The nature of inequality: Assessing the impact of green development initiatives in developed countries

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This project looks at the relationship between the environment and inequality within developed countries. Specifically, it examines the social and economic effects of local green energy and conservation initiatives - referred to here as 'green development' -, as well as their political and ideational drivers. The ultimate question to be examined is thus: 'does green development promote equality?', which births a number of sub-questions. What is the human impact of various means of environmental protection? What effect (if any) does community-owned wind energy have on the local economy, or social and human capital in the community? Which green development projects have worked to reduce inequality, and why? If there has been no impact, then why not? These are just some of the key questions this project aims to answer.To address these questions, I will employ a mixed-methods approach. The qualitative element will involve a survey of project directors, scholars, and local and central government representatives from selected cities and communities wherein green development has been more expansive. Provisionally, these will include urban green development and localised renewable energy projects in Denmark, Scotland, Germany, Costa Rica, Singapore and South Africa. This will be achieved largely via email, Skype and face-to-face meetings where practical. Although developed countries serve as the focus of application, research will endeavour to investigate specific examples of developing countries wherein poverty has been effectively alleviated by green development projects. Knowing that the ESRC has already been involved collaboratively with the setting up of policy councils and networks in Tanzania and Kenya, these will provide valuable liaison points.The quantitative crux will be first to examine the Green City Index, which includes data from 120 countries and continental insights, and will allow for broader analysis in R and a more robust statistical examination of the data at hand. That is, not only can we glean micro insights from specific cases, but we can examine these cases both qualitatively and quantitatively against one and other. Deprivation indices in the selected panel (for which data is quite readily available) will be offset against data from this index and relationships analysed. Where more insightful data is lacking, such as that required to complement the more micro aspects of the study, central and local government will be consulted. The link between these factors will then be statistically examined.