Recent developments in EU climate governance have shown that extra-institutional climate activism can have an impact on EU policy and help ensure a more democratic transition. This policy brief is based on the scoping paper "Contemporary Climate Activism and EU Climate Policy: Societal Engagement as Public Participation" by Louisa Parks, Sebastian Oberthür and Tereza Maarova, which explores existing knowledge on the interactions between contemporary activism and EU climate policy.
It examines the dynamics of the new wave of climate activism, assesses its policy impacts, and proposes options for enabling impactful activism within the EU. The focus is on social movement-driven activism (or extra-institutional activism), including protests, disruptive actions, and community creation, rather than on traditional advocacy by non-governmental organisations (NGOs).
The authors propose three key options to enable more impactful climate activism within the EU:
- The EU can develop inclusive and co-owned participatory spaces at the EU level and allow bottom-up participatory mechanisms cultivated by activists to enrich EU processes.
- The EU can provide guidance and minimum standards to EU member states to develop participatory mechanisms and safeguard spaces for climate activism.
- Lastly, straightforward financial support should be provided to develop and strengthen activist networks and alliances, and in particular for ongoing operational expenses, with a view to enhancing their capacity for meaningful impact.
Read the policy brief here
