TY - JOUR

T1 - Globalizing environmental justice

T2 - The geography and politics of frame contextualization and evolution

AU - Walker, Gordon

PY - 2009/12/1

Y1 - 2009/12/1

N2 - The use of the language of environmental justice as a frame for collective action on socio-environmental concerns has now evolved and extended far beyond its original formulation in the USA. This article examines two ways in which the use of the environmental justice frame has globalized. The first involves the international emergence of ideas, meanings and framing processes in new settings around the world. The 'horizontal' diffusion of an environmental justice frame is traced, examining processes of transfer, reproduction and contextualization that are taking place within the political and institutional cultures of different countries. The cases of the UK and South Africa are examined in detail. The second involves the 'vertical' extension of the environmental justice frame to encompass concerns that do not end at national borders but that involve relations between countries and global scale issues such as trade agreements, transfers of wastes and climate change. The implications of these two shifts, the tensions that have emerged around them and their relevance to the pursuit of progressive global social policy objectives are considered.

AB - The use of the language of environmental justice as a frame for collective action on socio-environmental concerns has now evolved and extended far beyond its original formulation in the USA. This article examines two ways in which the use of the environmental justice frame has globalized. The first involves the international emergence of ideas, meanings and framing processes in new settings around the world. The 'horizontal' diffusion of an environmental justice frame is traced, examining processes of transfer, reproduction and contextualization that are taking place within the political and institutional cultures of different countries. The cases of the UK and South Africa are examined in detail. The second involves the 'vertical' extension of the environmental justice frame to encompass concerns that do not end at national borders but that involve relations between countries and global scale issues such as trade agreements, transfers of wastes and climate change. The implications of these two shifts, the tensions that have emerged around them and their relevance to the pursuit of progressive global social policy objectives are considered.

KW - Environmental justice

KW - Framing

KW - Globalization

KW - South Africa

KW - UK

U2 - 10.1177/1468018109343640

DO - 10.1177/1468018109343640

M3 - Journal article

AN - SCOPUS:70449834981

VL - 9

SP - 355

EP - 382

JO - Global Social Policy

JF - Global Social Policy

SN - 1468-0181

IS - 3

ER -