13 Nov 2024, 6 am MST (North America) / 2 pm CET (Germany) / 3 pm EET (Finland) 

Title: Exploring the Green Frontier: Patterns of Inequality in Europe’s Recent Forest Initiatives

Authors: Dr. Jodie Asselin (University of Lethbridge, Canada) and Dr. Agata Konczal (Wageningen University, Netherlands)

Abstract: 

In recent decades, there has been a global consensus on the urgent need for coordinated efforts to combat forest loss and degradation, given forests’ critical roles in climate change mitigation, biodiversity, and local economies. However, the development and implementation of forest policies are complex and politically charged, often addressing ‘wicked’ problems with diverse actors and conflicting values. The proposed solutions—such as conservation, rewilding, certification, and forest expansion—introduce their own challenges. This paper introduces the concept of ‘green frontiers’ as a lens to better understand patterns and consequences of this new forest dynamic in Europe. Applying critical perspectives typically used for frontier studies in the Global South to the Global North, this paper addresses a gap in literature on frontier-making in Europe while highlighting how environmental discourses are reshaping landscapes and communities, often reflecting historical patterns of dispossession and exploitation. 

To join the event, please use the Zoom Link: https://uni-jena-de.zoom-x.de/j/65854920539

Meeting-ID: 658 5492 0539; Kenncode: 008070

Flumen’s project manager, Martin Fritz, is visiting colleagues at Lund University in Sweden from October 7 to 17, 2024. Besides talking about the research results of flumen and ideas on co-operation, the current projects of the Swedish colleagues “Regulating the Polluter Elite: Exploring policy measures limiting carbon footprints of the rich” and “Economic Elites in the Climate Change Transformation: Practices, justifications and regulations of unsustainable lifestyles in Sweden” will also be the subject of the exchange and collaboration.

Eversberg, Dennis / Fritz, Martin / von Faber, Linda / Schmelzer, Matthias (2024): The new socio-ecological class conflict. Conflicting mentalities
and interests in the dispute over transformation. Research report of the Junior Research Group „Mentalities in flux: imaginaries and social structure in modern circular bio-based societies (flumen)“, Jena.
https://doi.org/10.22032/dbt.62699

Flumen provides sociologically based explanations for the social conflictuality and possibilities of the (non-)success of a socio-ecological transformation. In a Germany-wide representative ‘BioMentalities’ survey, the Junior Research Group asked 4,000 people about their mentalities, i.e. their attitudes, views and feelings regarding socio-ecological change as well as their everyday habits and socio-economic situation. Using the survey data, researchers from flumen analysed mental and socio-structural contrasts within German society that are shaping the current social debates on socio-ecological transformation.

The research report presented here summarises the key evaluation results. In addition, a book was published in summer 2024, that provide readers with more detailed explanations, for example on the positioning of the flumen study in the interpretive landscape of other empirical studies on socio-ecological transformation as a field of conflict, on the content and methodology of the flumen survey, on the analysis procedure used to evaluate the data and on the various interpretive results.

The survey results show that people’s attitudes to the questions of whether, how quickly and in what form a socio-ecological transformation is necessary differ, in some cases strikingly – and that these opinions tend to be related to people’s social situations and the associated interests. The authors interpret this as a new socio-ecological class conflict.

Junior research group leader Dr. Martin Fritz, together with Kajsa Emilsson and Roger Hildingsson, has published the article “The active, the sympathetic, and the reluctant: political action and eco-social attitudes among Swedish residents” in the European Political Science Review.

Abstract:

In this study, we investigate how eco-social attitudes are interlinked with various modes of political action aimed at preventing environmental change and promoting social welfare. Using multiple correspondence analysis and cluster analysis, we explore the links between attitudes and political action, and associated socio-political characteristics, in the case of Sweden. Our results show a three-node pattern forming a political action triangle: individuals expressing joint support for social welfare and environmental concerns are most actively engaged in political action, while those supporting environmental concerns are sympathetic to take part in political action without actually participating, and those supporting social welfare or expressing low support for either set of concerns seem overly reluctant towards all types of political action. This pattern, which is also tied to distinctive socio-political characteristics, has wider implications for understanding the agency and the mobilization of support for tackling the multiple ecological and social crises contemporary societies are facing.

To the article: here

Download the article: here

We hereby warmly invite you to our next Scientific Coffee Human-Forest-Relationships session.

 9 October 2024

2-4pm CEST (Germany) / 3-5pm EEST (Finland) / 6-8 am MDT (North America)

Input: Kristina Wirth (FVA Freiburg, Germany)

Title: „Creating understanding through artful connections“

To join the event, please use the Zoom Link: https://uni-jena-de.zoom.us/j/61027392103, Meeting-ID: 610 2739 2103, code: 513063

Abstract

The current debate about the future of German forests is all over the media, while conflicts between citizens and foresters are on the rise. These debates and conflicts revolve primarily around questions of the ‘right’ approach to the management of our forests. Our team conducted an empirical study on the central issues and interactive patterns of those conflicts. After that, we implemented a participatory project with involved conflict parties (foresters and citizens’ initiatives) and a graphic designer. Together we further elaborated the empirical results and turned them into artful media elements (cartoons, film, portraits: https://www.fva-bw.de/en/top-meta-navigation/departments/societal-change-unit/completed-projects/fight-over-the-forest), with the idea of encouraging engagement with the conflicts by employing humor and creativity.
In this presentation, I will briefly introduce the main findings concerning conflicts on forest management in Germany. Then I will focus on the participatory process and the resulting media elements as well as the so far observed effects of their use.

Kristina Wirth studied biology and forest research. Afterwards, she started working at the Societal Change Unit at the Forest Research Institute Baden-Württemberg, Germany (https://www.fva-bw.de/en/top-meta-navigation/departments/societal-change-unit) in 2011. There, she discovered her interest and preference for social sciences. Her (current) main research interests are conflicts on forest management and transformative processes concerning forestry in Germany.  

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Scientific Coffee “Human-Forest-Relationships”

Let’s sit and talk in the scientific café! The “Scientific Coffee HFR” sessions give room for open and relaxed discussions on current research subjects related to human and society relations to forests. It warmly welcomes all interested in forest-related research to join online sessions.

Each session lasts approximately two hours. It starts with a 30-minutes presentation of a guest speaker. After the presentation, with coffee or tea and cookies at hand, participants have plenty of room for an open discussion and exchange.

The “Scientific Coffee HFR” takes place two to three times per semester on Wednesdays.

Guest speakers wanted!

If you are interested in contributing to the “Scientific Coffee HFR”, please contact either jana.holz(at)uni-jena.de or tuulikki.halla(at)uef.fi with info on your subject (title and short abstract) and a preferred date.

The idea for a scientific coffee HFR came up during a cooperation between Finnish and German researchers in 2021. The Finnish research project Human-Forest Relationships in Societal Change and the German research group Mentalities im Flux (flumen) organized the workshop “Contested Society-Nature-Relations. Forest related Emotions, Practices & Conflicts in Times of Societal Change” in May 2021. The first “Scientific Coffee HFR” session was held in September 2021.

The “Scientific Coffee HFR” is organized by:

• Human-Forest Relationship Research Club of the Finnish Society of Forest Science
• The research group “Mentalities in Flux” (flumen) Research Project