Eco-Miserabilism and Radical Hope: On the Utopian Vision of Post-Apocalyptic Environmentalism

Thaler, Mathias

doi:10.1017/s000305542300031x

Cited by 7 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 66 publications

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“…5. As noted above, Thaler (2023) argues that certain forms of eco-miserabilism, may in fact allow for radical hope through acceptance of the gravity of the crisis and a commitment to radical social, political and economic transformation. 6.…”

Section: Highlightsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Climate imaginaries as praxis

Celermajer,

Cardoso,

Gowers

et al. 2024

Environment and Planning E: Nature and Space

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As communities around the world grapple with the impacts of climate change on the basic support systems of life, their future climate imaginaries both shape and are shaped by actions and material realities. This paper argues that the three globally dominant imaginaries of a climate changed future, which we call ‘business as usual’, ‘techno-fix’ and ‘apocalypse’ – fail to encourage actions that fundamentally challenge or transform the arrangements that underpin systemic injustices and extractive forms of life. And yet, to meet the challenges associated with food production, energy needs, and the destruction of ecosystems, people are coming together, not only to take transformative action, but in doing so, to create and nurture alternative imaginaries. This paper presents empirical findings about how communities in north and south India and south-east Australia are pre-figuring alternative futures, locally and in most cases in the absence of broader state support. An analysis of communities’ actions and reflections indicates that their praxes are altering their future imaginaries, and we consider how these local shifts might contribute to broader changes in climate imaginaries. At the heart of the emerging imaginaries are a set of transformations in the relational fabric within which communities are embedded and how they attend to those relations: relations within community, with the more-than-human, and with time.

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Section: Highlightsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Climate imaginaries as praxis

Celermajer,

Cardoso,

Gowers

et al. 2024

Environment and Planning E: Nature and Space

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Climate catastrophe: The value of envisioning the worst‐case scenarios of climate change

Davidson,

Kemp

2023

WIREs Climate Change

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Many now argue that we should think about the previously unthinkable risks of climate change, including societal collapses and human extinction. Calamitous images of the future are not pathological or counterproductive: it is both necessary and valuable to imagine the worst‐case scenarios of climate change. Critics of climate catastrophe often group together all visions of disastrous futures under labels like doomism or pessimism. This is unhelpful and greater nuance is required. We need to distinguish between climate doomists (who see catastrophe as imminent and unavoidable) and climate risk realists (who see catastrophe as one potential future that should be avoided). We also need to split apart the different ways of envisioning climate catastrophe to understand their distinct strengths and weaknesses. We outline and compare three alternative modes of viewing the worst‐case scenarios of climate change: foresight, agitation, and fiction. The first centers on modeling catastrophic climate scenarios, the second on the use of images of climate catastrophe for political action, and the third on fictional visions of future climate disasters. These different approaches are complementary and should be better integrated to create more comprehensive models of the future. All of them would benefit from viewing the future as uncertain, reflecting on the social position of the author, and guarding against the authoritarian “stomp reflex” that can be induced by discussions of crisis and emergency.This article is categorized under: Assessing Impacts of Climate Change > Evaluating Future Impacts of Climate Change Perceptions, Behavior, and Communication of Climate Change > Perceptions of Climate Change Climate, History, Society, Culture > Ideas and Knowledge

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Collapse awareness in the face of climate breakdown and urbicide

Hentschel,

Krasmann

2024

Critical Studies on Security

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Eco-Miserabilism and Radical Hope: On the Utopian Vision of Post-Apocalyptic Environmentalism

Cited by 7 publications

References 66 publications

Climate imaginaries as praxis

Climate imaginaries as praxis

Climate catastrophe: The value of envisioning the worst‐case scenarios of climate change

Collapse awareness in the face of climate breakdown and urbicide

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