Civil Society and the Environment

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Civil Society and the Environment: The Mobilization of the U.S. Environmental Movement, 1900 - 2000 The voluntary associations that make up civil society play an important role in the maintenance, legitimacy, and stability of democracy. Through their civic associations, citizens develop and maintain their ethical life and exercise their citizenship through the formation of social movements. This provides society with a self-reflexive capacity to renew social institutions and adapt to changing circumstances. One of the major areas addressed by social movements is the human relationship with the natural environment. This project examines the growth and change of the U.S. environmental movement throughout the 20th century by addressing the following questions:- What are the major social and political factors that contribute to changes in the size and actions of the environmental movement?- How does foundation funding impact the actions and structure of the environmental movement?- What is the nature of the interaction between the environmental movement and the anti-environmental movement?To examine these questions, data will be collected for the time frame from 1900-2000, including the founding and disbanding of both environmentalist and anti-environmentalist organizations, the structure and actions of these organizations, changes in cultural beliefs about nature, and the nature of key political and economic influences on this movement. These data will be examined using a combination of case study methodology, multiple regression, event history, and network analysis. This project will address both academic researchers interested in social movement theory and the broader philanthropic and environmental communities. The results of the analysis will be made available through a project website. Through the dissemination of the results of this research seeks to foster a reflexive examination within the environmental movement and philanthropic community regarding its actions and thereby contribute to the creation of an environmentally sustainable society.