Concepts

Question 1

Global Environmental Politics (GEP)

Answer 1

politics of the env on a global scale
how actors influence the env and how it is analyzed and understood

Question 2

carbon lock-in

Answer 2

a situation in which a society or an industry becomes heavily dependent on carbon-intensive or fossil-fuel based technologies and infrastructures, making it difficult to transition to more sustainable and env friendly alternatives
-> can create barriers to adopting cleaner and more sustainable energy sources and technologies
-> at multiple scales: household, community, region, country, international trade

Question 3

Earth System Governance (ESG)

Answer 3

understanding politics and governance in terms of socio-ecological system change at planetary scale, focus on planetary interdependence
-> need to decenter the state and look at all scales of actors/gov

Question 4

Clean Development Mechanisms

Answer 4

allows industrialized countries to finance emissions mitigation projects in developing countries

Question 5

political economy approach to GEP

Answer 5

understand the complex relationships between the env and the structures of power and wealth:
financial flows and investments; trade relations; ownerships of land, resources, corporate entities, activities of corporations

Question 6

Chicago School of economics

Answer 6

emergence of neoliberal capitalism

Question 7

Structural Adjustment Programs (SAP)

Answer 7

lending to developing countries on condition of neoliberal policies:
free trade and free markets, cutting regulation, privatization, austerity and cutting gov spending (health care, education), lower wages
csqces: inequality, poverty, unemployment, env degradation

Question 8

anti/decolonial lens to GEP

Answer 8

focus on the lived experiences of those affected by climate crisis, rejection of uniform systems and dynamics, attention to knowledge and knowledge production, attention to structural injustices and colonial structures

Question 9

environmental justice

Answer 9

examines the question of the vulnerability of who
how is injustice actually experienced

Question 10

multilevel climate action

Answer 10

a call for diverse and comprehensive responses to disrupt carbon lock-in, emphasizing the importance of interventions at various levels (cities, states, transnational networks, corporations, nation-states) to achieve decarbonization goals

Question 11

multilevel policy and governance intervention

Answer 11

deliberate actions taken by various entities, including cities, states, corporations, and nation-states, aimed at disrupting carbon lock-in and promoting decarbonization

Question 12

Fractal carbon trap

Answer 12

challenging trajectory of disrupting carbon-lock in, which is characterized by the interdependent and reinforcing dynamics of political economy, technological factors, cultural norms, and institutional arrangements

Question 13

D(crit) thresold

Answer 13

the critical thresold that, if breached, can lead to the disruption of carbon lock-in, requiring significant and sustained interventions to move the system towards decarbonization

Question 14

Socio-technical studies (STS)

Answer 14

an interdisciplinary field focusing on the study of technological changes, the power of incumbent industries, and the potential expansion of niche technologies to transform the technological regime

Question 15

perverse subsidies

Answer 15

financial incentives provided by governments that counteract environmental goals, often supporting environmentally damaging practices such as fossil fuel extraction

Question 16

double trap phenomenon

Answer 16

the tendency for interventions to lead to partial improvements in decarbonization while maintaining certain systems in a state of partial carbon lock-in

Question 17

planetary boundaries

Answer 17

a threshold determined by scientists that would (if transgressed), shift parts of the earth system into a new state

Question 18

planetary justice

Answer 18

opens env justice discourse to a more systematic interrogation of its planetary dimensions + Earth system challenges that humanity is facing

Question 19

common but differentiated responsibilities

Answer 19

states are responsible for protecting the global env and all should participate in its governance, but industrialized countries bear primary responsibility on the basis of their historical pollution and/or their greater capacity to bear the costs incurred

Question 20

Capitalocene

Answer 20

new geological era
understanding capitalism not just as an ecosystem but as a way of organizing the relations between humans and the rest of nature

Question 21

the 7 cheap things

Answer 21

1) nature
2) money
3) work
4) care
5) food
6) energy
7) lives

Question 22

reparation ecology

Answer 22

weighing the injustices of centuries of exploitation can resacralize human relations within the web of life

Question 23

thresold theory of pollution

Answer 23

body, water, human can handle a certain amount of contaminant before scientifically detectable harm occurs