Environmental Skepticism: Ecology, Power and Public Life

Concentrated power in world politics is made up of ideas and supporting material resources and institutions. The material resources all come from nature, yet ecology is usually underappreciated in international relations as a source of power. Powerful countries control resources, economic elites command value in ecology and more importantly, systems of power arrange ecological sources of power for their maintenance.A counter-environmental movement is afoot that is having important effects in world politics. This movement is 'environmental skepticism' which casts doubt upon the reality or importance of environmental problems, particularly those which threaten sustainability such as climate change, environmental epidemiological threats from chemicals, biodiversity loss, and renewable resources.Jacques examines the political implications and processes of environmental skepticism in the context of critical international relations theory and global ecological justice propositions.