Environmental Movements, Institutions and Civil Society: A New Way to Preserve Common Goods

Abstract

This paper aims at studying environmental participative movements which have national/Eu­ro­pean/international relevance and use digital media, as well as local connections and conventional networks for interacting, socializing, mobilizing people and tackling civic and social issues. By using a comparative approach, this article focuses on Italian and European projects promoted by movements in order to support a culture of environmental security and a sustainable development for everybody. The analysis hi­gh­lights significant differences among movements in terms of capability of interacting with institutions and other stakeholders, establishing partnerships and cooperating for local development and community empowerment. The objective is to provide a first model of environmental socialization based on several pro­mi­sing features: networks and innovative forms of partnership; level of activism and capability of planning participative initiatives; intensity of civic cohesion that is the ability of creating connections beyond their own movement, rooting inside the territorial community in a meaningful and enduring way

Keywords

• civic participation
• empowerment
• common goods
• environmental movements
• socialization processes