Colonialism & Climate

The Silenced Climate Story

Justine DELLER & Anna MATHISCommunicating the Climate Crisis - GODIN Melissa

The Silenced Climate Story

Justine DELLER & Anna MATHISCommunicating the Climate Crisis - GODIN Melissa

The Silenced Climate Story

To what extent has colonialism shaped (and is still shaping) climate change and the world’s response to it?

Contents

Chapter 1: Once upon a (colonial) time… Chapter 2: The ideological foundations of colonialism Chapter 3: And here comes an heritage

Chapter 4: What scientists think and tellChapter 5: Colonialist legacy in global climate governanceChapter 6: We cannot reverse the story, but here’s what we can do

Chapter 1 : Once upon a (colonial) time ...

Colonialism : a group acquires control overanother group’s territory⇒ occupation, imperialist economic exploitation to the benefit of the motherland, violenceSettler colonialism : settlers seize territory, eradicate / submit the people ; territory = extensionof the motherlandColoniality : considering Indigenous people as inferior, systematically wrong when giving different meanings to the world : knowledge & reality get colonised

Chapter 1 : Once upon a (colonial) time ...

Damnés reality, Damnés knowledge (Fanon) : hierarchisation of knowledge ⇒ hegemonic knowledge constructed as superior ⇒ erases, forbids "any knowledge that is genera-ted from within other lifeworlds" (Burman, 2017)Appropriation of Indigenous knowledge not (yet) acknowledgedEpistemicide : people with knowledge murdered & non-hegemonic forms of knowledge forbidden, silenced and suppressed.

Chapter 2 : The ideological foundations of colonialism

Othering (Klein, 2016) : "disregarding, essentialising and denuding the humanity of another culture, people or geographical region"⇒ differentiation between "us" and "them"⇒ Orientalism (Foucault) : discourse of the Western world to dominate and depict the Eastern world.Biopower : power to choose to let live or make die, exclusion of certain populations based on racist motives⇒ a technology of government (Foucault) = state functions in a biopolitical mode.

Chapter 3 : And here comes an heritage...

Vulnerability (IPCC) : "the degree to which a system is susceptible to, and unable to cope with, adverse effects of climate change" ⇒ Global North needs to "help and save" the vulnerable people and places (white man's burden).

⇒ in newspapers, marginalized and Indigenous communities depicted as "victims" of climate change⇒ Othering climate refugees: depicted either as victims or as a threat.

Chapter 3 : And here comes an heritage...

Slow violence (Nixon):⇒ legacies of colonialism on the environment and people⇒ slow process over centuries and space, from the beginning of colonization onwards⇒ invisibilised violence⇒ e.g. marginalization of communities during colonial time persists today in the Andean highlands

Chapter 3 : And here comes an heritage

Colonialism : Indigenous people deprived of land ; exploiting natural resources = sign of advanced society⇒habitats appropriated to sustain westernindustrialisation → lands exploited, ecosystems disturbed, pollution, destructions, imperial law, people massively killed, relocations, ... After decolonisation : models of nature & resources management remain

Chapter 3 : And here comes an heritage

CO2 does not know borders ⇒ pollution impacts theGlobal South territories and people people least responsible = most affectedStructures of society & power : groups + affected(BIPoC people, women, disabled, poor people, ...)Triple burden (Wilhite and Salinas) : - extractive capitalism- climate change- market-based mitigation mechanisms

Chapter 3 : And here comes an heritage

Environmental Blame Displacement : people least responsible blamed for climate change & environmental disasters→ Legacies of colonialist ideology : perceived as less educated, less advanced, less skilledEx : agricultural & housing models ⇒ Considered as responsible for the naturaldisasters they suffer from

Chapter 4 : What scientists think and tell

Climate science based on European science→ European words and framingsExamples : civil society, nature

Chapter 5 : Colonialist legacy in global climate governance

Mid-1980s - 1996

UNFCCC: common but differentiated responsibility and respective capabilities

1997 - 2009

Kyoto Protocol, market mechanisms, CDM

2009 - 2015

2015 - Onwards

privatization, commercialization and commodification of natural resources (REDD+)

1970s - mid 1980s

Protection of society and ecosystems

3

4

5

1

2

Paris agreement, pledge and review system

Neoliberal environmentalism

Chapter 6: We cannot reverse the story, but here’s what we can do

Cognitive justice : recongize non-European systems of knwoledge as equally legitimate and valuable⇒ Which knowledge counts as real ?Until now, Indigenous ontologies seen as a cultural misrepresentation of the world⇒ How to combine systems of knowledge ?

