| Environmental Campaigning |
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Fabian Environmental Policy Network Seminar
The Fabian Environmental Policy Network met on Monday November 10th to discuss environmental campaigning. The session was attended by EPN members, along with environmental policy experts and leading business and NGO voices. The discussion was held under the Chatham House Rule and this report, therefore, offers a summary of the key themes explored. The seminar opened asking what lessons could be drawn from successful environmental campaigns. Participants noted the importance of both clearly defining the key issues and ensuring that campaigns were led by a wide coalition of organisations. The campaign for the Marine Bill had been particularly successful in this respect and participants agreed that the environmental movement had to be a coalition builder. The campaigning of NGOs within the business sector was also highlighted as a crucial development of the last decade - leading to important shifts in business attitudes and practice. Participants reasoned, however, that this had to continue as business would often make public statements that were ahead of their actual achievements. The discussion then moved to consider the environmental movement’s failure to mobilise popular support and encourage greater levels of activism. The public – it was argued - did not care enough about climate change and were unwilling to take action of any significance. This had been the major failure of the environmental movement over the last decade and must be the movement’s focus moving forward. This twin focus on mobilisation and behaviour change had the chance of achieving results that were far more significant than any long-term climate targets which had previously been the focus for many green NGOs. If successful in mobilising popular support the environmental movement could help create the space in which Government could take more aggressive action – safe in the knowledge that they would not be getting too far ahead of public opinion and the electorate. Throughout the seminar the Copenhagen climate change talks to be held in November 2009 were identified as a crucial opportunity for mass mobilisation. Participants agreed that the environmental movement had thus far failed to establish an international campaign that would pressurise global leaders and government to secure an effective and decisive international deal on climate change. The Make Poverty History Campaign was held up as an example of the importance of international campaigning which succeeded in uniting NGOs and civil society in a global call to action that created sustained pressure. Indeed, participants noted that commitments were made at Gleneagles that would have been very difficult to extract had it not been for the popular pressure. The efforts of NGOs to mobilise the public were being held back, one participant noted, by institutional and structural failings. There had been a shift in environmental organisations away from active membership with growing numbers of financial supporters who were otherwise inactive. Indeed, it was felt that some organisations had given up attempting to mobilise. Moreover, research demonstrated that resources within the environmental movement were spent principally on conservation projects and policy input, with NGO advocacy and mobilisation efforts poorly funded. Alongside questions of mobilisation the ability of environmental NGOs to bring about behavioural change was identified as a key challenge for green campaigners. It was felt by some participants that environmental NGOs, as currently constituted, might not be able to achieve this, and that it might require new structures and organisations. Participants agreed that it would need more innovative thinking within the environmental movement to challenge the engrained habits and values that were associated with consumption. Large-scale demonstration projects were felt to be important – educating and involving the public and illustrating that the changes required were not threatening. |
