A Green Spring? Environmental activism as a catalyst for social change in the MENA region

 

In the Middle East and North Africa region, environmental activism has gained momentum despite shrinking civic spaces. Issues such as land-use conflicts, garbage handling, water mismanagement and pollution linked to extractive industries have given rise to both ad-hoc campaigns and organized social movements. Yet there remains a significant knowledge gap on the subject of environmental activism, particularly regarding its shape, connection to other social movements, impact on discourses around resource allocation and social justice, and ability to navigate the region's political and economic challenges.

This project intends to fill this knowledge gap by investigating the different forms, strategies and tactics of environmental activism across the region, with a focus on Morocco, Tunisia, Lebanon and Iraq. Key objectives encompass analyzing the dynamics of environmental activism, its potential to connect the climate emergency with growing resource allocation inequalities, and its resilience against state repression. Moreover, the project aims to cultivate collaboration, transnational peer learning and networks among activists and researchers, and exploration of climate change and environmental issues as conduits for broader grievances about governance and social justice.

The project will involve interviews, fieldwork, comparative case analysis and community engagement to map regional environmental activism varieties. It will provide practical insights for practitioners, policymakers and researchers. Additionally, through interdisciplinary cooperation and knowledge sharing across the selected countries of focus and elsewhere in the region (Algeria, West Bank and Gaza, and Yemen), the project will provide recommendations to strengthen regional networks and alliances advocating for a just environmental transition.