Rethinking Democracy in a Climate-Changed World
CET Director Håvard Haarstad and Professor Lise Rykkja have submitted a Centre of Excellence proposal to explore the critical question: how can democratic institutions and governance adapt to catastrophic climate breakdown?
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The urgency is clear. The 1.5-degree threshold is likely surpassed, and according to the UNEP Emissions Gap Report (external link), current policies put us on track for 2.1 – 3.9 degrees of warming by 2100. What does this mean for democracy?
The proposed initiative Centre for Navigating a 4-degree world (4C) will examine how democratic institutions and collective action fare amid rising resource competition, social conflict, and mounting pressure on governments to manage crises.
“The world is heading for high global warming,” says Haarstad. “This creates many problems, but one that has not been properly thought about is what it does to our ability to act and make decisions collectively. How can we rethink democracy and collective action so that we can handle these challenges in a good way?”
An interdisciplinary approach
The centre draws on interdisciplinary collaboration between research groups at UiB within human geography, political science, public administration, environmental sciences and governance, development studies and media studies. This collaboration aims to create a new research field focused on democracy under climate stress.
“The centre will be an arena to think long-term about the consequences of climate change on our institutions,” Haarstad explains. “In everyday life, we typically think about the current crisis, or maybe the next one coming around the corner. That is important, but we need to find a way to deal with the longer-term trends.”
4C will not only provide a new lens for social science climate research, but will also give practical insights for policymakers. Its goal is to help societies safeguard democratic values and collective action—avoiding a future dominated by authoritarianism and conflict.
Have we given up on mitigating climate change?
“No. The future is still open, and today’s actions will shape life for future generations. Fortunately, many are working on mitigation, but we also need to prepare for the impacts already unfolding — that’s the centre’s main focus,” says Haarstad.
Social science cannot predict the exact trajectory of climate change, but it can help us prepare to govern effectively in a climate-changed world.
Håvard Haarstad, Professor of Human Geography and Lise Rykkja, Professor of Political Science, will co-lead the centre initiative. Other researchers involved in the proposal are: Scott Bremer, Silje Kristiansen, Jessica Jewell, Siddharth Sareen, Endre Tvinnereim, Lars Coenen, Simon Neby and Jakob Grandin.