Ecological culture of Russian citizens: constitutional consolidation and regulatory support of its formation practice

Abstract

The increasing concern over environmental degradation, ecological deterioration and climate change underscores the imperative for the active state environmental policy. An essential aspect of such a policy is formation of environmental culture among Russian citizens, as reflected in the amendments to the Constitution of the Russian Federation adopted in 2020. The relevance of this article is underscored by the necessity to develop holistic approaches for the formation of legal mechanisms to implement paragraph e.6. of Article 114 of the Constitution effectively, as the current focus of environmental culture formation is predominantly limited to school education and upbringing. The study aims to delineate the contents of environmental culture and devise comprehensive recommendations to enhance the normative and regulatory framework to foster this culture not only among children, but also within the adult population of the country. The research methodology encompasses the sociological and legal methods, interdisciplinary analysis of Russian and foreign scientific literature, generalization, systematization, analogy, as well as the method of legal modelling. The study has identified three elements of environmental culture, each necessitating distinct approaches for its legal regulation. Furthermore, the author has formulated specific proposals for amending the legislation of the Russian Federation to actualize the constitutional provision concerning the cultivation of environmental culture of the country's population.