g., faith-based movements) can be applied to another (e.g., environmental movements).
• Coalition Building: The process of forming alliances among different groups to achieve a common goal.
• Radical Flank Effect: A theory suggesting that extreme tactics by a radical wing of a movement can sometimes increase support for the more moderate wing.
• Counter-Climate Nonprofit Organizations: Organizations actively working to undermine climate science and policy.
• Movement Countermovement Activity: The dynamic where one social movement faces organized opposition from another.
• Polarization: The division of a group into two sharply contrasting sets of opinions or interests.

Introduction: Civil Society and Environmental Sustainability

The podcast features Professor Patricia Bramley, Professor Bill Barnett, and Sophia Ting from Stanford University, discussing a conference on civil society and environmental sustainability organized by Professor Bramley and Dean Sarah Soul. Professor Bramley defines civil society as "the parts of the world that aren't covered by government or the market," encompassing activities within society that aim to "make it a better place in some dimension." This broad concept, distinct from government and business sectors, was specifically focused on the environment at the conference.

Surprising Insights from the Conference

Professor Bramley highlighted two particularly striking findings from the third annual conference, which this year had a greater focus on social movements as a narrower slice of civil society activity:

1. Rising Support for Political Violence: Research presented by Dana Fischer from American University, who has interviewed activists at protests (including environmental ones) for over 20 years, revealed a "huge jump in the support for political violence expressed by activists" in the "past few months" (specifically, the past six months). This trend was observed across various types of protests, including environmental and those related to "protecting science," and was described as "shocking" and a significant topic of conversation.
2. Importance of Cross-Domain Learning: The conference underscored the value of learning from "cross-cutting issues" and "interdisciplinary" approaches. An example cited was the potential for the environmental movement to learn from faith-based movements in building coalitions. Haran from Johns Hopkins presented research on successfully building coalitions "across race and class" within a faith-based initiative, offering valuable lessons for environmental activism.

Challenges in Environmental Coalition and Coordination

Sophia Ting raised a critical question about the challenges of coordinating diverse environmental organizations, given their often "competing goals" stemming from differing political beliefs or approaches to sustainability. She emphasized the importance of cooperation, not just within the US but across different countries with varied cultures and political systems.

Professor Bramley responded with several points:

• Detrimental Activism and Public Support: A recent study, based on research from a previous conference speaker, indicated that certain "high-profile instances of disruption to traffic" or "damaging paintings in museums" carried out in the name of environmental protection actually "undermine public support for the environmental movement." These destructive tactics, not directly linked to environmental issues, appear to be "detrimental to the movement."
• The "Radical Flank Effect" Discussion: Bill Barnett introduced the concept of the radical flank effect, where extreme tactics might strategically drive more support for moderate actors. Professor Bramley acknowledged this but suggested further research is needed to determine if these extreme actions genuinely increase support for mainstream organizations, even if they detract from extremist approaches.
• Evolving Identity of "Environmentalist": Bill Barnett shared an observation from his teaching since 1991: students initially identified as "environmentalists," but around 2000, they began to object to the label. One student articulated, "Do I have to be a feminist to want women to be treated equally? Do I have to be an environmentalist to care about environmental sustainability?" This suggests that for many, environmental concern has become deeply "ingrained" as part of being a "good citizen," rather than a separate identity, which could explain public reluctance to identify with a violent environmental movement.
• Rise of Counter-Climate Organizations: Professor Bramley's own research highlights the "increasing polarization" and the emergence of counter-climate nonprofit organizations. Her work, tracking their global spread, found that as of 2022, "a third of countries in the world have at least one nonprofit organization that's actively working to undermine climate science and climate policy." This represents a significant "movement countermovement activity" that makes cooperation among pro-environmental groups "increasingly hard."

Youth Perspective: Discouragement and Hope

Sophia Ting expressed that the rise of counter-climate organizations is "very discouraging" and contributes to the difficulty of making "concrete progress" due to ongoing "battles" and polarization. However, she also conveyed significant hope, drawing optimism from the conference's focus on "breakthroughs" in both civil society and technology (e.g., "more accurate measurements to understand our planet," new research papers). Sophia believes that the "general population" will eventually recognize climate change as a "pressing issue" and encourages individuals to use their "passion" (whether in technology, politics, or other fields) to collectively address the challenge.

Future Outlook and Conclusion

Professor Bramley echoed Sophia's sentiment of hope, acknowledging the many individuals working diligently on environmental issues. She announced that the group convened over the past few years is collaborating on a book to disseminate their "most important findings" in an "open access format" to a wider audience. The initiative also maintains "strong links to the practitioner community," actively working with and supporting their efforts. The book is anticipated to be released next year. The podcast concluded with thanks to the listeners from Bill Barnett, Sophia Ting, and Professor Patricia Bramley, noting the sponsorship by the Stanford Graduate School of Business and the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability.