The OHPA publishes weekly original articles from a wide variety of topics within the field of Anthropocene politics. Our articles range from developments in Environmental politics, evaluating policy issues pertaining to sustainability, and broader international implications deriving from developments in Anthropocene Politics. New articles are published every Monday.
Is Green Politics Right or Left: the Debate
The answer is: it is both, nobody owns it, and this politics should be consensual. The survival of humanity is too serious a thing to entrust it to the radical or conservative politicians. All reasonable people, politicians among them, should in good faith fight for the quick, smooth and effective transition from the waste- and emissions-generating economy to the green, renewable and sustainable way of satisfying human needs within the limits of our planet. They should reach this consensus, but they have done it. It is not even close, of course. Instead of the joint, enlightened Climate Action we see wars, disinformation, open-ended debates and ever-growing emissions. Ideological differences play their role in this crisis. In this issue of our Newsletter, we are publishing two passionate essays that claim the ownership the green transition by a certain kind of politics, right or left. If our students cannot agree on this issue and are playing a tug of war about it, it means that the humanity has not grown up to the required consensus. Please read both essays, compare and contrast them, and think about the way forward.
A Polycrisis refers to the phenomenon of multiple crises existing independent of one another, yet through temporal symmetry they influence and often exacerbate one another (click here to read Dr. Nicoli’s lecture at the OHPA on this subject). The Climate Crisis, created by humanity’s manipulation and abuses of the natural world, represents an existential threat and thus a danger to virtually every aspect of human existence. Climate change exists as the primary crisis in this context, further worsening and expanding secondary existing crises which existed previously, including (but not limited to) immigration, global health security and resource conflicts.
Is there any chance for a Green Russia?
One of the primary functions of a state is to provide security. Тoday the notion of security has evolved to encompass a multitude of complex and often conflicting factors. Security is no longer solely defined by territory protection; it also has expanded to encompass the capacity for sustainable development and resilience. It is widely acknowledged that countries with democratic regimes possess a distinct advantage in this regard. However, it is often more intuitive to examine the quirks of rogue states, where seemingly illogical solutions often find, or at least seek, their logical explanation. And what if we add the Anthropocene to the equation and observe the failed transition from paleomodernity to gaiamodernity, as authroritarians tend to prioritize the security of their regimes rather than the security of their people or the environment.
Nukes in Space: Exploring the Ecological and Security Implications
The study of Anthropocene politics is dedicated to analyzing humanity’s interaction with the our planet’s environment through a political lens. An often overlooked and vital part of the Earth’s ecosystem is the upper levels of the atmosphere, or what scientists designate Low-Earth orbit (LEO). The LEO is vital to our civilization and planet for two main reasons: firstly, leftover particles from burned up spacecraft create a pollutant effect, which can hinder the ozone layer’s efficacy and manipulate the atmosphere.
The Grand Russian Disinformation Strategy in Environmental Politics
Russia’s quest to maintain its imperialist past exists not only on the physical battlefield, but in the cybersphere as well. This article explores the Kremlin’s disinformation strategies it uses to influence Environmental politics abroad.
Symposium Report for the Open Society Hub for the Politics of the Anthropocene (OHPA)
Check the report from the three-day Energy / City Relations Symposium, hosted by European Humanities University in Vilnius, Lithuania. Amidst Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the environmental crisis, and the current energy transition, the Symposium explored emergent energy politics and the implications of fossil modernities while highlighting the impact and role of socio-political values and institutions in ongoing and anticipated transformations in the energy sector.
Minister of 0,75%: The “Successful” Story of the Bulgarian Greens.
Examine how a minor green party from Eastern Europe, which lacked the ability to enter parliament independently, was able to establish a presence in the legislature and even the executive branch. Is this example of the intersection of idealism and pragmatism the future successful formula for other green parties for the upcoming elections?