Making Democracy Fit for Climate
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There are 6 modules in this course
Climate change has been high on the political agenda for years, yet greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise. Globally, communities are already experiencing the consequences of the crisis in various ways: from increases in extreme weather and changes to ecosystems to rising sea levels and depleting natural resources.
Despite the clear consequences of climate change, political action has so far proven inadequate at addressing the crisis. Democratic countries are no exception in this regard, which raises questions about the democratic system's ability to deliver the policies and actions needed to address climate change. The goal of this course is to zoom in on the relationship between democracy and climate change action. Do democratic systems have the capacity to deal with a threat like the climate crisis? If so, what will this require in terms of innovating democracy as a political system? During the course, you will meet researchers and experts from the University of Copenhagen who specialise in various areas relevant to this course. This includes scholars working on political and democratic theory, climate and environmental science, authoritarianism, international politics, and non-state actors. Furthermore, you will be presented with interviews from real-world actors who have engaged in the climate debate in various ways. We hope you will join this course to equip yourself with the knowledge needed to take part in the ongoing discussions related to climate change and the role of democracies in addressing its many challenges.
The purpose of this module is to introduce the fundamentals of democracy and climate change. The module provides an overview of the main justifications for why democracy is the most preferred mode of government, and juxtaposes these justifications with the challenges that climate change poses to democracy. The module concludes by outlining how and why democratic innovations might be needed.
What's included
5 videos2 readings1 assignment1 discussion prompt
5 videos•Total 39 minutes
- Introduction: Climate Change and Democracy - A Perfect Storm?•3 minutes
- Lecture 1: The Experience of Deadlock•10 minutes
- Interview with Kathrine Richardson - Tipping Points and Drivers of Climate Change•9 minutes
- Interview with Christian Rostbøll: Characteristics and Development of Democracy •8 minutes
- Lecture 2 - Reimagining Democracy•8 minutes
2 readings•Total 55 minutes
- Climate Change 2023, Synthesis Report •35 minutes
- Climates of Democracy: Skeptical, Rational, and Radical Imaginaries•20 minutes
1 assignment•Total 30 minutes
- Climate Change and Democracy •30 minutes
1 discussion prompt•Total 15 minutes
- Climate Change and Democratic Imaginaries•15 minutes
The purpose of this module is to analyse when, how, and why democracies are failing to address climate change with sufficient action. The module provides an overview of the main causes of inaction, with a focus on lobbyism, policy-inertia, and lack of attention to nonhuman forces. The module concludes by outlining how and why democracy, regardless of the current stalemate, has the potential for reform.
What's included
5 videos2 readings1 assignment1 discussion prompt
5 videos•Total 41 minutes
- Introduction - When, How and Why Is Democracy Failing Us?•4 minutes
- Lecture 1 - Why Democracy Has Become Unfit for Democracy•10 minutes
- Interview with Wiebke Junk - The Power of Lobbying•12 minutes
- Interview with Mads Ejsing - Democracy and Its Human-Centered Limitations•10 minutes
- Lecture 2 - Democracy’s Potential to Reform•6 minutes
2 readings•Total 40 minutes
- Climate Politics, Metaphors, and the Fractal Carbon Track •15 minutes
- Exploring the Democracy-Climate Nexus•25 minutes
1 assignment•Total 27 minutes
- When, How and Why Is Democracy Failing Us?•27 minutes
1 discussion prompt•Total 15 minutes
- Climate Change and the Power of Lobbyism•15 minutes
The purpose of this module is to explore how and why some actors see climate change as a reason to replace democracy with eco-authoritarianism. The module provides an overview of the history of authoritarianism and offers an in-depth account of how this history informs contemporary eco-authoritarianism in Europe and elsewhere. The module concludes with a discussion of why eco-authoritarianism, regardless of its intuitive appeal, fails to address the challenges of climate change.
What's included
4 videos3 readings1 assignment1 discussion prompt
4 videos•Total 41 minutes
- Introduction and Lecture 1 - The Allure of Authoritarianism•4 minutes
- Interview with Kristina Pedersen - Authoritarian Regimes and Climate Change•14 minutes
- Field Report - Interview with Julien Langella on His Case for Eco-Authoritarianism•10 minutes
- Lecture 2 - Is Eco-Authoritarianism a Credible Alternative?•12 minutes
3 readings•Total 32 minutes
- Political Legitimacy, Authoritarianism, and Climate Change •20 minutes
- The Mystery of China’s Glorious Green Dreams •7 minutes
- Can China's Eco-Authoritarianism Lead Global Climate Action?•5 minutes
1 assignment•Total 30 minutes
- The Allure of Authoritarianism - A Credible Alternative?•30 minutes
1 discussion prompt•Total 10 minutes
- Climate Change and the Rise of Authoritarianism•10 minutes
The purpose of this module is to examine the actions that the international political system has taken to address climate change. The module focuses on institutional reforms by the United Nations and the European Union, and discusses how these reforms affect relations between the global north and the global south. The module concludes with a discussion of how and why institutional reforms from above require democratic innovations from below.
