Activism and Academia in the Anthropocene

The Department of Politics Cross-Cutting Workshop
Wed, 20 March 2019  
Elmfield 215, University of Sheffield

14:00-15:30 Roundtable on “The Contemporary Contours of Environmental Activism”
– with Jenny Pickerill, Tom Johnson, Roscoe Blevins, Adeniyi P. Asiyanbi, Megan Blomfield

16:00-17:30 Roundtable on “Environmental Activism and Academia”
– with Andrea Brock, Amber Huff, Aaron Thierry, Juliet De Little

While the environmental crisis grows ever more acute, the governmental and intergovernmental response to that crisis grows ever more underwhelming.  Policymakers are increasingly reluctant to even pay lip service to their environmental obligations, let alone act upon them in a meaningful way.  In light of this, it is little wonder that many environmental campaigners are employing more radical means by which to foster change.  Indeed, and as the recent emergence of Extinction Rebellion shows, some are claiming that direct forms of action constitute necessary and legitimate forms of civil disobedience.  In this context, this workshop seeks to explore two related issues: first, it aims to examine the different activities, opportunities and challenges faced by environmental activists around the world; and second, it seeks to discuss the role of environmental and other academics in seeking to foster change.