WISO000935 Contested transformation: Between fossil fuel backlash and socio-ecological restructuring

Type
Lecture
Semester hours
3
Lecturer (assistant)
Maneka, Danyal , Pichler, Melanie
Organisation
Social Ecology
Offered in
Sommersemester 2026
Languages of instruction
Deutsch
Content

The crisis is omnipresent: from climate change to global economic conflicts to the workplace. This unique situation is characterized by its multiple dimensions. This is reflected not only in social and political uncertainty. Solidarity-based ways out of this spiral of short-term interventions and renewed crisis intensification are urgently needed. This is because the “emergency pragmatism” (Hans-Jürgen Urban), which has strongly characterized government rescue packages for critical economic sectors, for example, is increasingly reaching its limits. Against this backdrop, the public lecture series focuses on the contradictions and perspectives for socio-ecological transformation policy. It centers on the question of how social and ecological restructuring can succeed despite adverse conditions. For while the pressure for change is increasing, projects of a fossil-authoritarian backlash have gained momentum far beyond the US. This conflictual situation is causing current debates on socio-ecological transformation to intensify along two poles: Can just transitions succeed? (in the sense of a deliberately designed transformation “by design”)? Or are the signs increasingly pointing to the crossing of climate, social, and democratic tipping points? (in the form of a transformation “by disaster”)?
Previous knowledge expected

Interest in the opportunities and challenges of socio-ecological transformation from different societal perspectives
Objective (expected results of study and acquired competences)

Upon completion of the course, students will be able to:
- critically explain the key characteristics of the current multiple crises and their interactions
- analytically distinguish and classify different paths of socio-ecological transformation
- reflect the the importance of trade unions, civil societies, and critical science for just transitions
- identify lines of conflict, power relations, and distribution issues in key fields of action
- analyze and classify the dynamics of climate backlash and authoritarian responses to climate policy
You can find more details like the schedule or information about exams on the course-page in BOKUonline.