Chapter 6: We cannot reverse the story, but here’s what we can do

- Stop thinking of the fight against climate change as a “sacrifice” : entering an other framework, reshaping our imaginaries ⇒ new desires (humans & non-human entities)- Stop using “sacrifice zones” for “green transition”Burden-sharing justice (S. Caney) : rebalancing the costs of climate change : Responsible for climate change, can pay & benefit from it : bear the burden

Chapter 6: We cannot reverse the story, but here’s what we can do

Climate justice ⇒ including Indigenous ways of thinking, questioning the consequences of a neoliberal “green economy”, accept to challenge our ideology, empower marginalised people, questioning the way we continue “othering”, welcoming and listening climate refugees, and truly decolonising (our minds also)Media : give voice & open mind to Indigenous views& knowledgeMedia today : Climate change perceived as a problem for society and not a problem of society

Conclusion

The story continues today : mining, sacrifice zones, green grabbing, deforestation, …Deconstruct systems : systems of thoughts,our ways of life, capitalist structures and extractivism, climate governance and the way science is producedBut we are not part of those who are silenced.Ecofeminism : parallel between dominations

The Silenced Climate Story

Justine DELLER & Anna MATHISCommunicating the Climate Crisis - GODIN Melissa

Bibliography

*Andreucci, Diego et al. “Between improvement and sacrifice: Othering and the (bio)political ecology of climate change,” Political Geography V.92.Azam, Geneviève et al. “Écoféministes”, État (toujours) colonial”, “Indigène”. In On ne dissout pas un soulèvement - 40 voix pour les soulèvements de la terre. 2023. Seuil. *Belfer, Ella, et al. “Representation of Indigenous Peoples in Climate Change Reporting.” Climatic Change, vol. 145, no. 1-2, 2017, pp. 57–70.*Burman, Andrews. “The political ontology of climate change: moral meteorology, climate justice, and the coloniality of reality in the Bolivian Andes,” Journal of Political Ecology.*Ciplet, David et al. “Climate change and the transition to neoliberal environmental governance,” Global Environmental Change V.46.Étienne, Camille. Pour un soulèvement écologique - Dépasser notre impuissance collective. 2023. Seuil. Frengs, Julia L. Anticolonial ecofeminisms: Women’s environmental literature in French-speaking Oceania. 2020. French Cultural Studies, 31(4), 293-303. Fuentes-George, Kemi. "The Legacy of Colonialism on Contemporary Climate Governance". 2023. Georgetown Journal of International Affairs, Volume 24, Number 1, Spring 2023, pp. 91-98. Gonzalez Ramirez, Erika and Lietaert, Matthieu. The illusion of Abundance. 2022Harcourt et al. “Untold Climate Stories: Feminist Political Ecology Perspectives on Extractivism, Climate Colonialism and Community Alternatives”. In Contours of Feminist Political Ecology. 2023. *Heglar, Mary Annaïse and Westervelt, Amy. “Climate Colonialism 101”, Hot Take. 2022. https://podcasts.apple.com/fr/podcast/climate-colonialism-101/id1488414960?i=1000578134608Mercer, Harriet and Simpson, Thomas. Imperialism, colonialism, and climate change science. 2023. WIREs Climate Change, 14(6), e851.*Mercer, Harriet. “Colonialism: Why Leading Climate Scientists Have Finally Acknowledged Its Link with Climate Change.” The Conversation, 15 Sept. 2022.Robinson, Mary. Climate Justice - A man-made problem with a feminist solution. 2019. Bloomsbury.Salle, Grégory. Qu’est-ce que le crime environnemental ? 2022. Seuil.*Satia, Priya. “The Way We Talk about Climate Change Is Wrong.” Foreign Policy. 2022.*Stensrud, Astrid B., et al. “Introduction: Anthropological Perspectives on Global Economic and Environmental Crises in an Overheated World”, “The Dark Side of Progress: The Intersections of Climate Change, Neoliberalism and Modernity in Peru”, “Expansive Capitalism, Climate Change and Global Climate Mitigation Regimes: A Triple Burden on Forest Peoples in the Global South” In Climate, Capitalism and Communities: An Anthropology of Environmental Overheating. Pluto Press, 2019.

