17
Chapter 2
Political Dimensions of Environmental
Citizenship
Ralph Levinson, Demetra Paraskeva-Hadjichambi, Bjørn Bedsted,
Boris Manov, and Andreas Ch. Hadjichambis
2.1 Introduction
Conceptions of Environmental Citizenship are core to models of sustainability. We
start with an example of two very different ideologies to set the parameters of the
problem. Imagine a fully libertarian society with minimal state interference where
the desires and consumerist preferences of the individual trump all other considerations (Kymlicka 1990). Such a society would prioritise human rights, the free market and individualism. Nature would be a resource to be exploited to serve human
needs. Hence a society with a fully libertarian political philosophy, or one which
approaches extreme neoliberalism, would incorporate political and economic solutions which conserve the environment solely to meet human needs. Any threats to
the environment as an economic resource might be solved through technical fixes.
Rex Tillerson, the former US Secretary of State, exemplifies this approach. ‘Changes
to weather patterns that move crop production areas around – we’ll adapt to that. It’s
R. Levinson (*)
University College London Institute of Education, London, UK
e-mail: r.levinson@ucl.ac.uk
D. Paraskeva-Hadjichambi · A. Ch. Hadjichambis
Cyprus Ministry of Education and Culture, Nicosia, Cyprus
Cyprus Centre for Environmental Research and Education, CYCERE, Lemesos, Cyprus
e-mail: demhad@ucy.ac.cy; a.chadjihambi@cytanet.com.cy
B. Bedsted
Danish Board of Technology Foundation, Hvidovre, Denmark
e-mail: bb@Tekno.dk
B. Manov
Faculty of Philosophy, South-West University, Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria
e-mail: bmanov@swu.bg
© The Author(s) 2020
A. Ch. Hadjichambis et al. (eds.), Conceptualizing Environmental Citizenship
for 21st Century Education, Environmental Discourses in Science Education 4,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-20249-1_2
Chapter 2
Political Dimensions of Environmental
Citizenship
Ralph Levinson, Demetra Paraskeva-Hadjichambi, Bjørn Bedsted,
Boris Manov, and Andreas Ch. Hadjichambis
2.1 Introduction
Conceptions of Environmental Citizenship are core to models of sustainability. We
start with an example of two very different ideologies to set the parameters of the
problem. Imagine a fully libertarian society with minimal state interference where
the desires and consumerist preferences of the individual trump all other considerations (Kymlicka 1990). Such a society would prioritise human rights, the free market and individualism. Nature would be a resource to be exploited to serve human
needs. Hence a society with a fully libertarian political philosophy, or one which
approaches extreme neoliberalism, would incorporate political and economic solutions which conserve the environment solely to meet human needs. Any threats to
the environment as an economic resource might be solved through technical fixes.
Rex Tillerson, the former US Secretary of State, exemplifies this approach. ‘Changes
to weather patterns that move crop production areas around – we’ll adapt to that. It’s
R. Levinson (*)
University College London Institute of Education, London, UK
e-mail: r.levinson@ucl.ac.uk
D. Paraskeva-Hadjichambi · A. Ch. Hadjichambis
Cyprus Ministry of Education and Culture, Nicosia, Cyprus
Cyprus Centre for Environmental Research and Education, CYCERE, Lemesos, Cyprus
e-mail: demhad@ucy.ac.cy; a.chadjihambi@cytanet.com.cy
B. Bedsted
Danish Board of Technology Foundation, Hvidovre, Denmark
e-mail: bb@Tekno.dk
B. Manov
Faculty of Philosophy, South-West University, Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria
e-mail: bmanov@swu.bg
© The Author(s) 2020
A. Ch. Hadjichambis et al. (eds.), Conceptualizing Environmental Citizenship
for 21st Century Education, Environmental Discourses in Science Education 4,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-20249-1_2