Climate Activism in the 21st Century

The ravages of climate change emerged as a central issue in the 21st century. In the U.S., the political divide over climate change and how to confront it expanded. While Democrats became increasingly determined to join international efforts led by the United Nations to combat climate change, Republicans largely balked. The country embraced climate leadership when led by Obama and Biden but when led by Bush and Trump, a rebuff ensued. Those opposing climate action included the fossil fuel industries and others that sought to profit from the status quo. Climate crisis activism of the 21st century is the story of the tension between those wishing to continue business as usual and those seeing their futures directly impacted by such choices and demanding climate justice. This is a guide to understanding climate policy and activism, highlighting the participants, the progression of environmental science, and the pendulum of national policy under changing parties in power.

The author of numerous articles and book chapters on environmental policy and toxic waste and technology, Dianne Rahm is a professor in the department of Political Science at Texas State University.

Dianne Rahm
Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 221
Bibliographic Info: bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2023
pISBN: 978-1-4766-8534-2
eISBN: 978-1-4766-5068-5
Imprint: McFarland

Acronyms and Initialisms Used ix
Preface 1
1. Framing the Climate Crisis Policy Debate 5
2. Participants in the Climate Change Debate 26
3. Inherited 20th-Century Climate Change Policy 48
4. Eight Years of Policy Turbulence: The George W. Bush Administration 65
5. Eight Years of Attempted Progress: The Barack H. Obama Administration 83
6. The Triumph of the Opposition: The Donald J. Trump Administration 102
7. The Pendulum Swings Again: The Joseph R. Biden Administration 122
8. The Centrality of the Climate Justice Movement to 21st-Century Activism 141
9. Emerging Climate Crisis Dimensions 159
References 177
Index 203