Bibliography - Images

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/othering-media-steps-towards-more-inclusive-society-rakhmankulova/ https://www.firstpost.com/tech/science/climate-refugees-why-we-cant-yet-predict-where-millions-of-displaced-people-will-go-7734221.htmlhttps://climatecommunication.yale.edu/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/climate-justice-hero-scaled-e1659473560106.jpg https://tse2.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.eSQPogsicfrNKmAvR5X5ywHaE8&pid=Apihttps://www.britannica.com/explore/savingearth/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2020/05/ecofeminism-hero-2048x802.jpghttps://theconversation.com/colonialism-was-a-disaster-and-the-facts-prove-it-84496https://www.lelivrescolaire.fr/page/16858681 https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/2048/cpsprodpb/4588/production/_100300871_96f60c77-9728-4b11-80a2-07bbc2df1fe2.jpghttps://ychef.files.bbci.co.uk/976x549/p0944bs1.jpghttps://www.historyonthenet.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Colonial-America.jpghttps://tse3.mm.bing.net/th?id=OIP.Osa6JycfFwtAIJZ-qPX6PwHaE7&pid=Api

The Silenced Climate Story

Justine DELLER & Anna MATHISCommunicating the Climate Crisis - GODIN Melissa

Discussion

Drawing on your personal experience or informations you have on your countries, do you wish to share a personal example ?

Discussion

To what extent can we link the impact of colonialism to the impact of patriarchy and male domination on climate change perception ?

Discussion

Is there a particular element that striked you while preparing the course and reading the texts ? Or during the presentation ?

Discussion

Do you believe those issues are sufficiently and accurately addressed in the newspapers? On social media?

The Silenced Climate Story

Justine DELLER & Anna MATHISCommunicating the Climate Crisis - GODIN Melissa

Write a great headline

4

SUBTITLE HERE

If you want to provide additional information or develop the content in more detail, you can do so through your oral presentation. We recommend that you practice your voice and rehearse: the best improvisation is always the most polished!

We better capture visual content. Visual content is associated with cognitive and psychological mechanisms. Things come in through the eyes, the first image is what matters. We associate visual content with emotions.

Write a great headline

5

SUBTITLE HERE

If you want to provide additional information or develop the content in more detail, you can do so through your oral presentation. We recommend that you practice your voice and rehearse: the best improvisation is always the most refined!

We grasp visual content better. Visual content is linked to cognitive and psychological mechanisms. Things come in through the eyes; the first image is what matters. We associate visual content with emotions.

Write a great headline

2

SUBTITLE HERE

If you want to provide additional information or develop the content in more detail, you can do so through your oral presentation. We recommend that you practice your voice and rehearse: the best improvisation is always the most rehearsed!

We better capture visual content. Visual content is associated with cognitive and psychological mechanisms. Things come in through the eyes, the first image is what counts. We associate visual content with emotions.

Write a great headline

3

SUBTITLE HERE

If you want to provide additional information or develop the content in more detail, you can do so through your oral presentation. We recommend that you train your voice and rehearse: the best improvisation is always the most practiced!

We better grasp visual content. Visual content is associated with cognitive and psychological mechanisms. Things come in through the eyes, the first image is what matters. We associate visual content with emotions.

Write a Great Headline

1

Subtitle here

If you want to provide additional information or develop the content in more detail, you can do it through your oral presentation. We recommend that you practice your voice and rehearse: the best improvisation is always the most worked!

We perceive visual content better. Visual content is linked to cognitive and psychological mechanisms. Things enter through the eyes, the first image is what matters. We connect visual content with emotions.