What's included
4 videos2 readings1 assignment1 discussion prompt
4 videos•Total 49 minutes
- Introduction and Lecture 1 - Democracy and the International Political System•11 minutes
- Interview with Olaf Corry - The UN Conference of Parties (COP)•9 minutes
- Interview with Ana Soares - The EU Green Deal•14 minutes
- Lecture 2 - Advantages and Limitations of the International Political System•15 minutes
2 readings•Total 25 minutes
- The Successes and Failures of COP28•10 minutes
- The Institutionalisation of Climate Change in Global Politics •15 minutes
1 assignment•Total 33 minutes
- Democracy and the International Political System•33 minutes
1 discussion prompt•Total 20 minutes
- Climate Change, Indigenous Communities, and International Collaboration•20 minutes
The purpose of this module is to analyse how democratic innovations from below enhance the fight against climate change at both local and global scales. The module focuses on climate citizens' assemblies, climate activism, civil disobedience, green neighborhoods, and other non-state actors, and introduces the politics of swarming as an umbrella-term for these innovations. The module concludes with a discussion of how and why a renewal of democracy must take many forms to address climate change.
What's included
8 videos2 readings1 assignment1 discussion prompt
8 videos•Total 94 minutes
- Introduction - Democracy, Non-State Actors and Civil Society•7 minutes
- Lecture 1 - Climate Citizens' Assemblies in the Green Transition•14 minutes
- Field report - Participant Experiences from the French Citizens' Convention on Climate•14 minutes
- Field report - Participant Experiences from Climate Citizens’ Assembly in Greve•13 minutes
- Lecture 2 - Grassroots and Non-State Actors•17 minutes
- Interview with Michele Betsill - The Role of Non-State Actors in the Green Transition•12 minutes
- Lecture 3 - Innovations for Making Democracy Fit for Climate•4 minutes
- [Non-Mandatory] Field Report: Interview with Organiser of the French Citizens' Convention on Climate•13 minutes
2 readings•Total 16 minutes
- What Is a Climate Assembly?•10 minutes
- The Crisis of Democracy and the Science of Deliberation •6 minutes
1 assignment•Total 30 minutes
- Democracy, Non-State Actors and Civil Society•30 minutes
1 discussion prompt•Total 15 minutes
- Democratic Innovations in a Green Transition•15 minutes
The purpose of this module is to introduce the concept of a "more-than-human democracy" as a way to overcome the limits of contemporary climate politics. The module focuses on the entanglements of human and non-human forces and shows how these entanglements inspire new forms of democratic innovations ranging from artistic performances to the extension of rights to rivers and other ecosystems. The module also includes a discussion of why purely technological solutions are insufficient and why this should lead us to an ecological perspective on democracy. Finally, the module provides a brief overview of the previous five modules and concludes by emphasising that making democracy fit for climate will require new understandings of participation, representation, the relationship between humans and non-humans, and the distribution of authority across both local, national and transnational borders.
What's included
5 videos2 readings1 assignment1 discussion prompt
5 videos•Total 59 minutes
- Introduction and Lecture 1 - The idea of a More-than-Human Democracy•15 minutes
- Interviews with Michele Betsill & Olaf Corry - Issues and Pitfalls Related to Nature-Based Solutions and Geoengineering•16 minutes
- Interview with Mads Ejsing - Considerations in Integrating the More-than-Human •13 minutes
- Field Report - Participant Experience from a More-than-Human Workshop•8 minutes
- Lecture 2 - Making Democracy Fit for Climate•7 minutes
2 readings•Total 50 minutes
- Approaching the Edge: Towards a New Materialist Theory of Democracy for the Anthropocene•25 minutes
- Ecological Democracy and the Rise and Decline of Liberal Democracy•25 minutes
1 assignment•Total 27 minutes
- Democracy and the Non-Human•27 minutes
1 discussion prompt•Total 15 minutes
- More-than-Human Democracy?•15 minutes
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