Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Examining Appalachian Realignment, Ali Graham

Belmont University Research Symposium (BURS)

The Appalachian region is a unique case within American politics, yet it has not been given much attention by political scientists. In the 1990s and 2000s, the area underwent a political realignment, shifting from a Democratic stronghold to a Republican one. I plan to examine proposed theories of realignment in the context of Appalachia to determine the root cause of this shift. I expect to find a relationship between the adoption of environmentalism as a Democratic principle and the change in Appalachian voting behavior because of the prominence of the coal industry in the region. I will use statistical analysis …

Fear And Skepticism: A Changing Climate During The Trump Era, Devin Lopez

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

Public awareness of the climate crisis has increased over the past several decades due in part to increased exposure to climate science and the drastic reports released by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. This report uses the past four years of the Chapman Survey on American Fears to track the groups most fearful of climate change and those who have high levels of environmental concern. The variables tracked across these years include individual income, education level, age, political ideology and party identification, as well as the extent to which one believes the Bible is literal in its content. These …

What Makes Green Parties Successful: A Comparative Analysis Of Germany, Austria, And France, Macy Miller

Honors Theses

Starting in the 1980s, green parties began to make their debut. Their establishment was considered to be largely in response to environmental and anti-nuclear movements. Although their history has been quite brief, these parties have been making waves throughout the world. Throughout this research, a pattern arises between economic stability and quality of life, mainstream party competition, policy positions, and green voters themselves when examining the success of the green parties. In particular, they have demonstrated great success in the European Union. In an attempt to explain this success, this research explores three specific green parties: the German, the Austrian, …

Human Confusion: Why There Must Be Justice For Non-Humans, David Johns

Political Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

Over the last twelve millennia—since agriculture first emerged—humans have increased their exploitation and efforts to control other species and to colonize the Earth. Human on human hierarchy and colonization of other humans follows on the colonization of the natural world. The task of conservation is to undo that colonial relationship. We have been causing the extinction of other life-forms, including hominid species, since we left Africa at least 60,000 years ago. In the last 50 years, or just about two human generations, nearly 68% of all vertebrate animals have disappeared due to human activity (WWF 2020). Humans go into an …

Biodiversity Gains? The Debate On Changes In Local- Vs Global-Scale Species Richness, Richard B. Primack, Abraham J. Miller-Rushing, Richard T. Corlett, Vincent Devictor, David Johns, Rafael Loyola, Bea Hass, Robin J. Pakeman, Liba Pejchar

Political Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

Editorial: Do changes in biodiversity at local scales reflect the declines seen at global scales? This debate dates back at least 15 years...

Home Rule And Environmentalism: The Adoption Of Green Initiatives In U.S. Municipalities, Luke Eastin

2013 Awards for Excellence in Student Research & Creative Activity - Documents

In recent years there has been a movement in academia from studying environmental policy on the national level to a much narrower examination of local municipalities and their respective green initiatives. The implications of this research reach well beyond the borders of academics and hit squarely municipalities and their corresponding local policy makers. We, as political scientists, must ask what particular characteristics of municipalities play the most significant role in green initiative adoption. Recent urban scholarship has suggested several variables that influence the adoption of environmental policies, but one specific variable, municipality home rule status, has had little to no …

How Might Ecologists Make The World Safe For Biodiversity Without Getting Fired?, David Johns

Political Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

This essay raises the following questions: What if conservation success depends less on speaking truth to power than on organizing a political force that can bring more pressure to bear on decision makers than their opponents? But what if natural scientists, by virtue of their knowledge, passion, commitment, are pretty much the only group that can be trusted with the fate of biodiversity and leading humankind out of their destructive ways? What if begging policy makers to do the right thing means barren oceans, the end of many species, and the end of wild places (not to mention a more …

Environmentalism/Postmodernism, Toby Ogunniya

A with Honors Projects

This presentation explores the meaning of environmentalism and postmodernism in a political science context.

