Uncommon Cause

Living for Environmental Justice in Kerala
1. Auflage 2024
ISBN: 978-0-520-39551-0
Verlag: University of California Press

Buch, Englisch, 276 Seiten, Trade Paperback, Format (B × H): 228 mm x 152 mm, Gewicht: 374 g

How can activists strike a balance between fighting for a cause and sustaining relationships with family, friends, and neighbors? Uncommon Cause follows environmental justice activists in Kerala, India, as they seek out, avoid, or strive to overcome conflicts between their causes and their community ties. John Mathias finds two contrasting approaches, each offering distinct possibilities for an activist life. One set of activists repudiates community ties and resists normative pressures; for them, environmental justice becomes a way of transcending all local identities and affiliations, even humanity itself. Other activists seek to ground their activism in community belonging, to fight for their own people. Each approach produces its own dilemmas and offers its own insights into ethical tensions we all face between taking a stand and standing with others. In sharing Kerala activists’ diverse stories, Uncommon Cause offers a fresh perspective on environmental ethics, showing that environmentalism, even as it looks beyond merely human concerns, is still fundamentally about how we relate to other people.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Mathias, John

Fachgebiete

• Wirtschaftswissenschaften Volkswirtschaftslehre Internationale Wirtschaft Entwicklungsökonomie & Emerging Markets
• Sozialwissenschaften Soziologie | Soziale Arbeit Soziologie Allgemein
• Naturwissenschaften Biowissenschaften Biowissenschaften Biowissenschaften, Biologie: Sachbuch, Naturführer
• Geowissenschaften Umweltwissenschaften Umweltschutz, Umwelterhaltung
• Sozialwissenschaften Soziologie | Soziale Arbeit Soziale Gruppen/Soziale Themen
• Sozialwissenschaften Ethnologie | Volkskunde Volkskunde Historische & Regionale Volkskunde
• Interdisziplinäres Wissenschaften Wissenschaften Interdisziplinär Entwicklungsstudien

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Contents

List of Illustrations

Acknowledgments

Note on Translation and Orthography

Introduction: Activist Lives

1. Living for the People

2. Living for Our People

3. Uncommon Subjects

4. Unquiet Objects

Conclusion: Life Beyond Activism

Appendix: Note on Methods

Notes

Bibliography

Index

Über Autor(innen)

John Mathias is a cultural anthropologist and associate professor in the College of Social Work at Florida State University, where he teaches on activism, community organizing, and social theory.