Abstract
As it has been suggested that involvement of individuals in environmental work is necessary for halting environmental degradation, one focus for contemporary environmental policy and political theory is the need for comprehensive individual lifestyle changes. Ecological Citizenship (EC) has been suggested within the field of political theory as an approach to realize personal responsibility for the environment. However, empirical research on whether EC can serve this purpose is still lacking. Based on a survey sent to 4,000 Swedish households, this paper makes the theory of EC empirically operational and explores whether, and to what extent, people in general hold values and beliefs in line with what is expected of EC, in order to shed light on the feasibility of cultivating ecological citizens in Sweden. The study concludes that a significant proportion of the respondents do demonstrate a value base consistent with EC, i.e., non-territorial altruism and the primacy of social justice. While additional tests and studies are needed, the results support the use of EC as a theoretical model for behavioral change.
Highlights
While a significant amount of work on the concept of Ecological Citizenship, as a novel values-based approach to strengthening patterns of pro-environmental behavior has been done in recent years, on the individual level, these efforts have been largely theoretical [1,2,3,4]
First we present the notion of Ecological Citizenship (EC) as an alternative framework for individual environmental action, and introduce a principal model that highlights the proposed value base associated with the ecological citizen
The concept of EC is frequently applied in green political discourse as an alternative to market-based individual environmental action, little empirical work has been done to analyse the value of this theoretical approach as a route towards a more comprehensive environmental responsibility, i.e., a responsibility built on personal morals rather than a response towards external incitements
Summary
While a significant amount of work on the concept of Ecological Citizenship, as a novel values-based approach to strengthening patterns of pro-environmental behavior has been done in recent years, on the individual level, these efforts have been largely theoretical [1,2,3,4]. Fewer have scrutinized the strength of an EC values-structure among the general public (as opposed to within delimited activist groups) and thereby evaluated its usefulness as a theoretical model for initiating and sustaining a broad societal engagement for environmental issues. This lack of empirical data is an obvious shortcoming in the literature on EC, as empirically scrutinizing the extent to which mass beliefs and values align with, or are conducive to, the theoretical notion of EC is an imperative task when evaluating its possibilities for application in political practice. Focusing the basic values-structures suggested by the theory of EC, rather than centring in on actual behavioral patterns, adds additional meaning as it reveals the extent to which different sets of motivational factors are relevant, and politically viable, to apply for promoting broad societal changes in behavior
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
