Electronic Communication and Environmental Policy in Russia and Estonia

Abstract

The use of e‐mail by a grassroots activist group that straddles the Estonian‐Russian border transcends political boundaries and provides ready connections to people in distant places. Activists create a perceived space of resistance in a supportive network that is stretched across space. This network of concern, defined by the physical space in which these activists work and by the strong communicative connections among them, was created to overcome continued environmental mismanagement and remove cultural barriers to cooperation. E‐mail communication has enabled an ongoing influence on environmental policy in Estonia and Russia. This circumstance of a collaborative e‐mail network created by grassroots activists to aid political work is a testament to how communication technology has expanded for the purpose of strengthening previously silenced voices in a regional and political context.