Informace o publikaci
Czech Environmental Attitudes, Past and Present: A Preliminary Analysis of Trends, 1990-2010
| Autoři | |
|---|---|
| Rok publikování | 2010 |
| Druh | Další prezentace na konferencích |
| Fakulta / Pracoviště MU | |
| Citace | |
| Popis | Many people concerned about the future of the natural world, and humans’ place in it, believe it is critical to increase popular awareness of environmental issues and encourage greater concern for ecological issues. The record shows that there have been big shifts in Czechs’ attitudes toward the natural environment since 1990. This paper has two goals: the first is to document the changes in environmental attitudes since the fall of communism. The second is to try to understand the causes of these changes. The paper introduces the concept of Ecological Modernization Theory as a potential framework within which to explain the changes in the relationship between society and the environment since the fall of communism. The data reveal that Czech concern for the environment was very strong at the time of the Velvet Revolution, but the trend during the 1990s and into the 2000s was declining expressions of environmental concern. This took place at the same time as the economy started to grow and tangible improvements were made in environmental quality. The paper finds that there is some evidence that the social-environmental changes taking place could be described as “ecological modernization,” but suggests that the theory fails to explain the weakening of environmental attitudes and that many of the positive changes may have been the result of pressures external to Czech society rather than a result of eco-conscious decisions within Czech institutions. The implications of these trends for the future are explored in the conclusion. |