Coordination:

Stefania Barca and Laura Centemeri

Abstract

Environmental conflicts can be defined as disputes resulting from situations or events (including public decisions) which influence the relationship between human communities and the environment. Environmental conflicts cause conflicts between different values given to the environment, which, in their turn, produce conflicts between different social groups about the distribution of the economic activities' "ecologic costs" and about the environmental damages and benefits resulting from public choices. These conflicts arise at different levels - from a local to a global dimension - and involve a variety of subjects - individual citizens, communities, NGOs, social movements, institutional actors and public policy makers. The existence of a variety of actors, who not only give environment different values but also are characterized by inequalities regarding economic power, scientific knowledge, political information and influence, is a challenge for collective action and public decision in environmental matters.


This training course offers a comparative perspective on different types of contemporary environmental conflicts and different experiences of collective action and decision-making which were created around each one of them.


This course consists on two sessions. The first session will deal with conflicts comprising the several natural resources (wind power, ground and water), as well as different decision-making support instruments and methods, based on the evaluation of the different available alternatives and the creation of a place of participation and deliberation. The second session will focus on the conflict between labour, health and environment, with special attention to the case of the petrochemical industry. This session will include the screening (national premiere) of the documentary ‘Oil. Il film’ (Italy, 2010). The following debate, with the presence of the CGTP Secretary-General, Manuel Carvalho da Silva, will approach topics like the relationship between trade union movements and environmental movements and the contrasts between industrial policies and sustainability policies in Portugal.


The course is one of the activities promoted by CES Risk Observatory within the project BECOM (Choice beyond (in)commensurability: controversies and public decision making on territorial sustainable development), funded by FCT - FCOMP-01-0124-FEDER-009234.


Registration

Regular: 30€

Students and unemployed workers: 20€

> Registration

Program

9:30 -  Reception of participants

10:00 - 10:45 Social multi-criteria evaluation: The case of wind farms of Serra del Tallat, Catalonia (Gonzalo Gamboa, ICTA Barcelona)

10:45 - 11:00 Debate

11:00 - 11:45 Conflicts against eucalypts in Portugal: identities, languages and narratives in a multi-scale analysis of social metabolism (Gualter Barbas Baptista, CENSE FCT/UNL Lisbon)

11:45 - 12:00 Debate

12:00 - 12:45 New approaches to discuss water needed! Or, how to use prospect and participation in the debate about water and climate changes? (Sofia Bento, SOCIUS-ISEG Lisbon)

12:45 -13:00 Debate

14:30 - 15:15 Labour/health/environment: a comparative historical approach (Stefania Barca, CES Coimbra)

15:15 - 15:30 Debate

15:30 – 17:00 Documentary: ‘Oil. Il film’ by Massimiliano Mazzotta (Italy, 2010 - subtitled in English)

17:00 - 18:30 Debate on Industry, environment and collective action, with interventions of:

Manuel Carvalho da Silva (PhD researcher, CES Coimbra; CGTP Secretary-General)

Laura Centemeri (PhD researcher, CES Coimbra; co-coordinator of Risk Observatory - OSIRIS)

Lúcia Fernandes (Doctoral student, CES/FEUC, University of Coimbra)

Massimiliano Mazzotta (movie director, Italy)

Moderator: Stefania Barca (CES Coimbra)