Globalization And Commitment In Corporate Social Responsibility: Cross-National Analyses Of Institutional And Political-Economy Effect, Alwyn Lim, Kiyoteru Tsutsui

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

This article examines why global corporate social responsibility (CSR) frameworks havegained popularity in the past decade, despite their uncertain costs and benefits, and how theyaffect adherents’ behavior. We focus on the two largest global frameworks—the United NationsGlobal Compact and the Global Reporting Initiative—to examine patterns of CSR adoption bygovernments and corporations. Drawing on institutional and political-economy theories, wedevelop a new analytic framework that focuses on four key environmental factors—globalinstitutional pressure, local receptivity, foreign economic penetration, and national economicsystem. We propose two arguments about the relationship between stated commitment andsubsequent action: decoupling due to lack of capacity and organized hypocrisy due …

'Wild Capitalism’ And ‘Ecocolonialism’: A Tale Of Two Rivers, Krista Harper

Anthropology Department Faculty Publication Series

The development and pollution of two rivers, the Danube and Tisza, have been the site and subject of environmental protests and projects in Hungary since the late 1980s. Protests against the damming of the Danube rallied opposition to the state socialist government, drawing on discourses of national sovereignty and international environmentalism. The Tisza suffered a major environmental disaster in 2000, when a globally financed gold mine in Romania spilled thousands of tons of cyanide and other heavy metals into the river, sending a plume of pollution downriver into neighboring countries. In this article, I examine the symbolic ecologies that emerged …

The Genius Of The Nation Versus The Gene-Tech Of The Nation: Science, Identity, And Gmo Debates In Hungary, Krista Harper

Anthropology Department Faculty Publication Series

Introduction In the late 1990s, Hungarian politicians, environmentalists, and agricultural lobbyists weighed the pros and cons of allowing genetically modified (GM) food and seeds to enter the Hungarian market. Starting around 1994, a small group of Hungarian environmentalists began researching GM issues. Initially, they feared that as a post-socialist country seeking foreign investment, Hungary would become prey to multinational corporations seeking an ‘emerging market’ with a lax regulatory environment. The terms of the debate were reframed over time, notably following 1998, when a number of European Union member states banned the imports of GM foods and when Hungarian expatriate geneticist …

International Environmental Justice: Building The Natural Assets Of The World’S Poor, Krista Harper, S. Ravi Rajan

Anthropology Department Faculty Publication Series

In recent years, vibrant social movements have emerged across the world to fight for environmental justice –- for more equitable access to natural resources and environmental quality, including clean air and water. In seeking to build community rights to natural assets, these initiatives seek to advance simultaneously the goals of environmental protection and poverty reduction. This paper sketches the contours of struggles for environmental justice within and among countries, and illustrates with examples primarily drawn from countries of the global South and the former Soviet bloc.

This working paper is also accessible at the folllowing URL:

http://www.peri.umass.edu/236/hash/28d064d65f/publication/107/

A newer, revised …

Our Real Challenge: Managing Ourselves Instead Of Nature, David Johns

Political Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

As cultural animals we create meaning and order. Stories are the primary means our species uses to do this. Stories that rise to the level of myth exert powerful effects on behavior. The dominant myths that explain our relationship to the natural word have two serious failings: our self-importance and a superficial and simplified image of who we are. These stories obscure more than they enlighten, thereby preventing us from addressing the causes of the current extinction crisis. Conservationists can and must fashion new stories that take account of our disproportionate impact on the Earth and its origins in our …

Wilderness And Energy: The Battle Against Domination, David Johns

Political Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

This opinion piece discusses the problems associated with human energy extraction and the political ramifications.

Chernobyl Stories And Anthropological Shock In Hungary, Krista Harper

Anthropology Department Faculty Publication Series

The Budapest Chernobyl Day commemoration generated a creative outpouring of stories about parental responsibilities, scientific knowledge, environmental risks, and public participation. I examine the stories and performances elicited by the tenth anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in April 1996. In these “Chernobyl stories,” activists criticized scientific and state paternalism while engaging in alternative practices of citizenship. The decade between the catastrophic explosion and its commemoration coincides with the development of the Hungarian environmental movement and the transformation from state socialism. Chernobyl Day 1996 consequently became an opportunity for activists to reflect upon how the meaning of citizenship and public …

Getting From Here To There: An Outline Of The Wildlands Reserve Design Process, David Johns, Michael Soulé

Political Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

Turning back the assault on the natural world is a monumental and complex task; even the first step – planning a network of reserves – is an enormous undertaking. This paper is intended as a general guide to the steps needed to produce a regional proposal for a Wildlands reserve system. It is based on an assessment of work underway in some regions, and extensive discussion with regional groups throughout the continent.

The Practical Relevance Of Deep Ecology, David Johns

Political Science Faculty Publications and Presentations

As proponents of Deep Ecology and Biocentrism have begun to define both a vision for the future and a critique of the existing human relationship with the rest of nature, they have often been the subject of criticism from the Third World and from leftists in the developed world concerned with Third World issues. They are commonly charged with failing to adequately take into account the complexity of the human social dynamic involved in destruction of the environment; ignoring that human societies are under the control of elites who benefit from the degradation of nature while most people suffer; failing …