Towards a global environmental citizenship?

ELIZABETH JELIN

Citizenship Studies

Taylor and Francis

Lugar: Abingdon, Oxfordshire; Año: 2000 vol. 4 p. 47 - 63

1362-1025

This paper discusses the notion of ´environmental rights and duties´, looking at the points of conceptual convergence of the perspective of sustainable development and the perspective of rights, duties and citizenship. It points to show that the introduction of environmental issues in considerations about citizenship implies a paradigmatic shift in the conception of citizenship towards a global (vis-a-vis nation state), collective (vis-a-vis individualistic), and positive (vis-a-vis negative liberal) framework. Conversely, bringing a citizenship perspective into the environmental debate implies a human-centered view of the environment. The key question is, in consequence, under what conditions is it possible to talk about ´environmental citizenship´? What would its meaning and content be?