Call for Papers NFU Conference 2012 Development for a Finite Planet: Grassroots perspectives and responses to climate change, resource extraction and economic development Date and Venue: 26-27 November 2012, Oslo Centre for Interdisciplinary Environmental and Social Research (CIENS) The annual conference for the Norwegian Association for Development Research (NFU) is the main arena for debate and academic interchange among development researchers in Norway. In line with our tradition, the annual conference - this year jointly organized by the Centre for International Climate and Environmental Research-Oslo (CICERO) and Noragric/Norwegian University of Life Sciences - will focus on a critical topic for development research. We aim to bridge and promote dialogue between development and climate research. Following Rio +20, this year s conference aims to identify and present academic work that focuses attention on the perspectives and responses of local populations to climate change, resource extraction and growth driven economic development. As such the conference aims to study and discuss how local people deal with the impacts of 1
environmental changes, and highlight the way in which climate change merges with other development challenges. This focus on local people relates to all countries, not just the Global South. New interest has been sparked in rethinking humans dependent relationship with their environment and energy resources. Earlier optimism in economic and technological globalization has been replaced by a growing awareness of the constraints and environmental and climatic damages caused by economic growth and an addiction to fossil fuels. A series of publications and policy reports in recent years draw on the science of climate change, concerns with peak oil, understanding of societal drivers of vulnerability to environmental change, biodiversity loss, poverty and inequality, and experiences of the global economic crisis to argue for rethinking of the linkages between technology, nature and society. There is awareness of the need to rethink conceptions of progress and quality of life, and sustainable models for global economic and social prosperity (zero-growth, non-growth, un-growth, green growth, equitable green growth). Current development models are interfering with fundamental processes in the earth system, including the carbon cycle, and they have also created inequities and social injustice. A transformation of development is required that contributes to more environmentally and socially sustainable pathways. An important shift is therefore starting to take place - albeit nascent- in the international community s awareness of the lack of sustainability of current developmental models (in research, non-governmental organizations as well as in policy circles). There is also an emergent recognition by international organizations and by national governments in the North that rich countries will have to reduce their consumption of carbon-based energy if dangerous climate change is to be avoided. However, it is also striking in these mainstream discussions, which inevitably involve a discussion of capitalism s failures, how the reform of the system is portrayed in potentially benign terms. Change is seen as fluid, unproblematic, often non-paradigmatic, peaceful, and without need of analysis and critique of the magnitude, knowledge and methods that the earlier model of carbon statecraft had established. Meanwhile, there are some worrying developments on the ground. There is increasing understanding of the resourceful and innovative ways that people build their lives and secure basic rights and wellbeing in the face of environmental change. However, these strategies take place within the context of rapid societal changes: recent expansions of commodity markets, food price swings and economic crises have limited people s reactions and responses to environmental change and reduced the policy space of governments to identify and build support for technologies and policies for sustainable 2
development. With recognition of rising environmental threats, a series of policy efforts have been introduced aimed at promoting mitigation (REDD+, Clean Development Mechanisms, low carbon development, climate smart agriculture, transitions to sustainable energy, etc.) and adaptation through local actions and livelihood adjustments. Yet local responses and formal policies do not take place in a vacuum. Development discourses shape climate policies and the way these seek to solve the climate change problem. And reducing poverty is often presented as the central reason for continuing the extraction and use of fossil fuels. Policies and interventions also empower some interests over others. They have the potential to strengthen the voice of vulnerable populations and bring new financial and technological resources and attention to poor populations. But there is also a danger that they may increase vulnerability, exacerbate power imbalances, further existing vested interests, undermine resource rights and local adaptation strategies and reproduce unsustainable development pathways. Focusing on the poor as the center of analysis also begs relational issues, for example, the role of non-poor sectors of societies within and across countries. The question therefore remains how interventions on behalf of the environment affect or reinforce existing development and poverty reduction strategies that have led to unequal growth, or whether these are able to drive a shift to new, more fair and equitable paradigms. Despite the assumption that institutional and technological innovations would guarantee development for the poor, policy efforts aimed at linking environmental protection and development outcomes across the globe have also been met by local resistance. It is with this background that we propose to discuss in this conference whether policy interventions can be made more responsive to local livelihoods requirements, the different values, needs and rights of vulnerable populations. Overall the conference aims to explore and discuss how new models for policy and governance can be made more responsive to the inter-linkages between climate change, development and local actions. Our goal is to promote and raise awareness of these interconnections. As such we launch a call for panels and papers focusing on the following broad themes. The subheadings are suggestions of possible issues and do not aim to be neither prescriptive nor exhaustive. v Civil Society and Local Communities as Agents of Change 3
the role of indigenous knowledge and co-production of knowledge examples of successful bottom up transitions to sustainability and risk preparedness community-based adaptation strategies and sustainable adaptation consequences of mitigation strategies for local and indigenous communities gender issues and women as agents of change the space for empowerment and vulnerability reduction (for whom) in climate interventions potential local communities have in creating spaces for negotiation of access prices and participation in natural resource based markets participation, empowerment and disaster risk preparedness and reduction social movements v The Politics of Climate Change and Development the political economy of natural resource extraction power and social relations in local adaptation to climate change relationships between development discourses, climate policies and conceptions of adaptation the emergence of new concepts in climate policies (climate compatible development, climate smart development, climate proofing) development models, multiple stressors, and the drivers of vulnerability livelihoods, poverty and vulnerability analysis of environmental conflicts the costs and benefits of adaptation and/or mitigation from the bottom up the consequences of carbon economies on the poor the politics of clean energy technologies and policy mechanisms v Ethics, Responsibilities and Climate justice relations between fairness in adaption, mitigation and development the ethics of mitigation vs development values and responsibilities for the future the responsibility to protect and the role of the non-poor the role of human rights, legal norms and legal systems ethical dilemmas raised by adaption strategies coping with value differences for sustainable development subjective and internal dimensions of global environmental change development ethics, climate ethics and global justice perspectives 4
Through this conference we also hope to inspire an increased dialogue on development research and policy with our colleagues in other Nordic countries. Junior scholars (Masters and PhD levels), as well as senior established scholars, are encouraged to take part in the conference and special arrangements will be made for the participation of junior scholars in the conference programme. Proposals for Panels should be sent to the conference coordinator, at nfu2012@cicero.uio.no no later than the 31 st of August. Panels should consist of no more than 4 presenters and one discussant. Panel proposals need to present a 300 words description of the panel, name and affiliation of conveners, and titles and abstracts of all 4 papers (see guidelines for papers) along names and affiliations of authors. We encourage panel proposals to have mix of junior and senior researchers Individual paper abstracts (maximum 300 words) should be sent to the conference coordinator at nfu2012@cicero.uio.no no later than the 31 st of August. The conference organizers withhold the right to place individual papers into panels of similar or related thematic focus. Registration for the conference should be made before the 1 st of October. Costs, payment alternatives and further information about the conference will shortly be available at http://www.cicero.uio.no/nfu2012/. Further links to the event can also be found at the Norwegian Association for Development Research website i.e. http://www.nfu.no/ Travel Grants for MA Students: A selected number of MA students from Norwegian institutions will receive travel and accommodation grant to attend the conference Should you have any further questions or queries regarding the conference please contact: nfu@cicero.uio.no Conference Committee: Siri Eriksen UMB, Håvard Haarstad, UiB/NFU; John-Andrew McNeish, UMB/CMI, Asuncion St Clair CICERO and Trude Rauken, CICERO. 5